The Society of Children's Books & Illustration lovers volume 2 Sept 13 | Page 10

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The Society of Children’s Books & Illustration Lovers – Newsletter # 2 – September 2013

Keep in mind that the more pages a book has, the more expensive it is to make. It's best to keep yours at 32 pages or 40 if you need the extra room. Picture books are in increments of 8 because of the way the paper is cut from the printed sheets. The longer books are usually longer for a reason. Most often they're nonfiction, with sometimes extra data in the back. Look at: SO YOU WANT TO BE PRESIDENT, FIREBOAT, to name a few. Also, many of the longer books are created by known authors or celebrities. There is a reason for this. To create such an expensive book, the publishing co. needs to be guaranteed its return. The print run on these longer books will most definitely be bigger. Madonna's book THE ENGLISH ROSES, for example, far exceeds the normal picture book page count...but her star status guarantees BIG sales. Pacing Think about how you'd like the text to be broken up. It's very important in a picture book to have a good rhythm, pace, and contain the drama of the page turn. You don't want too much text on one page and none on the next, unless there's a good reason. WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE is a great example of a book that uses excellent pacing––having words on some pages but on others––the wild rumpus begins–– there are none at all. Sketches Many new illustrators wonder just how detailed their sketches should be. Do they have to be exact B&W replicas of the final product? No. Some illustrators do very detailed, neat sketches while others do not. Work in a way that's best for you. DO make sure, however, that your sketches clearly convey the characters, action, and setting. They can't be so rough that the editor and art director don't know what's going on. It's best to make sure that the action (characters running, cars zooming and so on) goes from left to right, encouraging the reader to turn the page. This is not a rule but it's good to do so whenever possible. Don't get too attached to your sketches because once you have a contract, some of them (or most!) will have to be changed. The text will be tweaked or completely rewritten and as a result, the sketches may also need to be redone. Creating a book is a collaborative effort and is much like a being part of a critique group. The art director may want you to make one of your characters running, while in your sketch, they are jumping. Or the editor may find that the picture and the text don't quite gel, so you may have to rework something...it's all part of the process. Page layout There are different ways illustrators design their pages. Some do full page bleeds––with the illustration going to the edge of every page. Others

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