10 Facts About Valerie Bloom and Her Poems

Here are ten facts about Valerie Bloom, the poet and children’s writer.

Some of these facts you might know already, but hopefully some of them will be new to you.

  • Valerie Bloom was born in Clarendon, Jamaica in 1956. She had eight brothers and sisters.

  • Valerie had written lots of stories when she was a child, but only started writing poetry when she was a teenager. She had her first poem published when she was just eighteen years old.
  • She moved to England in 1979 and went to the University of Kent, Canterbury.
  • Valerie has had many collections of her poems published. One of her favourites is called Fruit – a counting poem for younger children that includes the names of some of the Caribbean fruits.
  • Many of Valerie’s poems are influenced by her Caribbean origins. She writes in English, but she often includes Jamaican patois, too.
  • Valerie writes the first drafts of her poems very quickly in pen. She edits and shapes them and then types the final version on a computer.
  • Her poems have appeared in over 100 anthologies.
  • Valerie Bloom’s performances of her poetry are really popular. She has read her work on TV and radio many times.
  • She was made a MBE in 2008.
  • Valerie doesn’t just write poems. She also writes novels. Her first published novel was called Surprising Joy.

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