A Question from an email
rhapsody October 13th, 2007
from Barbara Beyer Malley:
“These comments make me
very, very happy. I have been
feeling sad because for some
reason, my new activity book,
Read Me a Rhyme, Please, has
not done well since publication
a year ago. It may be because
it is much longer than the first
two and therefore much more
expensive. But the publisher
kept saying, “The longer the
better.” I would appreciate
feedback. I know the poems
are wonderful. Could it be
that the illustrations are off-
putting because some are too
much like cartoons? Thank you
dear people for lifting my spirits.
Jeeves, Jr.”
Well, in my opinion $19.95 is not
an outrageous price for an activity
book of this quality – an excellent
teaching tool that can be used over
& over again for instruction, & for
the introduction of both reader &
listener to the ever-enchanting
verse of Ernestine Cobern Beyer.
Barbara has, for quite a while now,
allowed me to publish her mother’s
work on this blog. For the month
of October, ’spooky’ poems will once
again be featured.
For anyone interested, search this
blog for the poetry of Ernestine
Cobern Beyer – & please comment
if you find yourself enchanted by
the work of this woman, who sang
with Enrico Caruso before giving up
singing to raise her family, provided
additional income by her published
verse, & received an award from
the National League of American
Penwomen in the early seventies,
before she passed away…
& are as confused as I am as to why
she has remained a virtually unknown
American treasure.
I thank you again for taking the time
to be delighted by her delightful work,
which will continue to be posted here,
so long as I’m a-bloggin’!
************************
Is the book being advertised where teachers and parents can see it?
I know my sister (the teacher) read her class one of the poems published in the blog, and the kids loved it. If the book were made available to schools, maybe there’s an opportunity for some grass-roots marketing: teachers will read to the kids, kids will ask for the book, and parents will buy them.
Thank you Thomas – I heartily agree with you…
& will pass along your comment to Barbara, who I am sure will greatly appreciate you having taken the time to write!
Hi Thomas,
How right you are in your ideas about what SHOULD have happened with this “Poetry Primer for Pre-Schoolers through Second Grade.” The publishers, Humanics Learning, were fully expecting, as was I, that the book would have national appeal. I know they brought copies of Read Me a Rhyme, Please to a big convention last fall, and it was advertised in a New Books for Children catalogue, but for some mysterious reason, it just hasn’t sold. My first activity book based on Ernestine’s poems, Poetry with a Purpose, sold over 22,000 copies, after which I lost track. I will gladly mail a copy of the latest book both to you and and your sister, perhaps in care of her school. I truly long to know what went wrong.
With gratitude for your interest,
Barbara
Barbara-
I appreciate the offer, but this year my sister is teaching math to older students, so I’m not sure there would be much of an opportunity for her to read poetry.
Grasping at straws here, maybe instead of books you could sell posters. I’m looking at the “Luke the Duke” poem, and it would be pretty easy to surround it with spooky images that a teacher could hang on her wall. You might make a little off the posters, but more importantly, it would have your name at the bottom- and that could lead to book sales.
You might consider releasing a few of your poems under a Creative Commons license. That way, people would be free to post your poem as long as they gave attribution. You’d lose income from the poem, of course, but might make up for it when people go looking for your books.
It might also payoff to place a few banner ads on websites that cater to teachers and home-schoolers.
I’m realy just thinking out loud. I think your poems are wonderful, and I’m as baffled as you are about why they aren’t selling.
~Thomas
Thomas, you are a dear to spend so much time trying to help me with the book of poems by my mom and the exercises that go with them. I will share this with my daughter, the BU psychology professor, and see what her reaction is.
BBM
Hello again, Thomas. My daughter thought the idea for posters was a good one. I tried to interest local schools and a Montessori school in the book. My mom was such a popular children’s poet in her day, and my first activity book based on her poems did so well, I’m baffled. Haven’t figured out yet how to go about using Creative Commons but have a note to myself to try that, too.
Thanks again for your thoughtful suggestions.
And thank you, too, Rhapsody, for all your kindnesses.
Ernestine’s daughter
Ernestine’s daughter Barbara