Thinking about writing a novel in verse? The novel-in-verse is a unique form that merges elements of poetry and fiction, and is gaining popularity in the kidlit community as a powerful storytelling form. In this workshop, we’ll discuss the craft and thematic elements that make for a strong novel-in-verse, explore some examples of effective novels in verse, and engage in exercises to investigate this form for our own narratives.

We’ll also learn about tools to carry in your novel-in-verse toolbox including sound, repetition, line breaks, the stanza, “the rules of the poem” and more. Learn how to establish and disrupt patterns of form as well as integrate motifs to make your novel really shine. We’ll walk through the process of how I’ve approached form in my adult poetry, as well as my novel-in-verse Good Different, and will have time for exercises playing with form. If you’d like, feel free to bring some poems from your novel-in-verse that you’d like to play with.