The July PBParty New Draft Challenge & Critique Train starts NOW and runs through Saturday, July 18. See more info at the bottom of this post!
Picture Book Tips From Joyce Sweeney and Rob Sanders
Generous critique and Zoom giveaway with agent Joyce Sweeney below!
What is the topic almost never addressed in critique groups that is actually the most important thing to nail?
The concept.
How can you discover if your pacing is off?
Create a dummy.
Joyce’s top tip
Don’t think about the children in your life when you write a picture book. Think about how you felt when you were a child.
Here are some of my favorite tips from Joyce
- Your best characters will be those who are exaggerations of you! This speaks straight from your heart to the child’s heart.
- Spark your creativity and get in touch with your inner child by spending time with kids in their world. Sit on the floor and play! (Tip added by me…look at the world from a child’s point of view – from their height, the world looks different. You can get on your knees and check it out or take a video from their eye level and see how different everything looks.)
- Exercise: Choose one of the five senses and write about an early memory associated with it.
Why does Rob Sanders say it helps to write a book from the middle?
Joyce wants to hear about that too! (And so do I 🙂)
Pssst: Rob Sanders has some amazing tips for children’s writers on his website!
Want to Learn More from Agent Joyce Sweeney and Author Rob Sanders?
In the comments, let Joyce and Rob know topics you hope they’ll cover in the future!
Would you be interested in an online workshop with them?
The July New Draft Challenge and Critique Train is Here!
I’ll critique a picture book manuscript for the first passenger to write a new PB draft and add their name to the Google doc. This train starts NOW and runs through July 18 Eastern. You must write the entire first draft during this challenge for it to count. It’s okay to flesh out the plot ahead of time.
Tip: You don’t need to share your new draft for the critique. You can send whichever picture book you’d like feedback on the most.
In this challenge, everyone is a winner! You’ll have a shiny new draft (or two). Wahooooo! When you complete the challenge and hop on the Critique Train Google doc, you’ll receive a critique from the passenger above you and give one to the passenger below you. Many writers have told me they’ve met trusted critique partners they continue to work with, which makes me SO happy!
Check out the Critique Train FAQ here.
Win a PB Query Critique + 30 Minute Zoom with Agent Joyce Sweeney!
One lucky winner will be randomly chosen on Monday, July 20. I’ll announce the winner here and contact them via e-mail. Good luck! 🙂
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