Hello lovely picture book writers and illustrators! What an honor it is to be your guest blogger this month.
You’ve done it! You’re over the halfway mark! I hope all of you have had a productive year so far. As summer rolls in, and the days get very busy, I hope you still manage to find pockets of time to continue your craft, even if it’s just jotting down thoughts on some scrap paper in the car on the way to the campground.
So far most of the 12 x 12 bloggers have been writers, but my background comes more from the art side of things. I have always loved the relationship between words and pictures and the way they magically merge to tell a story. As a kid I would pour over picture books, as a teen I collected graphic novels, and when the movie Toy Story came out, I wanted to get a job creating something, anything, as cool as that.
So I studied animation and visual effects, which led me to a career as a visual effects artist in the film industry. Working on motion pictures over the years has been a fantastic journey, and I have learned much about how elements such as pacing, composition, and even lighting and color can shape visual storytelling.
While, I’ve been fortunate enough to have worked on some exciting projects with many talented people, something kept coming up in my thoughts. Sure, I was working on these awesome projects, but ultimately, I was bringing other people’s visions to life. Deep down, I really wanted to create my own. There was a little voice inside me that said, “Hey you! You have a lot of ideas! DO something with them already!” I just didn’t quite know how to shape those ideas yet, or how to unearth them.
Then, after my kids were born, and I was reading a lot of picture books again, I realized how much I love this artform. I decided to give it a go and dove in head first, and I’m still swimming.
The journey as a picture book author and/or illustrator is not easy. In fact, it’s incredibly tough. But it’s also very rewarding. It exercises our brainboxes and gives us a creative outlet that is meaningful and amazing. I love this community because writers like you are the hardest working, most creative and passionate people I know. Keep swimming, my friends.
I’ll leave you with a few bits of insight I have learned so far as an author/illustrator. I hope you find some nuggets here that are useful!
1. Let the illustrations “write” the story as much as the words.
One of the wonderfully unique qualities of picture books is their harmony between words and images. Making the relationship between the text and the illustrations interesting, playful, and thoughtful is key to making a great picture book. Be conscious about giving the illustrator space. Much of the story (or sometimes all of the story) will be told through the pictures. The illustrations will reveal details about the characters, the setting, and the action, so there is often no need to add those details in the text. On revision, and especially when I start sketching and visualize things more clearly, I typically end up cutting out a lot of unnecessary text.
2. Create a dummy book, regardless of if you are an illustrator or not.
Take 4 pieces of regular typing paper. Fold them in half and half again, and staple them together. Or, if you prefer, get a few cheap handy little 5×3 sketchbooks from your local art supply store. Voilà – it’s the start of a dummy book!
If you are an illustrator, you can start sketching things out roughly. If you are not an illustrator, you can break up the text across the pages as you would read it. Or draw stick figures or anything that helps indicate your thoughts. I find that making a dummy helps immensely to give a clear understanding of the overall pacing and rhythm of the story.
3. Make use of the page turns.
Can they be used to heighten the drama, make a big reveal, or utilized in other clever ways?
4. Consider wordless pages.
I used wordless pages in both my books and they are some of my favorite spreads. In Mae and the Moon, I have a page that says; The next night the moon was . . . .
And the following spread is wordless with a black moonless sky dotted with stars.
When I read that to kids, they always shout out “Gone!”
I just love that kids tend to fill in the missing text themselves and add their own little narrations.
5. Be OKAY with making a lot of bad drawings and bad drafts.
It takes a long time to improve and hone your craft. With writing you can revise, revise, revise, and usually shape and rework your story. Sometimes though, it’s best to just move onto something else and hope that the next story is better. It likely will be.
With illustration, you can revise and rework to a degree. In fact, I think I love painting digital mostly because there’s an undo button! But generally, I find the more I draw a character, the more comfortable I get, and the better my drawings become.
6. Experiment, and don’t be afraid of big changes.
Sometimes even really big changes. Both in the text and the illustrations. My two books changed enormously in the process of making them. Mae and the Moon was initially a poem I wrote for my daughter in the first person about the moon following her, and it ended up being a narrative about her going on an adventure to find the moon when it disappears.
In an early draft of Seb and the Sun, he made a solar sail ship. It ended up with him rowing a boat out to sea and catching the sun in a bucket. The stories ended up being completely different from how they started.
For those of you who illustrate, don’t forget to experiment with different angles, (ie. bird’s eyes view, close up, establishing wide angle etc), and color choice. To help your drawing, you might want to build a little sculpture of your character you can use as a model. Definitely experiment by drawing a few versions of your characters before settling on them.
Also one important thing is to not be too precious with your work. I would recommend keeping things rough until you really feel the story is working. Things are apt to change
7. Saturate yourself with inspiration.
Of course read and study picture books. A LOT! But, I would also recommend looking to film for inspiration. Watch a Miyazaki film, or the Iron Giant (I love that film). Seek out new writers and artists. Go to galleries. Spend your lunch hour at the library. Listen to children’s conversations. Take a nice long hike.
8. Think like a kid!
I love picture books because they not only inspire children, but bring out the child in adults. And let’s face it, anyone who writes or illustrates picture books really is a big kid at heart. Tap into that!
Jami Gigot is the author/illustrator of the picture books MAE AND THE MOON and SEB AND THE SUN, both published by Ripple Grove Press. Jamie also works as a digital artist on motion pictures. In addition to writing and drawing, she enjoys combing the shoreline for treasures with her family. Originally from Madison, Wisconsin, she now lives in Vancouver, BC.
This month, Jami is giving away a copy of each of her books, so we will have two July check-in winners. Better get writing!
196 Responses
Jami – I loved your motivation for cutting out my text which is sometimes so hard to do – Let my kid readers fill in the words I would have used!! Thank you!
This is such sound advice, Jami, especially this: Let the illustrations “write” the story as much as the words. But as a “wordie”, I struggle with it. Any advice on how to let go of some words?
Hi Barb,
I think sometimes letting go of unnecessary description/adjectives can help as that can be shown with the illustrations. And also action can be cut. For example in Extra Yarn the text never says “and the box floated back across the sea to Abigail” because we can see that action clearly. I really think trying your hand at a dummy book will help. Good luck! 😄
Jami, Both these books are delightful to read AND to look at! Thanks for giving us your insights. They’re definitely useful.
I love doing thumbnail sketches of stories. They are awful (and often need labels to identify what exactly is there), but it deepens my understanding of my characters. Your books are lovely. Thanks for the advice–especially about the wordless spreads.
Your insights are great! #6 is hitting home for me this week as I am learning that revision is not only necessary, it sometimes leads in a direction that is completely unexpected but so much better. Thank you for the blog!
Love the story of your journey! And I’m 100% on board with all of your advice!
Page turns…wordless pages…yes, Jami…these are wonderful techniques. I love getting the perspective from an author/illustrator…so valuable!
Congratulations on your successful picture books! Thanks for the insights.
Thank you for each piece of advice, especially #6! Reinventing a ms can often feel like failure and it’s nice to reminded it’s just a part of the process. Thanks for sharing how both of your books changed.
Lots of good reminders …yes, #5 & 6 ! It takes much time and patience. Give it to yourself.
It’s always informative to hear the illustrator’s view. I really enjoyed your advice for writers, Jami. You have worked hard to achieve success. Congrats and more!
Lots of good reminders …yes, #5 & 6 ! Thank you.
Thank you so much for your insights. I know I’ve gotten better at leaving room for the illustrator, but there is always room for improvement!
Perfect timing on these tips for what I’m working on. Thanks!
What a pleasure to get the illustrator’s viewpoint on creating picture books. Thank you!
Jami – Lots of excellent reminders in your post. I think # 2 will help a lot during revisions and I will try it out this month. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much for sharing your insight as an author illustrator. You have provided me with lots of wonderful information to use as I attempt to become both.
Thanks for sharing your insight as an author illustrator. You have provided me with lots of wonderful information to use as I attempt to become both.
Great advice for both authors and illustrators! And I am definitely a kid at heart! 🙂
Jami, Thank you for your insights from a perspective I can only allude to when writing. I see in my mind all of the wonderful things I imagine as I write, but know I can never accomplish those ideas in a visual way. You are blessed to be able to carry both talents. Best of wishes for your writing/illustrating journeys.
Thank you, Jami, for your insights from a perspective I can only allude to when writing. I see in my mind all of the wonderful things I imagine as I write, but know I can never accomplish those ideas in a visual way. You are blessed to be able to carry both talents. Best of wishes for your writing/illustrating journeys.
Thanks so much, Jami! Both beautiful books! Great tips and inspiration, especially about creating a dummy, and being prepared for big changes! All the best!
Jami,
Thanks for your perspective as a writer-illustrator. I am in revisions and it seems endless. Patience I all areas of my life including political is in order.
I look forward to reading your work.
Sue
Thank you so much for the wonderful insights!
Thanks so much, Jami. Wonderful advice!
I loved the advice to let the illustrations help “write” the story. I always feel the illustrations bring my words to life. Thank you for sharing. Writers’ sharing is always inspiring 🙂
Love hearing from an author-illustrator perspective!
I love all the good ideas for illustrators and writers you have written about. I will be re-reading and keeping
notes on the ideas for my books and re-writes. I wish I could draw and make things as I see them. But thank you for showing things from an illustrator’s point of view.
Thank you for the helpful advice and insight into your process, Jami. I particularly liked learning about the big changes you made to your two books, which I love, by the way. I look forward to seeing more of your work.
Wow, I just love those pictures of the moon! I, too, love wordless spreads in picture books. As the reader (most of the time) I often don’t get the opportunity to sit and take in all of the illustrations, as the kids beg me to “keep reading!” But a wordless spread allows that little pause, and I also enjoyed hearing the kids chime in with their commentary when there are no words.
Thanks for the great post!
Mae & the Moon and Seb & the Sun are beautiful, powerful books. Thank you for creating them! 🙂 It is so helpful to hear thoughts from an illustrator’s perspective. I love the idea of leaving space for the reader to jump in and fill in the blanks. I wish you much continued success and can’t wait to see what is next!
Fantastic advice–thank you! And your books are adorable.
What beautiful illustrations Jami. The phrase that sticks with me is ” harmony between words and images. Thank you for sharing – Pauline
This quote really resonated with me:
“The journey as a picture book author and/or illustrator is not easy. In fact, it’s incredibly tough. But it’s also very rewarding. It exercises our brainboxes and gives us a creative outlet that is meaningful and amazing.”
It is such a hard road sometimes but also very fulfilling. Thanks for a great post!
Thank you, Jami, for sharing your journey and some of the nuggets you learned along the way. I particularly appreciate the advice to be open to changes. So important. But all of your tips are helpful!
Great insights! Thanks for posting this!
Even though it’s counter-intuitive as a writer, I love the judicious use of wordless spreads to really pack a punch!
Great post Jami – I am slowly learning to be okay with bad drafts … each story has to start somewhere and a bad draft is definitely somewhere! 12×12 has really helped with this – getting a draft done in a month really focuses the attention. Then comes the revision, as you say, and I love that you are not afraid for a story to go in a completely different direction to the one it started in. Thanks for the inspiration and tips.
Thank you for your helpful insights, Jami! It’s important to hear the illustrator’s perspective, as, not being one, that side of the picture book world is a steep learning curve. Your books are beautiful works of art! Congrats!
Jami – thanks for a great post and for reminding us of the importance of making dummies. I just made one recently and it really helped one of my stories. My plan going forward is: always make a dummy!! Congrats on your beautiful books, and thank you again.
Jami,
I love your artistry. I find it engaging and thoughtful, pulling me into the story further.
I featured you in my ongoing #kidlitwomen illustrators post on my website back in April; just search your name on my website and it will bring up the article.
Keep up the beautiful work!
Just checked out the post, thank you Traci :)!
What a rich resource this post is! Thank you so much for sharing your insights. I will be bookmarking this one!
Fantastic post, Jami! Love your advice – especially to leave things rough until it’s really working. Great tip! Your books are beautiful.
Great advice, Jami!
Hi Jami,
It definitely takes time to go from that place in your heart where a story starts and then evolves into this amazing lighthouse. Even though it takes a lot of time to get there, I wouldn’t trade that process for anything because at the end of the day, something that came from this bubbling spring inside us is going to touch kids in their lives growing up. And, maybe even hold dear enough to share with their kids someday. That’s the real goal. And, having literally just read both of these books a few days ago, mainly for me lol, I thought you did that so very well.
Can’t wait to see some more!
With kind regards,
Mary D
Beautifully said Mary. Thank you so much.
I love your comment about the “harmony between words and images” in picture books. I’m always amazed by illustrations and as writers believe we have to trust that side of the equation as illustrators trust our words. Thanks, Jami!
Jami, this was an inspiring post. It’s always good to read about how writing and illustrating work together. It’s a good reminder for us all. Thank you for the valuable tips.
Thank you for your tips! We just read Mae and the Moon last week and loved it! Can’t wait to read Seb and the Sun!
Great tips, Jami. Thank you for sharing your insights. I, too find dummies really helpful, particularly in revision. Your two upcoming books from Ripple Grove Press look awesome.
Making a dummy has greatly improved my storytelling and I love the physical process of figuring it all out. I just took Mae and the Moon out of the library before this post and now I’m able to study all the points that are mentioned above. You really captured the magic of a child’s world and I look forward to reading more of your books.
It’s been a problem wanting the story to stay the same, but I’m learning to go where it leads. Great advice!
Congratulations on your books, and thanks for your insights! I always love to see how words and pictures come together to make picture books. I’m not an illustrator, but I enjoy leaving as much room as possible for pictures when I write.
Congratulations on your books! What a fantastic background! I’m happy you are using all those experiences to bring your own stories to life. I agree with your comment about sketching things out to reveal the unnecessary text. It’s my favorite part of the revision process!
Congrats on your books! The illustrations are lovely.
Yay! Thank you Thank you!
Jami – thank you for sharing your journey and reminding us to experiment with our work!
Here’s to inspiring children and the child in all of us through our work!
Thank you Jami! I just had a friend who is also an author-illustrator review my WIP from an illustrator’s perspective. I’d wondered if I left TOO much to the illustrator (like 50% of the story!) and she said it was absolutely okay and also just what you said, that some of the text could be eliminated for wordless pages/spreads. (But that could be done later, to leave the text in).
I love that the kids finish the sentence! That is so fun and really is in the spirit of a pb!
Such a valuable post – thank you!
Don’t be afraid of big changes–that really resonates with me. I’ve had to do that several times on projects as large as full-written novels. A painful but necessary reality sometimes!
Lovely books! Thanks for inspiring us.
I love both Mae and Seb. You have really managed to marry your words and text so they are seamless. When you spoke about wordless pages, you use this very effectively. It provides parent and child with a pause – a place to talk, share or just be together in the story. Excellent blog post!
Thank you for the insight, Jami. And congratulations on Seb and Mae!!
Inspiring advice, Jami! Thanks.
Thanks for the inspiration, Jami! I love Mae and the Moon, and I can’t wait to read your new book!
Thank you so much for the sound advice and inspiration. I love the magic when art and text come together to make the perfect PB!
Thank you for the insight into your process and the importance for authors to make their own dummies.
Jamie, this is so helpful. Thank you. I only dream of being an illustrator (no action taken), but your insights give the writer in me a better understanding of the illustrator process and the two forms (writing and illustrating) working together.
Congratulations on your books! I look forward to reading them both.
I really enjoyed your inspirational advice, especially about wordless spreads. I look forward to reading Seb and Mae. Thank you
Jami, Thank you so much for your inspirational words!
As my year in PB making has mostly focused on dummying and illustration, I really needed this particular post full of advice–thanks Jamie! I especially needed the reminder to not be too precious with my art-making too early. It’s a trap I fall into frequently.
Thanks for your encouragement, Jami, and for re-enforcing such important aspects as dummying, page turns and thinking like a kid. Love your art work!
Love your art and the classic feel of your story.
Thanks for sharing your insights.
Congrats on your books, gonna go look for them at the library now!
Great advice, Jami! Thank you for sharing. And I love your illustrations. The light is magical!
Lovely illustrations! I’m off to google you so I can see more of your work…
Thanks Jami! Great tips for leaving room for the illustrator.
Page turns are so important. Thank you for your suggestions!
Terrific insight Jami! Thank you for the tips regarding text and illustrations working together, making the PB gold.
Jami, your style of illustration is charming. Thanks for sharing the story of your journey from working in the film industry to creating picture books. So interesting! I envy the edge that’s given you! (But then I envy all illustrators being of the writerly persuasion myself.)
Thank you for this post, Jami ~ wonderful insights! I love your books, and your artwork is gorgeous!! Congratulations.
Thanks, Jami. It helps me as a writer to be reminded the illustrator’s perspective!
Thanks for the insights.
It is so true that the original idea, changes so much from start to finish.
Thanks for sharing your insights, and I have to say that your illustrations are gorgeous! The covers just lure you right in, and as a reader, one can be sure there’s a story of wonder inside!
Thanks so much for sharing. I haven’t had much luck with dummies–gotta try again! Congrats on your books.
What a helpful post! Thank you for pointing out the evolution that takes place in both words and pictures with each manuscript.
Thanks for sharing your story Jami! Great perspective.
Wonderful tips! Thank you for this great post, Jami. I especially love the idea of wordless spreads. I might experiment with that. Happy writing/illustrating!
Thanks for the reminder to think about the illustrator and leave room for the illustrations to tell the story.
Jami, MAE AND THE MOON was a book recommended for study in a recent picture book class I took. It’s always good to be reminded of things to take into consideration.
Wonderful to hear Golden Rules of Writing from the integrated perspective of text and illustration. Thank you!
Great tips! “Always think like a child”, is a great tip to always remember. AND to “leave room for the illustrator, including possible wordless spreads.”
I love how you describe kids filling in the missing text by themselves. I’m working on making that happen more by leaving room for illustrations, letting illustrations tell the story as much as or more than the words. Thanks for that reminder.
Loved your suggestions. I’m no artist but I do think drawing a dummy helps with page turns and rhythm.
Best of luck with all your books.
The books look lovely, can’t wait to read!
Both books sound amazing. Thanks for sharing the artist side of things. Now you need to write Stacey and the Stars to complete the trilogy!
The covers of your books are so charming! Thanks for the inspiration and advice.
Creating a dummy in the early stages is a great way to edit! Thank you!
Your list was just what I needed to keep the inspiration alive. Thanks!
What beautiful books, Jami! Good luck to you!
Jami, I am SUCH a fan. I’ll definitely be gifting your SEB & THE SUN. Absolutely love it. Thanks for your beautiful work.
Hi Katelyn, I saw your reviews. Thank you so much! 😊
Great advice. Thanks, Jami!
Great suggestions! Thanks so much for sharing.
I am always looking for ways to use page turns. It can be tricky, but is such an essential PB tool. Thanks for the great post, Jami.
Your books are beautiful Jami and lots of good advice here in this post.
Thanks for saturating us in inspiration, Jami!
Those are great ideas. Thanks for the advice!
Fantastic tips. Can’t wait to read your books. Thank you.
Hi Jami,
well done on writing such an engaging and beautifully written book. You are an inspiration.
Danielle
I borrowed both of these books from the library and really enjoyed them. I agree that wordless spreads and thinking like a kid are so important in picture books! Mae and the Moon is pure magic!
Jami, your illustrations are so endearing! Thank you for sharing a little of your story with us. Much appreciated.
Great information and I thank you very much.
What a great collection of advice! Thank you!
I really connected with this months writer! I love the comments about wordless spreads and very much vibed with needing to create solo! Thank you, beautiful books.
Thank you for the wonderful ideas. And I really love the mood and the feel of the beautiful illustrations you excerpted from your books. I can’t wait to check them out.
I love hearing that what you started writing and what it turned into were two different things. Thank you for your thoughts about craft.
Thank you for the advice and inspiration.
Thank you for the reminder to give the illustrations space! That’s one of those things I consider again and again, with every revision. Also, I love Mae and Seb, and the first image above is one of my favorite spreads. 🙂
Your article was such a joy to read. Can’t wait to read your books again and again.
I appreciate your thoughtful post. I also approach pb mss first visually and my favorite books are the ones that have plenty of wordless pages. Thank you for the list of essential tips!
Jamie, thank you for all of your great insight and advice in this post!! It is a pleasure to read through this!!
Jami, I can’t wait to buy your books! The illustrations have such a dreamy, magical feel❤️
Great advice!
Thank you for sharing this! I love your illustrations.
Dear Jami, I found your books at the library by accident and really fell in love with them. I picked them up because they were opposites and featured the sun and the moon. Seb and the Sun, Mae and the Moon. I thought it was a series. They’re gentle books, beautifully written and illustrated. So, it was a treat to see you featured on 12 x 12. Thank you for your insight, sharing your journey, and awesome tips. Tips 3, *4, 6, and 8 were my favorites! Thank you.
Ah! The magical undo button! It’s what allows me to make mistakes and not be too precious about my art.
Jami – thanks for giving us a writer/illustrator’s point of view. I don’t do dummy books, but I’ve heard that I should. I’ll give that a try soon. And I look forward to reading your books.
Thanks so much for this fantastic post! It is really nice to hear about the process from someone based in the art world. I love the idea of wordless pages. My only question is–how do we as authors let the images write the text if we are not part of the art creation? Thanks, again! Can’t wait to read your books:)
Thanks for the tips, Jami. Your illustrations are beautiful and lyrical. Got to read Mae and the Moon.
Jami, thanks for you insightful advice. It’s nice to hear from an illustrators view. I can’t wait to read your books.
Such great advice, thank you!! I look forward to reading your books!
Love this advice! Especially about the dummies—great revision tools. Plus your books look gorgeous. 🙂
Thanks for all the great advise Jami. I enjoyed reading both of your books . Seb and Sun had a nice surprising ending. Mae and the Moon was lovely. Congratulations on both books getting published by Ripple Grove Press.
Thanks for the great tips!
What an inspiring story, Jami. We share much the same love of picture books! I have spent time as an art director of children’s books also. I LOVE the process! Thank you for sharing your experiences!
Thanks for this post! I really appreciated the chance to think about tips 4 and 6.
Jami thanks for sharing how your career choices led you to picture books. #2, book dummy, an especially important reminder for this writer. Best wishes for a continuing successful career!
Thank you Jami for a great post. The wordless pages . . . not being afraid to really experiment . . . and thinking like a child really hit home.
Jami: I loved your post. I’ve wanted to try illustrating my own work for some time, but had no clue where to even begin. Your post gave me a starting point. I think sketching a dummy book will also help my writing by paring every thing down. I liked your advice to not be afraid of big changes. I tend to get stuck on one form. Just before I read your post I completely changed my draft format this month. Your recommendation to not be afraid of big changes helped encourage me. Thanks.
“Make a model of your character” – why didn’t I ever do this? I recall reading this somewhere. tomorrow I will buy some modeling material! Great reminders on the art, and how our stories change. I just want my to stop changing! Have them yell out to me – Now is it! I want to collect that sun in a bucket. Good to have another illustrator-author in this blog! Thank you!
Thanks for the advice!
Great advice for both authors and illustrators! This line said it all for me, “Let the illustrations “write” the story as much as the words.”
Thanks Jami! Great post. Best of luck on your new books.
I really enjoyed your post, Jami. I love your books! I wish I was an author illustrator!
Your illustrations are mesmerizing, Jami. Congratulations on promoting your own ideas and finding success!
Jami… Thank you for your article. I loved the part where your children filled in the text with the wordgone
Thank you for this post! I really appreciate your insight as an illustrator. (Love your work!).
Somehow July flew by with me not reading this–why, why, I cry! Your insights on the illustrative side are spot on. I will take your tips to heart this month 🙂 Thx so much for sharing!
Lovely blogpost. Thank you! (And I absolutely love The Iron Giant, too.)
Jami, thank you for the insights into how you work. I like item #8, because part of thinking like a kid is remembering to have fun. If I can’t have fun with the story, nobody else will. I also like #5 – I need to make more bad drawings so I can get to the good ones. Thank you!
Great advice. Working on a dummy now.
Hello Jami!!
I have both of your books and I read them to the children in my life! Thank you for the inspiring words of experience as a writer/illustrator 😃
Hi Jami! I’m a writer-illustrator too, so I especially loved this post. Thanks for sharing your story and some wonderful nuggets of wisdom!
Thank you for all your bits of insight, Jami. Right now I’m feeling the need for numbers 7 and 8. 🙂
Congrats on your books and thanks for the great advice. I recently made big changes on a very old story, and it is much better now. Big changes can take courage, but they can pay off big time!
Oooh thanks for this. I love the effect a wordless spread can give. And it’s so true about letting the illustrations do some part of the telling as well!
Jami,
Thank you for your books and insights. Loved the part about don’t be afraid to write a lot of really bad drafts.
Thanks for sharing your tips & insights, Jami. To your continued success!
Love this post! Tons of great information. Thanks, Jami!
As someone who can get wedded to–stuck–to my words and language rhythms, I appreciate your looser, lighter, more flexible point of view.
congratulations on your moon and sun books–i look forward to seeing them.
The play between words and art is a beautiful one. If you’re both author and illustrator, you always have a dance partner! Congratulations on your success, Jami…I think pb creators with an animation background are some of our strongest visual storytellers!
Thanks for the helpful tips. I especially liked the one about giving the illustrator space.
Terrific post and inspiring advice- and beautiful books! Thinking about #4 while revising right now- helpful to look at how giving room to illustration can spotlight the story.
I love your reminder to allow for wordless pages. This is really something to consider. I see how powerful that can be to the story. Thank you!
Thank you for speaking in the language of an illustrator. It’s foreign to me, but it’s something I need to understand to write picture books. Thanks for your insights!
I really liked your suggestion to make a book dummy even if you are a writer. One of my critique members made the same suggestion and I’m planning on following that advice for my August PB revision.
Your artwork is breath-taking. Two things, also, that I appreciate, are a) the reminder to continue thinking like a child, and b) to create a dummy, even if I’m not an illustrator. Thank you.
These are some amazing tips! I’ve often thought of incorporating wordless spreads in my manuscripts. I also love the advice to “think like a child.” I think as adults, we tend to look at things from a logical perspective instead of through the eyes of a child. This can definitely lead to some didactic pieces. Your artwork is simply stunning! I love that you also incorporate animal characters into each story.
I love how you explain the power of a wordless spread! I can’t wait to try leaving out a word altogether for the kids to fill in. So fun! Thank you for sharing.
So glad I dropped by to read this post! Now I’m inspired to check out the page turns in my latest draft. I totally agree with you about taking risks to make big changes!
Jami, Thanks for sharing your ideas. I like your advice to illustrators, “don’t forget to experiment with different angles” and your examples painted a clear picture to me. As a writer, I need to try out different angles and characters, too.
Jami, thank you for helping us see the illustrator side of things and the harmony between the illustrations and text. Hope your books make break all kinds of sale records.
Thanks Jami, for these thoughts. So great to hear the author / illustrator POV. I love the idea of the kids supplying the text on that wordless page – so cool. And you’ve got me thinking about page turns too.
Thanks, Jami, for sharing these great tips.
Thanks for the great tips. I don’t often think of wordless spreads, but that is certainly something I will consider in my future writing.
Whew! Go wordless! Love it! I have not considered that – putting the right words in the right place is mostly what I’ve focused on. But silence is important. Thanks for this!
Thanks for the helpful tips about text and art in picture books.
Hi Jami, Thank you for sharing such uplifting and encouraging thoughts about the writing and illustrating process. I agree that writing is an opportunity to exercise our brainboxes and cultivate creativity. When creativity is tapped into, writing has such joy and purpose. Even when it is for no one else to see. Each time a writer types away or puts a pen to paper, progress is made, skills are refined, creativity unleashes. The world is made a little brighter, somewhat like Seb and the sunshine he shares 🙂
I love your books and I love your very helpful writing and illustrating tips.
Hi Jami!
I recently added a wordless spread to one of my PB mss and I love it-just hoping one of these days an agent or editor might as well 🙂
Your books look gorgeous, can’t wait to check them out.
Megan
Thank you for all of the helpful advice Jami!
The process of deleting and refining text as you create the art sounds very satisfying. I’m learning to see places where I can let go and let illo.
Thank you for sharing your writing journey! I found the advice about creating a dummy to be especially helpful to me. My twins love Mae and the Moon; we will look for Seb and the Sun!
Thanks for sharing your perspective! I am not an illustrator but I do love making PB dummies to help me work on pacing and page turn suspense 🙂
Love Seb and the Sun. Brilliant post. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! Your author/illustrator perspective is very helpful. 🙂
Lovely, solid reminders Jami — thank you!
I appreciate the insight of this article. It is refreshing to be reminded that bad drafts are ok!
Thanks for your insights about Summer writing!
Jami,
I am a writer with a love of art, film and picture books. This post is a lovely marriage of your advice in both writing and illustrating, and also in your love for both art and words. Overall, it is clear that you love to make stories come alive, and it was wonderful getting to see inside your process a bit. Thank you for this wonderful post!
Kelly
Thanks for sharing your story! Great advice!
Thank you! Such valuable tips. I can’t wait to try creating a dummy.
Your books are magical!
I need to try to make my manuscripts into dummies. Thanks for all of your advice.
Thanks! Such great information.
Lovely art work. I especially like the comment about think like a kid. I agree and as an adult, sometimes it’s hard to remember what it feels like.