Texas - Authorial Magazine

When I think about my poetry writing,
words, thoughts, and ideas run through
my veins while I’m walking. Then I
would continue to say the words and
lines until I get to the house and open
up the computer where I would put
them all together. I love writing on the
computer. When I’m done, I would
read them to my husband. Then send
them to a friend through email and she
would give her suggestions. Then I go
back to the work, do the edits, and send
them again.
Because I enjoy writing poetry so much
and it lifts my spirits in difficult times, I
wondered if it would help others, or at
least bring out a smile or laughter.
That’s how the brave and foolish idea
of publishing a book of my poetry
began to form. The idea of following my
dream. I found out that Inspiring Voices
publishes poetry for a reasonable price. I
decided to publish a children’s book and
an adult book. They designed the covers
and arranged the poetry into chapters I
had decided. The books looked nice and
it wasn’t too expensive. But the publisher
didn’t help promote the book. I’m not
good at promoting my own books so I
was left with boxes of books.
Later on, a book signing was set up
for me at a local coffee shop. I paid for
advertising in a larger city newspaper
and I sold a few more but I still had
piles of books. I took my children’s
books to a few bookstores, but they said
that, because I was unknown, they would
not sell them.
I received a couple of not so good
feedback about the book. I was told
that the cover was not attractive to both
girls and boys. The fun of publishing
my own books was fading with each
comment from people admitting that
they didn’t care much about poetry.
They didn’t understand or enjoy poetry
and preferred to read a story instead. If
you go to a library or bookstore, you’ll
see how little space is given to poetry.
Poetry is hard to sell. Poets have always
been famous for being poor even in the
old days. Only a few make it, establish a
name for themselves, and make a living
out of their work.
I never thought that my poetry would
make me famous or rich. When I look
through my first editions, I agree that
more editing could have been done.
While I was stuck with boxes of books, I
felt really down. I thought I would have
to accept the idea that I made a mistake.
But I did meet a few people who loved
reading my poetry to their grandchildren
and memorized them. Parents who read
them to their kids. I also have friends
who told me they enjoyed reading my
poetry in the morning before they start
their day. There were also a few cancer
survivors who told me that my adult
book was a great comfort to them while
recovering.
My hopes started to build up again
when a consultant from another
publishing firm. This man, who’s name I
will not reveal in this article for security
purposes, told me he was sad because
my books weren’t selling. He had a good
idea on what to do and how he would
promote my books. I refused and refused
a couple of times. Until I gave in again
for the sake of my dream, and agreed to
let him do what he said he would for a
fixed price.
The company designed new covers,
edited my work, made a website for me.
But I received a lot of feedback from
people telling me that the new cover for
the children’s book was too babyish and
it would make the book look like it was
suited for pre-kindergarten children.
But the contents are for older children.
Choosing the right cover is so important
to me because that is what people see
first. I realized the cover was not a good
too late, I already gave my approval on
the design.
Everything was very costly. When one
promotion didn’t bring in any results,
I was asked to advertise in newspapers
that were too liberal for my taste and
not a good fit for my poetry. They were
very expensive and brought no results
in sales. They also arranged interviews
for me that were aired at times when
my potential conservative readers were
mostly likely not listening. I felt like
a fool with a shriveling bank account.
I decided to let it all go and consider
it all a learning experience in the hard
knocks of life.
For new authors, it’s important that you
do substantial research online and go
through reliable journals or magazines,
forums, for writers. Also, you have to
learn to accept rejections and know that
self-publishing costs money, no matter
who you work with. Some publishing
companies do not have the heart that is
needed to get you through the process
and promote your book in the right
places for your style of writing.
I don’t regret my time spent writing
poetry because it was a wonderful period
in my life. I would like my books to be
found by the readers who enjoy them
and be encouraged by their positive
content. I would like children to discover
my books and enjoy their nonsense, fun
and even be encouraged to write their
own poetry.
As I stated before, my writing usually
starts with a walk. It has been a long
time since I last wrote a poem. I’m
guessing it’s probably because of my
publishing frustration. It may come back
to me someday. I still write children’s
plays for a school’s forensic program.
I have temporary writer’s block every
now and then, but I learned to let the
frustration go. The moment I do, I can
write again.
About the author: Sylvia Stern never
gets tired of seeing beautiful things. Just
the other day, she and her husband were
taking pictures of a road with maples
in fall colors forming a canopy over the
road. Nature is her favorite subject but
she also writes about feelings, memories,
and things that make her laugh. She
enjoys watching the sky. Her other
interests include collecting and reading
books from old poets before 1900. She
also likes history which gives her an
idea about what people thought about,
enjoyed, and celebrated in the past.
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