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Howdy to all February Picture Book Marathoners, you can do it, you can do it--you can, you can!
Similes. Metaphors. You know them well.
Similes compare two unlike objects using "like" or "as": That dog is like a lump of clay--he never chases balls.
Metaphors, in contrast, don't: That dog, a lump of clay, never chases balls. Or simply, That lump of clay never chases balls.
Eli being a lump of clay.
"Metaphor" sounds like someone saying, "May the Force," doesn't it? (It does if you tilt your head sideways and sing LALALA really loudly...) Their force, their power can create vivid images in our minds.When I was writing It's Not My Turn To Look For Grandma!, my editor asked me to clarify that the story starts at sunrise and ends at sundown. I had no idea how to communicate this without being too wordy or clunkily obvious. I was actually pretty frightened.
I flailed about. My flailing is not pretty. Want to see what it looks like close up? This Monday I had a boatload of writing to do in the afternoon. But first I had to have lunch--I mean, c'mon. Since I was a little lost and didn't quite know how to start any of the projects looming over me, another helping of veggies and rice seemed like a jolly good idea and oh, that left-over clam chowder sure looked yummy.
I was too lazy to actually stand up and walk to my bookshelf (sometimes I'm inspired by the pattern or subject of other poems). There was a lemon next to my computer because I'd picked it from our tree and meant to drop it off in the kitchen but brought it into my office instead.
Not to make those of you shivering under snow jealous or anything, but this is our Meyer lemon tree righ
12 Comments on Metaphors, Similes, Panic in Picture Books, and Bathing a Dog--all! Happy Poetry Friday!, last added: 2/27/2011
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By: Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 2/23/2011
Blog: Teaching Authors (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture books, Nonfiction, Picture Book Biography, First Lines, Carmela Martino, Writing Workout, Picture Book Marathon, Add a tag
Over the last two weeks I learned (again) what a good first line can do for you. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm working on a picture book biography. While researching the genre, I came across an interesting article by award-winning biographer James Cross Giblin. In it, he speaks of the importance of finding "anecdotes that bring the subject to life in ways that can be appreciated by younger as well as older readers." I do have several such anecdotes about my subject, but I've been having a hard time arranging them into a story with conflict/tension that rises to a climax. My draft also lacked a well-defined focus or theme.
So I tried the Writing Workout I suggested last time: I went back to the stack of sample biographies I'd brought home from the library and I studied the opening paragraphs to see how each author set up the tension and/or piqued the reader's interest. In other words, I examined how the authors "say who, when, and where" and "state the problem," as Mem Fox says. Here are several of my favorite openings from those books:
"No one expected such a tiny girl to have a first birthday. In Clarksville, Tennessee, in 1940, life for a baby who weighed just over four pounds at birth was sure to be limited." (34 words)
--from Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became the World's Fastest Woman
by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by David Diaz
"In 1917, some girls dressed their dolls. They played house and hopscotch, jump rope and jacks.
But one little girl wanted more. Elinor Smith wanted to soar." (27 words)
--from Soar, Elinor! by Tami Lewis Brown, illustrated by Francois Roca
"From the time he was young until long after his beard grew white, Charles Darwin loved to collect things. He collected rocks from the English countryside he explored as a boy, coins in the home where he grew up, shells from trips to the sea, and dead bugs, too." (49 words)
-from Darwin by Alice McGinty, illustrated by Mary Azarian
Each of these openings hints at the challenges and/or aspirations of the book's subject while also introducing theme and tone. In each case, it took fewer than fifty words to hook me so that I wanted to know more.I spent days working on a first line/paragraph that would accomplish the same thing for my manuscript. When I finally had it, so much of the story fell into place. My new opening provided more than a hook; it helped me find the focus I'd been struggling to define. What a Eureka! moment.
In a bit of Synchronicity, yesterday I came across a short article by author-illustrator Lindsay Barrett George on picture book writing in general. When writing picture books, she says:
7 Comments on "You Are as Good as Your First Line", last added: 2/23/2011
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By: Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 2/9/2011
Blog: Teaching Authors (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture books, Nonfiction, Picture Book Biography, Carmela Martino, Writing Workout, Picture Book Marathon, Blogosphere Buzz, Add a tag
Instead of discouraging me, dePaola's statement words were a great consolation. I didn't feel quite as bad about my struggles to sell a picture book. (Mary Ann's words about typically taking at least three years to write and polish a picture book are consoling to me, too.) As I shared in another post, I first became interested in children's publishing precisely because I wanted to write picture books. I eventually learned that novel writing comes more easily to me. But part of me still has ideas that I believe would make terrific picture books. So I work on them in between my novel writing.
It's not always easy for me to transition between the two genres (especially when the novel I'm working on is in the voice of a teenager living in 18th-century Milan!). The best way I've found to get into a picture book state-of-mind is to begin by reading aloud several picture books that have a tone or rhythm similar to what I'm aiming for. As I've shared before, I sometimes also type out the text of those books. I recommend my students working on picture books do the same.
Don't know which picture books to study? You might want to begin with those on the New York Public Library's 100 Picture Books Everyone Should Know, or the Top 100 Picture Books Poll Results compiled at the Fuse #8 Production blog. (See the Blogosphere Buzz below for some Fuse #8 news.) If you're looking for more recent favorites (especially if you're trying to create a manuscript that might actually get published in the current market), then check out the latest winners of the Charlotte Zolotow Award for picture book text. (In case you didn't know, my fellow TeachingAuthor Mary Ann Rodman won the Zolotow Award for her book, My Best Friend. So go back and re-read her post to learn whatt inspired that manuscript.) Another approach would be to do an author study of a picture book author's body of work. Some of my favorites for this include Mem Fox, Lisa Wheeler, Phyllis Root, and Carolyn Crimi. Mem Fox also has two terrific articles on her website that every aspiring picture book writer should read: "So You Want to Write a Picture Book"<
3 Comments on A Picture Book State-of-Mind, last added: 2/9/2011
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By: M.F. Atkins,
on 11/30/2010
Blog: World of Words (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture books, writing inspiration, Hollins, PiBoIdMo, picture book marathon, Add a tag
Blog: World of Words (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture books, writing inspiration, Hollins, PiBoIdMo, picture book marathon, Add a tag
I did it! I really did it!
Some of them are more fleshed out than others, but I have 2 that are especially begging to be written NOW, NOW, NOW!!! I keep telling them to shush, I have a thesis to finish.
But there's good news. I finished that first FULL DRAFT of the thesis tonight too!!! Woo Hoo! Double happy dance.
Now, the real work begins with my thesis: revision, revision, revision.
What am I going to do with the picture book ideas?
1) I'm going to write those two that I can't get out of my head.
2) I'm going to sock the other 32 away and let them simmer. You see I plan to do the Picture Book Marathon in February 2011. I need to write 26 drafts during that month. So, my ideas are simmering now. My fingers should be flying in February.
3) I also have 5 more nonfiction picture book ideas that are going to require some research. These weren't even figured into my 34 fiction picture book ideas for this month. I am going to start researching these as well.
Many thanks to Tara Lazar for hosting and providing inspiration all month.
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By: M.F. Atkins,
on 3/6/2010
Blog: World of Words (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture book marathon, Books I Wish I Had Written, picture books, Add a tag
Blog: World of Words (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture book marathon, Books I Wish I Had Written, picture books, Add a tag
Books I Wish I Had Written: #1
I begin a new series of reviews on books entitled "Books I Wish I Had Written". While I was writing in the picture book marathon in February, I read lots of picture books to keep my mind in the "picture book mode." I came across quite a few books that I thought were utterly brilliant and I wish I had written. I will feature them and more as I come across them.
Chicken Cheeks
Written by Michael Ian Black
Illustrated by Kevin Hawkes
Simon & Schuster, 2009
My ten-month-old was fighting a nap. I sat down with a pile of picture books I had requested from the library. He loves to listen and look at the pictures of books. In fact, he gets down right vocally angry if you leave him out of a book. If my daughter and I are reading a book, he will crawl over and grunt and make loud noises until we let him in.
Chicken Cheeks was next in the pile. I hate chickens. They are my one intense fear in life. I'll save my sob story of roosters clawing at my legs and leaving welps for another time when we talk about why I'm scarred for life over chickens.
But I was willing to give Chicken Cheeks a chance because the cover is so darn funny. Really funny. And my son was enthralled with the bright colors.
This book is HILARIOUS--LMBO hilarious!!!! It's all about BUTTS of animals, but not in explicit detail. In fact you will never find the word BUTT in the book. Instead you see "moose caboose" and "toucan can" and "flamingo fanny" among others. In this 43 word picture book, you will probably read nearly every CLEAN word for butt you can think of. All paired with Kevin Hawkes bright, silly animal illustrations.
This book has to go back to the library soon because I owe nearly $30 in fines for overdue books. But, my little ten-month-old, who kept pointing and smiling at EVERY picture will probably find his very own copy of this book in his Easter basket.
WHY I WISH I HAD WRITTEN IT:
It's brilliant. It's short. It's funny. ALL IN ONE BOOK!
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By: M.F. Atkins,
on 2/27/2010
Blog: World of Words (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture book marathon, writing, Add a tag
Blog: World of Words (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: picture book marathon, writing, Add a tag
Okay, it wasn't a running marathon, but a picture book marathon. Lora and Jean spearheaded the Picture Book Marathon in the month of February. The idea was to write 26 picture books in the month of February--like running the 26 miles of a marathon.
I was very skeptical. First, to write 26 picture books in a YEAR is stretching it. Picture books take so much time to hone and make perfect. But I threw my hat in the ring, just for the challenge. I knew I needed to write everyday, and this was a great way to try it.
I created a journal just for the occasion (which I bought for a dollar at Michael's).
I created a calendar that fit on the inside cover for recording my progress.
And I made a long list of ideas that I had. I started the month with fourteen ideas and ended the month with 40 ideas. Needless to say, I didn't use them all. I have enough ideas to keep going.
My goal was just to simply get a draft down--not a manuscript fit to be sent off to a publisher, but a promising draft. And I did--26 of them. Now, I don't think I will ever even polish half of them, but there are a good 5-6 that I want to work on to see what happens.
I read picture books--loads and loads of them. It helps to have a five year old who devours books. I would read them to her before bed, then run off to my computer after both kids were asleep to start the new draft.
Lora and Jean did a great job of sending encourage blog posts to keep us motivated--like good coaches. Last weekend I got sick with a bad sinus issue, then two days later the stomach flu hit hard and bad--fever, vomiting and all. I got behind. I got discouraged. I wondered if I would finish.
But I did! I have a folder full of drafts, a journal full of ideas and lines jotted down. It was a very productive month. I wrote nearly everyday and it felt great!
What I didn't have time to do--write some nonfiction ideas. I have several great ideas for nonfiction picture books, but I didn't have time to research them and keep up the pace of writing a draft a day. So, those are on the horizon. With some more time to research, I hope to start writing some of those ideas down.
I'll be having my own version of March Madness--revise, revise, revise. I have a folder full of things to work on.
By: peg366,
on 1/23/2010
Blog: Peg366's Blog (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Picture Book Marathon, Uncategorized, Picture Books, Writing Journey, Add a tag
Blog: Peg366's Blog (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Picture Book Marathon, Uncategorized, Picture Books, Writing Journey, Add a tag
PBM Training #7
| From: | |
| Sent: | Sat 1/23/10 10:00 PM |
| To: | [email protected] |
This coming week is the time to get those household chores done: stuff like stocking up on groceries, paying your bills, scheduling appointments (for March, of course), laundry, and cleaning. The more you don’t have to do in February, the more time you’ll have to write (and fewer things to distract you).
This sounds like a great idea. My concern will be how do I schedule in the things that happen with my two nephews and their special needs. Still, I’m making the committment to try my very best to complete this challenge.
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Great post and fun assignment! I'm totally doing this today!
Love this post and your poem, April! Metaphors be with you too. :-)
Ha! Love Eli's pose of repose.
Great idea for a workout today. I'll be looking with fresh eyes today...
Wonderful post, April (with thanks to Laura Purdie Salas for pointing the way). LOVED playing poetry tag with you!
I'm always looking for methods for creating fresh similes and metaphors. When I come across a perfect one in a story I'm reading, I'm blown away with envy. Now I know to take a walk around my house (especially the bathroom) to look for that those crazy comparisons that just might lead to some top-notch imagery.
So glad you're going to do this exercise, Megan. And howdy, Carmela, Sara (thanks for hosting Poetry Friday, Sara, at:
http://saralewisholmes.blogspot.com/2011/02/poetry-friday-exchange-student.html).
Loved playing Poetry Tag with you, too, Leslie(we'll have something to announce about this soon!)
Laura Purdie Salas is talking about looking at things with a fresh eye today, too:
http://laurasalas.livejournal.com/262942.html
Enjoy the metaphor walk-about, Jean--it makes me feel like I'm walking around my house on my hands, looking at things in new ways...
What a helpful (and fun) post to re-energize my marathon efforts. Several little embers have been banked in the back of my mind this month but would not flare up. Now I have three to work with today. Thank you! Loved the poem, and the egg analogy.
Glad to be of service, Sandy! That's exactly what TeachingAuthors set out to do ~ Happy Writing!
Feeling rather lump of claylike about writing lately, I was just thinking about the need to infuse some more metaphors and similes into my WIP. Thank you for the inspiration.
Thanks, April. You have a talent for sparking imagination in writers young and not-so-young!
Ann Wagner
What a great assignment! You're on! Love the fact that you were saved by your lemon and I AM totally jealous that you have that tree spilling fruit on you in February.
Howdy, Megan, Anne and Carlie...thank you so much for taking the time to comment. It warms all of the TeachingAuthors' hearts!