Be a Word Collector

There is magic in the art of word collecting.  What starts with noticing leads to wonderment. For me, each seasonal encounter with life opens a new world of thought as ideas pop and squirm, then find a spot to land.  Each landing invites opportunity to create and massage words into nuggets of thoughts.  From this point onward, thoughts crystalize and dance around the page until their placement is finely suited for their surroundings. 

Word collecting is an essential stage of writing; the foundation that links the noticing stage to the development of thought, leading to multiple possibilities.  Trusting myself as a writer brings me closer to the power of pen to paper or keyboard to print.  Remembering that it takes time to collect words and understand their potential excites me. 

Author and illustrator Peter H. Reynolds introduced the idea of word collecting as a important phase of a child's development as a writer in his inspirational picture book, The Word Collector.  You can listen to Peter's short introduction to his book by clicking on the illustration below. 

Are you ready to notice, reach for your own words, and wonder how to use them to tell your story?  Be a word collector and let each new word, set of words, and thoughts lead you to wonderment and creation.  I invite you to notice the world, listen for words that amaze you, and create like I did below. You can use Buncee to bring your words to life.

Below is poem 2 of a three-poem series in my Be a Word Collector series. 

At the end of Peter Reynolds' book, Jerome watches joyful children collecting the words he released.  Like Jerome, I wish to celebrate words.  I am looking for children to send me their words transformed into seasonal poems for future galleries of artistic expressions.  Voice becomes amplified when we find authentic ways to let them soar.  

If you stroll over to Laura Purdie Salas' blog site you will see why she is so excited this week. Stay long enough, add to her Padlet, and perhaps you will win a free, signed, personalized copy of her newest published book, Snack, Snooze, Skedaddle. 

Thank you, Laura for hosting Poetry Friday this week.