Columnists

Who I Think About When I Write … It’s Probably You: A List of Questions to Ask Yourself About Audience as You Write

I find it really challenging to write a picture book without imagining its audience. In whose hands will the finished book end up? What will make them pick it up? Will they find my story satisfying? To ...

Calling All Aspiring Authors: Never Ask an Illustrator to Illustrate Your Picture Book for Free

A few weeks ago, I was in a local tavern with some friends—a few of them are professional illustrators. They were drinking overpriced mocktails and commiserating about the emails they get from aspiring ...

Bad Reviews and Broken Hearts: How to Deal with All the Feelings

First: Spend several years working on you—I mean, a manuscript. Revise each draft based on feedback from your therapist—I mean, editor. Get Tinder—I mean, get publishing deal. Agonize over each ...

An Open Letter to the Stranger Who Asked Me, “How Did You Write That Book for Children If You Don't Have Children?”

Dear Stranger,I realize that writing a book is kind of a self-important undertaking. When I write, I sometimes imagine that there are people out there who might actually enjoy reading my words and letting ...

Why Do We Keep Picture Book Authors and Illustrators Apart? - or How to Play Well With Others

I completely underestimated how emotional the whole process of creating a picture book would be. When my first picture book was being published, I became a horrible self-involved troll-person. I couldn’t ...

What I Wish Every Aspiring Children’s Author Knew About Publishing

It seems like book publishing is a mysterious, captivating industry to many people. It barely gets represented in pop culture and when it does get featured (Elf and Fatal Attraction come to mind), ...