Why on Earth did I Change my Historical Sections to Poetry?

vanessajknipe
May 9
3 min read

The Tapestry of Caroline's Wish, another of my character drawings.

A little Back Story

Recently you might have seen me having a moan on social media. Why, oh why, I said, Did I come up with this ridiculous idea? More importantly, why am I still going ahead with it, despite all the work?

Well, it all goes back to this time last year. I was reading through my novel yet again, after the seventh rejection, trying to work out what was wrong or missing. The last publishing house did give me some helpful feedback, but I had no idea what it meant. The thing is, I knew this story had potential. There was something in there that really called to me.

Without a publisher, I’d have to self-publish. I wasn’t about to send out a product I knew had something missing. I needed a second opinion. To get one of those, you have to spend money, but I knew this story was worth it.

Decision Time

Certain that this story had good bones, I set about looking for the proper person. In this case, that would be a Developmental Editor. They needed to be someone younger than me, because I am very aware that quite often my writing is stuck in the 80s. Someone who knew the audience better than I do (which won’t be difficult), and someone who was also self-published.

Just so you know, if you find yourself in need of a Developmental Editor, I highly recommend K.B. Spangler. They saw straight through to the heart of the problem. It took a while, because they were hit by a hurricane during the review period, but when you find the person you believe can help, then you wait.

So, what was the Verdict?

I’m sure you can understand that half the time I was expecting a verdict of this is total trash, but phrased more politely. The rest of the time, I forced a more positive mindset. (Of course, sneakily, I was hoping for a ‘Oh this is perfect, just as it is. All the publishers missed out on the next bestseller.)

Thankfully, it wasn’t declared rubbish. The editor pointed out that one plot thread was so outdated that it would be offensive to the modern audience. Right, that can be pulled. Next, the main male character slouches around, observing not acting. Good, I can sort that. Oh, and by the way, the historical sections are the weakest part of your novel.

What? Oh yes, I’ve been skim-reading them myself on every read through. Now, what was I supposed to do?

What an Amazing Idea!

The insanity hit, just as I was falling asleep. I get my best ideas in that state, so it’s not surprising I took this one more seriously than I might have otherwise done.

See, there’s that part in Section 3.7, where the female main character (a high school teacher) hands out a copy of an Anglo-Saxon poem to her English class. The very poem that she translated during her M.A. and based her tapestry on (pictured above). So, there should be a poem in the book. Right?

What if, all the historical sections of the book were written as a pseudo-Anglo-Saxon Epic Poem?

I dutifully wrote this idea in the notebook, that I keep on my bedside table for just this occurrence, and went to sleep.

The Morning After the Night Before

Looking at the page in my notebook the next morning, I decided I’d succumbed to temporary insanity. As the day wore on, however, and still I couldn’t come up with any other ideas, the poem started looking more reasonable. Surely, it wouldn’t be that difficult?

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

I trudged through turning 8,000 words of historical research[i] into something that looked poem-shaped. Then, with Beowulf, The Wanderer, Judith, and The Battle of Malden open, I added alliteration and Anglo-Saxon word forms: Wielder of Glory, Battle-proven warriors. I later added Sir Gawain and the Green Knight to my open tabs.

Then came another shock. I didn’t need all 8,000 words. All I needed were the major turning points: the birth of the twins, Lynna’s Prophecy, Donovan’s Midsummer Vision. And the unfinished end.

It is nothing like an Anglo-Saxon Epic Poem. It has a much looser structure. It’s more like a prose poem than an Epic, but hopefully by the time I’ve finished, it will have the flavour of an Anglo-Saxon Epic.