Formulas...

Writing and illustrating a picture book is not easy. I have been working on a book dummy for several months now, and I have asked countless people for their feedback. I have shown my 32 pages book dummy, made of detailed sketches and typed text, to children, parents, teachers, illustrators and authors.

Valuable information can be obtained from observing a child's reactions to the characters and situations depicted in the book. Her excitement and eagerness to turn the page is validating. Her questions or lack of interest tells me where the story is lacking.

Watching adults hastily flip through the pages, I realize there should be no room for ambiguity in the book dummy. It has to stand on its own without me saying “it is still missing this or that.” And I have come to understand that I must give my backgrounds, even in the sketch phase, as much tender care as I give to my characters. Background, too, tell the story.

The input from all of those who take the time to critique my book dummy has helped me make it better. But from different people comes conflicting advice. I end up stuck, puzzled and frustrated. The essence of the story I want to tell can easily get hijacked and lost. As readers and creators of picture books, we each have a voice, themes that we want to develop, a sense of humor or wisdom that we want to lay on the page as a gift for the children to unwrap.

When doubting my story and my voice, I get tempted to fall back on the safety of a formula.

“See what happens in [insert name of iconic picture book here]? This is how a picture book should be.”

“There can be only one main character.”

“The story arc can only go one way.”

That is my clue that I have temporarily lost my thread, and that I must get back into the spirit of the story I want to tell. I read this poem by Charles Bukowski:

“as the spirit 

wanes 

the form 

appears”