November 7, 2010

Recipe for a Picture Book

by Renee Taprell

I was inspired to write 'Recipe for a Picture Book,' after watching Master Chef.

1.Preheat oven to the right moment. Start in the middle of the action.
2. Add 3 cups of concept and theme into a large bowl.
3. Add 2 cups of interesting characters.
4. Knead in conflict and drama.
5. Resist the temptation to add sweetener. It's better not to give your
character what they desire.
6. Sprinkle in a feeling of blue. That all hope is lost.
7. Taste test to make sure an even consistency of pictures and text.
8. Stir your plot until you have a happy resolution where the character is changed in some way.
9. Pour mixture into a pan of 32 pages, approximately 200 to 700 words.
10. Place pan into an oven at 180 degrees of age appropriateness for 20 minutes.
11. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before editing and redrafting.
12.Read with bright eyes and an engaging voice.
13. Turn pages slowly for easy digestion and enjoyment.
14. Serve evenly to children by encouraging an endless love of reading.

Bon Appetite!

8 comments:

Angela Sunde. said...

Now I wish I'd thought of this. Perfect! Your creativity is on fire! Good luck with PiBoWriMo. How many ideas do you have already?

Unknown said...

Thanks Angela. I've come up with a few ideas but they're not as exciting as what I would like. It's funny how you can find creativity in the most unexpected places!

Karen Tyrrell said...

Thanks Renee. I love this recipe.
I'm going to print this out and check it against two picture books I've just written. Well done. Love your BLOGS :))

Unknown said...

Thanks Karen. I hope you cook up a storm.

Sherry Ellis said...

Great recipe!

Anonymous said...

Hi Reneee, well done, you did it. I'm soooooo jealous. Still trying to get mine done. I'm writing my sixth book at the moment so don't disturb me!
Kristina

Anonymous said...

Very clever Renee:-) I am now one of your loyal followers and have loved reading your blog and profile info so far! Melissa W xx

Unknown said...

Thanks Melissa. I'm so sorry I just found your comment from an older blog post. I really appreciate you following and comments :)