I’m often surprised by how many authors are writing children’s picture books. I have to be frank—I used to consider a picture book a non-book and its author a non-author. I mean, what does it take to put together 8 or 16 colorful drawings with a few words such as, “Duck,” “Spoon” and “Giraffe” or phrases such as, “Bobby washes his hands?” That’s not a real book, is it? The target audience can’t even read!
Actually, I have discovered that these are real books, that there are publishers out there eager to produce them and that parents, grandparents and librarians are buying them—lots of them. (See my comments about picture books in my July 8, 2009 blog post.)
There’s a lot of latitude when it comes to creating a children’s picture book. The illustrations can be photographs, pen and ink drawings, water color or oil paintings or any variety of other mediums. The text can be simple words and numbers, tell a story or contain a lesson such as the importance of washing your hands. But a children’s picture book is not necessarily a slam dunk, easy-to-write book.
Some authors of these books decide to write stories around their art. Some have a point they want to make such as, rules are for a reason or people and puppies come in all colors. Or they have a solution to a problem or dilemma—it’s cool to wear glasses or veggies are fun to eat.
Picture books come in fiction and nonfiction. But they are not as straightforward and easy to write as one might think. I know this after reading Ann Whitford Paul’s new book, Writing Picture Books, A Hands-On Guide From Story Creation to Publication.
I’ll be writing a full review of this book for the September edition of SPAWNews. Subscribe to this free e-newsletter today at http://www.spawn.org. Click on “FREE newsletter.”
This is no picture book—it’s a substantial 248-page book that speaks to issues such as generating ideas, creating characters and plotting. Ann gives quite a bit of space to the various aspects of rhyming for children’s books. I especially like her section on writing text specifically for young children—what works and what doesn’t.
As I pointed out in my blog post July 8, 2009, writing a children’s picture book is not as easy as it might seem. Sure, the words and phrasing for a children’s are simple—it shouldn’t take a college professor to write a story for a 4-year-old. But writing for children is a more sophisticated art and craft than one would surmise at first glance. And Ann Whitford Paul, award-winning children’s book author and a teacher in this genre at UCLA, lays it all out for you in her new book, Writing Picture Books, A Hands-On Guide From Story Creation to Publication.
For a greater understanding of the publishing industry, your publishing options, the possible consequences of your choices, your responsibility as a published author and much, much more, read my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. And don’t forget, if you are an author and your book is stalled—sales have fallen off—check out my ebook, The Author’s Repair Kit. Heal your publishing mistakes and breathe new life into your book. http://www.matilijapress.com