Writers@Work: The Power of Reading and Writing Poetry
An Interview with Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong
by Rochelle Melander
Where did the idea for My Kooky Compendium of Thimblethoughts and Wonderfuzz come from?
JW: I was a guest speaker at a writer’s conference. Someone asked, “What should writers be writing right now?”—and, a little surprisingly, I answered, “funny poems.” This surprised me because I had never focused on humor in my work before. Soon after that, Sylvia and I talked about our next project, and—voilà!
SV: We have always included a bit of humor in our anthologies, but that’s never been the focus. We both thought NOW was the time for some laughter and fun.
What are thimblethoughts and wonderfuzz and how can writers use them in their daily lives?
JW: Thimblethoughts = random little facts we know. Wonderfuzz = random little questions we have.
SV: Clever Janet coined these two words and I loved them immediately! Then we had so much fun concocting examples of each. Janet is really good at generating “off the wall” questions and wonderfuzz elements and my strength was in researching odd and quirky factoids or thimblethoughts. We packed the book with TONS of both!
I read an essay from a person who said she was turning to poetry to find solace during this challenging time. How has poetry supported you two throughout the years?
SV: Poetry has offered very practical benefits to me over the years—as a child learning English as a second language, as a teacher of squirmy children, and as a professor working with future teachers and librarians. I have loved the poetry package: the short, pithy, focused use of words and ideas—sometimes thoughtful, sometimes funny, sometimes deeply moving. Now, I try to find the “just-right” poem to read aloud whenever there is any kind of a gathering.
JW: When I am feeling sad or angry, I usually do NOT feel like reading. I feel like complaining or venting. (Or eating!) Writing a poem is a great way to get those feelings out (and less fattening). Those poems might not be candidates for publication, but getting that negativity out, outside of myself, is useful. After you write about something that is bothering you, you can move on and do positive and productive things.
But reading poems—when you’re not overly sad or angry—is a great way to fill yourself up with what you need during those emotionally-charged moments. It’s the healthy carb loading or protein replenishment that an athlete does before and after a tournament. In the heat of the moment, you might not think consciously about what Naomi Shihab Nye said, but that compassion she planted in your heart is there. It fuels you and keeps you from crashing.
What are some ways writers can use poetry tools in their everyday writing?
JW: My poetry teacher Myra Cohn Livingston used to say (when she didn’t like what I’d written), “Can you put a little more music in it?” I think this works for any kind of writing. You might be working on an essay. If you can put in some assonance or consonance, a bit of alliteration or internal rhyme, or maybe a simile, you probably can make the text stronger.
SV: Janet teases me about this, but my advice is always to cut, cut, cut. Poems are all about the power of just a few words, key images, vivid vocabulary—nothing extra. Think: less is more. Writers of prose and narrative might experiment with “thinking like a poet” and envisioning a draft of key text as a column of key words and phrases to help them decide what to keep and what to eliminate. Maybe?
What are you reading now?
JW: Because I am all about pickleball (ALL the time), I’m reading Pickleball Mindset: The Blueprint for Peak Performance by Dayne Gingrich and Jill Martin. The main premise is that the old style of play—with coaches discouraging aggressive play and emphasizing patient, controlled, soft play (dinking and resets)—is outmoded. Today’s players require an active approach; you need to constantly look for opportunities to pounce.
I think this applies to the publishing industry, too. Traditional publishers used to discourage authors from getting out there to “sell” our work; they would frown on “blatant self-promotion.” But there are so many things competing for people’s attention nowadays, it has become necessary to make opportunities happen. I think this is a good thing: we should be proud of our work, right?
SV: I agree with Janet! And I think it can be particularly challenging for women writers (and publishers) because for years we were taught to be modest and humble and self-effacing, not to brag about ourselves. But we live in an “attention” economy and writers, artists, and poets have to compete for a piece of that pie, especially with social media. Personally, I follow many writers and artists on social media and often comment on their new releases. I’m lucky enough to score advance copies of some of their books and am currently reading Jeannine Atkins’ beautiful new memoir in verse, Knocking on Windows, and Eugene Yelchin’s powerful graphic memoir, I Wish I Didn’t Have to Tell You This. (Yes, I love memoirs and biographies!)
About the authors
Sylvia M. Vardell is Professor Emerita in the School of Library and Information Studies at Texas Woman’s University where she taught graduate courses in children’s and young adult literature for more than 20 years. Vardell has published extensively, including five books on literature for children as well as over 25 book chapters and 100 journal articles.
Janet Wong is a graduate of Yale Law School and a former lawyer. She has written more than 40 books for children on a wide variety of subjects, including chess (Alex and the Wednesday Chess Club) and yoga (Twist: Yoga Poems). She is the 2021 winner of the NCTE Excellence in Poetry for Children Award, a lifetime achievement award that is one of the highest honors a children’s poet can receive.
Together, Vardell & Wong are the creative forces behind Pomelo Books, a publisher whose anthologies feature the work of more than 250 poets.
