A Writing Diet

Okay.  So I am now on a diet.  I've never actually gone on one before.  But I'm determined.  Hope to be a size 8 by my birthday in 9 months.  It's only 3 dress sizes, but "eating right" just isn't enough for me, so I am counting calories - strictly.  And carbs, too.  I've counted fat grams before, and protein grams.  And even loosely counted calories combined with running (training for a 10K).  That worked, and I lost 15 pounds, but a year and a half later, it's all back.  I just spent $31 on produce!  And $32 on "slim fast" and beef jerky!  I'm in Day 4, and already lost 2.5 pounds!  After the first month, it'll slow down to about a pound a week.  Works for me!  I've always only been able to lose a pound a month (except for the 10K time), with exercise alone, albeit sporadic nonetheless.

So what does this have to do with writing?  Well apparently my learning curve for losing weight is taking front seat to all my energies, so I have inadvertently been on a writing diet, as a by-product.  I spent two whole days reading my new diet/exercise book (thrift store find).  I've barely been able to squeeze in a moment for my blog posts, but I managed.  When I "master" my cooking and menu options, my time will once more be maximized for more regular writing.  I'm really not procrastinating.  I REALLY want to do some writing!!!  But I've been procrastinating good health for far too long.  Who knows?  Maybe I'll write about it some day.

Keep on keepin' on!

Nonfiction Fun

Most of us write because we have a story to tell. I think that's especially true with picture books. But in this specialized field, it is extremely hard to break into print, especially when writing fiction, even if it IS a good yarn.

Lots of professionals advise to try breaking into print through nonfiction. I love nonfiction, especially books about animals. And so do children. But what you write must have a unique slant to it.

My favorite writers of nonfiction are Steve Jenkins, April Pulley Sayre, and Gail Gibbons. They all write about animals. And many of their books also include back matter. Take Steve Jenkins' Actual Size, for example. Each 2-page spread only contains one sentence. But the back matter consists of four pages that include a full paragraph about each of the 18 animals listed in the book.

I ran across an article that I found a very interesting tidbit of information about the general word length and printing of picture books. It said:

The picture book may have as little as one sentence, or just two or three words per two-page spread. The absolute maximum for a two page spread is 200 words. The ideal text is shorter.

When you do the math, that puts a book with the typical 14 2-page spreads at 2,800 words! It's no wonder that most publishers cap off the word limit at 2,000 (although usually 1,500 or even 1,000). It totally makes sense!

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How to Analyze a Picture Book with a Story Board

>>> DOWNLOAD FREE TEMPLATE <<<

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One publisher in particular, Sylvan Dell Publishing, is well-known in the education world for their popular books about animals and nature. The books they publish are not strictly nonfiction. They are mostly fiction with numerous facts intertwined into the story. The back matter in their books consists of a section called For Creative Minds. One good book they published is Blackberry Banquet by Terry Pierce, among many, many more! They always tie into the early elementary curriculum, too.

Well, on to writing. I'm working on my non-fiction! Woo-hoo! Making leaps and bounds in my series proposal. Thinking of sending it off for a professional critique, even.

Keep on keepin' on.

6 Tips on Writing Picture Books

Author, Kathleen Pelley, advises these 6 tips to anyone wanting to write a picture book, as found on the guidetoliteraryagents.com.

Read Aloud

Read picture books that you absolutely love - aloud. Read all the others silently first. And when you find one you love, read it over and over again - aloud.

Find Space to Listen to Your Inner Voice

Give your writer self the space you need to listen to your stories.

Wonder

Try to write your own books as though it were someone else's that took your breath away. Write with wonder, so it will take someone's breath away.

Trust Beyond Yourself

Trust the creative process, whether it be called the Muse, God, the Divine, or something else. Know that it exists and acknowledge its presence when you write.

Find Heaven

Write about what makes your heart sing.

Love

"Love the world the way you did when you were a little child."

If you love picture books and you want to be a published picture book author, you might like to learn how to analyze a picture book with a storyboard template.

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How to Analyze a Picture Book with a Story Board

>>> DOWNLOAD FREE TEMPLATE <<<

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Summer

When I went to the beach last week, I watched the 2 and 3 year old girls play in the pool of water we created in a big sand pit.  What did I do?  Covered myself with wet sand, like mud.  You can't get a sunburn if there's mud all over your arms and legs.  It actually felt kind of good.  That only lasted for about 10 minutes, though.

So here's today's poem by Myra Cohn Livingston.  I found it in an anthology for kids, Snuffles and Snouts.  The poems were selected by Laura Robb and the pictures were done by Steven Kellogg.  Enjoy!

Summertime

Was ever a pig

contented as this,

to roll in the mud 

and know the bliss

of cooling off

in the muck

and grime,

having the grubbiest 

mussiest

time?

and then, when he's cool,

to slowly rise

and dry himself off

in the summer skies,

and sniff for his supper

and slop up his feed--

What else does

a happy

piggy 

need? 

 

Pass the Paper: Tabitha Loves to Dance

Saturday's Surprise is here!  It's called Pass the Paper.  Pass the Paper is when one person writes a line (or a few) and passes the paper to the next person to write a few lines to add to the story.  Every Saturday, I'll post a few lines to begin a story, and you, my readers, will make comments to add to the story.  By the end of the day (or the week), we will have collectively participated in a writing exercise to produce what will most likely be a silly story. This is lots of fun; the more the merrier!

Here is the very first Pass the Paper story starter:

Tabitha loved to wear different kinds of hats.  She also loved to dance.  One day, she wore her purple striped fuzzy floppy hat to the park to...

A Little Closer

I just spent nearly a week visiting my family at the beach.  My dad lives about an hour or so inland from North Myrtle Beach.  I also visited with two of my three sisters.  One of my sisters was gracious enough to critique a story of mine.

I came home late Monday night.  And you know what I did Tuesday?  Here's a hint, a didn't unpack.  You guessed it, I spent hours rewriting my story - again!  Every time, it keeps getting closer.  How will I ever know when I've arrived?  I don't know.  But I do know I'm getting closer.  Just like my son here, at the candy shop.  "Just a little closer..."

 (Actually, I had him pose.  I'm surprised it wasn't candid.)

Here's a couple other fun pics.
Samantha:  "Toppled."
Shawn and Wesley:  "My fish is the biggest.  No MY fish is bigger!"

Beach Story

This week's Gemstone:  Father Sea

• by Clayton Creek, illustrated by Christopher Creek
• published by Granite Publishing
• 2001
• Summary: An old man on the beach collects sand dollars and repairs them.  It's an allegory to how Christ makes us whole.

Sparkle Element:  Because I've been at the beach since July 7, I wanted to share a beach/ocean story.  I LOVE the illustrations and the message in this book.  The text is fairly simple and short (although I don't know the exact word count).  If your library owns a copy, it would be a great bedtime story.  Enjoy!

Revision

Re-Vision:  Seeing Again.

I'm reading an old college writing book (1995), but it still has lots of merit.  The Craft of Revision by Donald Murray, in its second edition, contains the following chapters.

1. Write to Re-Write
2. Read to Re-Write
3. Re-Write to Write
4. Re-Write to Focus
5. Re-Write to Collect
6. Re-Write to Shape
7. Re-Write to Order
8. Re-Write to Develop
9. Re-Write with Voice
10. Re-Write to Edit
11. Afterword:  Re-Write Yourself

It contains lots of case histories, exercises, and detailed examples of how to revise, down to the paragraph, line, and word.  Upon picking this book up again, I read something in the prologue that resonated with me:

First readings by the student writer, the instructor, and classmates should focus on potential, not error.

I think this is sometimes easier said than done, but should try to be implemented each time we read a new manuscript.  I think anyone that wants to write, has a passion for it, has a good story to tell, can write well, IF they can also revise.  Revision is so important to good writing because no one can always (if ever) make the first draft perfect.  Re-read last month's quote, which goes right along with today's message.  The first reading/critique should focus on potential, the big picture of the story, possibilities of what could be.  Later on,  there will be time for worrying over the minute (but also very important) details of sentence structure and word choice.  We all have potential, and so do (most of) our stories.  There's always that one that we just can't seem to make work no matter how hard we try.

Happy writing and keep on keepin' on!