At some point in every writer’s journey, a quiet voice begins whispering a dangerous question: Why them—and not me? Maybe you see a debut picture book announcement on social media. Or a friend celebrates getting a new agent. Or a writer who began at the same time...
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Every writer collecting submissions will eventually collect something else as well: rejections. They arrive in many forms—polite passes, form responses, the occasional champagne...
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Every writer I know has encountered writer’s block at one point or another. Sometimes it arrives quietly—a vague resistance when you sit...
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In the writing world we often say there are two kinds of plotters—outliners, who work from a carefully planned story map, and...
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One of the most common issues I see when reviewing picture book manuscripts is this: a story that’s pleasant, charming, or even...
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Many writers assume that depth comes from complexity—that richer stories require more plot, more explanation, more moving parts. But picture books teach us...
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Picture books are often thought of as "simple." Short sentences. Only so many pages. A quick read. But anyone who has ever tried...
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Dialogue in picture books does a lot of heavy lifting. Good dialogue: - Reveals character - Builds tension - Moves the plot forward - Delivers conflict -...
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Let’s start with a confession. For years, I used “voice” and “tone” interchangeably. And the truth is, in casual conversation, many writers do....
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There’s a particular magic to picture books that still thrills me—even after years of writing, editing, and teaching them: In roughly 32 pages...
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