Verse Novel Week and a Poem by Moi

I'm thrilled to be a guest on the Clear Eyes, Full Shelves podcast this week as they kick off Verse Novel Week. In this hour-long episode, we talk about verse novels and Friday Night Lights because, you know, that's how we roll.

I've found podcasts are great to listen to when you have boring chores to do, like mopping the floor or cleaning the bathroom. They have lots of other great ones to listen to - definitely check out their library of past episodes!

Here's the link to the one I'm on: http://cleareyesfullshelves.com/blog/podcast-22

National Poetry Month is almost over, and today I thought I'd share one of my favorite poems from one of my own books. This one comes from The Day Before, and I still remember how satisfied I felt after I wrote it. It was the perfect metaphor for what was happening to Amber at that point in the book. I also remember that when I got the (very) marked-up manuscript from my editor, this poem only had one mark on it - a big, red heart. Wheee!

tell me your story

Many times
when I read a book,
I want to savor
each word,
each phrase,
each page,
loving the prose
so much,
I don't want it
to end.

Other times
the story pulls me in,
and I can hardly
read fast enough,
the details flying by,
some of them lost
because all that matters
is making sure
the character
is all right
when it's over.

This day
is like the best kinds
of books.

I want to cherish
each moment and yet,
I've got to know
that this character
named Cade
will be okay
when this story
ends.