How to Order and Organize a Poetry Collection Manuscript

Tips, Resources, and Encouragement

Dear Writer,

When I began trying to make my collection of assorted and sundry poems into an actual manuscript, I felt lost. What poems belonged in the manuscript, and which ones should I leave out? How did a create an “arc” with a bunch of poems I’d created years apart from one another, inspired by very different circumstances? Was it even possible?

I messed around with many different “title poems” and tried organizing the collection around the ideas and images in that poem, but never felt like I had enough of the right kinds of poems to get to a full length collection. So I asked for help from more experienced poets who had published collections, and several of them were kind enough to go through my poems with me. It turned out, according to the most accomplished of these poets, I had two different manuscripts with two different themes, neither of which broke 40 poems.

I was crushed at first. I thought I was ready, and I wasn’t. But then I realized what a gift it was to know the themes that others saw in my work — and that I could give myself an assignment of sorts to write broadly on those two themes, which wasn’t difficult, since I was obviously gravitating towards these themes anyway — death and rebirth for one collection, and romantic relationships in the other.

I also referred to a great article that’s in the archives at Poets and Writers, “Putting Your Poetry in Order: The Mixtape Strategy” by Katrina Vandenberg, which helped immensely.

Within a year I had a manuscript ready to submit, and after a year and a half of submitting, my first book was accepted for publication. As mentioned in the previous letter, the submission process was frustrating at times, and I was often tempted to restructure the manuscript, though I’m glad I didn’t do that and just stuck with it.

Now that I’m an editor, I know more about how to structure a manuscript, and have come up with some tips for you to consider as you put yours together and/or edit it.

Broad Organization

First, take a look at poetry collections you particularly admire, and notice how they are organized in a broad way. Are there numbered sections? Do sections have titles? Are there no sections at all? How does this organizational structure add to the experience of reading the book, and why do you appreciate it? How could you translate that to your own work?

Second, avoid overall organizational structures that have been overdone or are cliched, like the four seasons, the phases of life, etc. Find something different and interesting.

Third, don’t overdo the epigraphs or make sections depend upon them. You probably aren’t going to be able to afford to buy them from their respective owners if they are from popular songs or famous works still under copyright. They are expendable decorations, sometimes a little show-offy, and your book should not rest on their existence.

Some interesting methods of broad organization include having a recurring poem throughout the book with the same title, to bring us back to the arc; having poems in conversation with one another, referring back to an idea or image in a previous poem; and bookending a collection with poems that provide a door in and a door out.

Poem Ordering

Once you’ve decided on a broad organizational framework, it’s time to think about what poems go in each section and in what order. Here are some possibilities to consider:

• Do the poems tell a story of some sort if they are ordered in a particular way, and does this story work in the context of the whole?

• One of our poets, Susan Azar Porterfield, provided this tip: write the first line of each poem on an index card, and the last line of each poem on another index card. Order the poems so that the last line of the previous poem works to move you to the first line of the next poem.

• Be merciless with yourself in terms of weak poems. Often, when we order a manuscript, we notice that there are poems that are very close to one another, almost repetitive. If you see this, either merge the poems together into one poem, or get rid of the one that isn’t as strong.

• Have an editor you trust give you suggestions. If you can’t afford to pay someone, find friends you can exchange manuscripts with. Be open to their suggestions about cutting and moving poems around. It never hurts to try something, even if you’re resistant to it. Actually, especially if you’re resistant to it.

Polishing and Submitting

Your manuscript will be in competition with hundreds, maybe thousands, of other manuscripts, depending upon where you send it. Take the time to show you care enough about your manuscript to polish it and make it the best it can be. This also indicates to editors that you are committed to the process.

• Title your manuscript — you can choose the title of a poem in the collection, or a phrase from a poem. Ask others about the title you’ve chosen. Would it make them want to pick it up and read the book? Or is it a head scratcher? Generally, avoid negative images/messages, jargon, etc.

• Number your pages

• Include a table of contents. Proof it to make sure page numbers are correct.

• Include an acknowledgements page of where individual poems have been published, following the guidelines for individual presses (a few will not want it, but most will)

• PROOFREAD. If you’re not good at it, get help. The copy should be very clean and free of grammatical, punctation, or other errors.

• If the guidelines allow for it, submit a PDF; it preserves spacing and page breaks better than Word.

• Very few presses will print color photos or anything in color in the interior of a book. Don’t include photos or graphics unless you are sure the press is open to those. Don’t include a cover for the book.

• Follow the press’ guidelines and adjust your manuscript and cover letter accordingly. We get cover letters addressed to other presses and manuscripts that don’t follow our guidelines about anonymous submissions for contests; we get manuscripts that are too short and manuscripts that are too long. Don’t rush when you submit, and take the time to double and triple check.

My last piece of advice is probably the most challenging — at least I would have found it so when I was first submitting. Believe in your work and yourself. One of my mentors kept saying “when you publish your book…” and I would say “if I publish my book…” He just laughed and said, “It will happen if you keep at it.” And he was right. So just keep at it. It will happen.

Warmly,

Kris