Life's been throwing me a few curveballs lately—mostly snow and ice. In the past 42 days, my son's been to school only eight times. Between our family vacation, holiday break, and crazy Wisconsin weather, I've been drifting along and fumbling through the chaos of winter. (To be honest, though, I've felt this way for most of my time as a parent!) Over this time we've made impromptu fortresses, gotten creative with meals (and the times of day we eat them), and, admittedly, my sleep and work routines have been messed with. It's hard to get back into the everyday swing. I know the kids have enjoyed the unplanned time off, but Mom is a little anxious to get back to the "structure" of things. For me, it's satisfying to have a plan before the day begins, and I'm a huge fan of to-do lists. Days seem to unfold more smoothly when there's at least a basic idea of how its beginning, middle, and end will play out. As I'm sinking back into a writing rhythm, I'd like to share a bit how I plan and outline. For picture books, I love to storyboard. What is a Storyboard? A storyboard is a visual plan that helps me shape an idea before writing it, or when working on a revision. I can never avoid the unexpected in writing or in life (and surprises can be fun!), but being able to visually map out a story is one way I can be more efficient with my time and creative energy. To a busy mom and freelancer like me, time and energy are my two most precious resources. I think most of you have probably experienced how both can be easily squandered when we don't guard and plan out our writing time seriously. What Does a Storyboard Look Like? Storyboards look differently, depending on whose storyboard you're viewing. I first learned about storyboarding when I was young and visited Walt Disney World—where film animators first draw rough scene sketches to plot out their movies. Back then, I drew in my sketchbook daily and imagined myself doing "real" storyboarding one day. I didn't end up becoming an illustrator, obviously, but I do make storyboards for what I consider my best ideas—the ones I want to write. My storyboards are much simpler than a Disney animator's. I draw approximately 14 or 15 rectangles on spiral notebook pages to represent the number of spreads in an average picture book. If I'm developing a new idea that I haven't drafted yet, I draw stick figures and put keywords about the action in the scene. This helps me "see" that my idea has the right amount of action—a series of events—and how my text will integrate with interesting pictures. (I'm aware that the one I actually have a photo of is shamefully lame...) If I'm polishing a picture book final draft I've already got, I'll actually cut up my manuscript and number each piece. Then I arrange them on the table or floor. I'll label what goes where within small boxes on a a 32-page or 40-page printed PB template (thumbnail below). This helps me see where my writing might be too text heavy or where there isn't something fresh and action-based to illustrate—perhaps I've got too much dialogue or too many scenes that happen in the same place? (Read: BORING!). This particular cut-and-arrange technique was very eye-opening when my editor asked me to paginate ONE PLASTIC BAG for the first time and I realized that I could cut (or needed to add) a few words based on where the page break would fall. Tip: When storyboarding a 32- or 40-page picture book, remember that you'll usually start text on page 5 (not page 1). There will also be pastedowns and possibly endpapers, and consider if you'll need one or two pages of backmatter for nonfiction. This exercise is really eye opening and helps convince new writers of the need to tighten and slash word count. Occasionally I storyboard in between drafting and polishing, too. When I have a number of "alternate paths" or scenes (I blogged about that at ReviMo), I'll often use entire sheets of paper to storyboard, so I can see the entire book from start to finish and make sure the entire story flows. This was very helpful for my forthcoming book, WATER IS WATER, because, well, a book that involves a creative water cycle journey can have many paths! Before I could finish a final draft, I needed to make strong choices about the order of scenes. Of course, I always take out the page numbers and most illustrator notes before submitting a manuscript to my agent. Editors and Art directors will add their own clever and creative stuff to my text and make it even better than I imagined—which often presents a few unplanned twists. Those twists, however, are a good part of the process. I'll take the surprising chaos of working on a book under contract anytime, even if it messes with the "structure" of things. Have a wonderfully creative, efficient, and productive writing day! Miranda Paul loves to draw but is way better at writing. She is the author of One Plastic Bag (Millbrook, 2015), Water is Water (Neal Porter Books, 2015), and a to-be-announced title (Millbrook Press, 2016). In addition to being an instructor for the Children's Book Academy’s newest course on grammar, she is the founder and administrator of RateYourStory.org, an online service dedicated to helping writers prepare their manuscripts for submission. If you're ever hosting a karaoke party or a Disney movie marathon, she'd love to be invited, so follow her on Twitter (@Miranda_Paul). Read more online at: www.MirandaPaul.com.
22 Comments
Bev
1/15/2014 03:54:43 am
This is such great advice. Thanks for all the info on storyboarding.
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1/15/2014 04:06:25 am
Thanks, Miranda - great advice. it helps me to make the story structure more visual.
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1/16/2014 04:25:31 am
Juliana, I'm glad you found it simple! Sometimes, I feel like this process looks a lot simpler than it is once you realize you've got a problem in the MS...that happens to me all the time! Thanks for reading.
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1/15/2014 07:01:19 am
Thank you Miranda, this was very helpful information. I can't wait to give it a try.
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1/16/2014 04:25:56 am
Hope it goes well, Doris! Thanks for stopping by the blog today!
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Heather Gale
1/15/2014 07:31:30 am
Miranda, thank you, thank you! It never occurred to me to use storyboards at any other stage than the beginning - but now I see how much sense that makes. Love your photo's. I have a question - do you use this for every story and for every step or is it just when you're struggling with an area?
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1/16/2014 04:23:26 am
Hi Heather! Great question. I do some kind of storyboard for almost every manuscript I intend to write a full draft of or polish and submit. On occasion, they look a little wonky to anyone else - more like sprawling scribbles and words with lots of arrows - but it helps me plot in my mind before writing out a draft. I have an idea notebook, and if I plan to take an idea to a draft stage, that's usually when the first storyboard happens. But I might storyboard the same story several times throughout the writing of it if it's just not right and I need to revise.
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Heather Gale
1/17/2014 01:51:36 am
Thanks Miranda, 1/15/2014 07:39:10 am
Miranda,
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1/16/2014 04:26:37 am
Damon, yes I have a spy camera installed at your house. Look up and smile! :)
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Charlotte Dixon
1/15/2014 10:25:11 am
Thank you, Miranda-great advice on Storyboarding.
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1/16/2014 04:28:30 am
Tina—No, it doesn't. I have a 40-pp template that I use for some of my books. Your editor will decide how many pages the PB will be. A lot of nonfiction or educational ones with back matter are pushed to the 40-page template these days. Gives you an extra spread and a half or more, depending. Each publisher has different layouts. So don't feel too constricted!
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1/16/2014 03:28:51 am
Thanks, Miranda! Informative and useful :-)
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Lori Mozdzierz
1/16/2014 08:31:18 pm
Appreciate this share, Miranda!
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1/17/2014 01:36:36 am
Thanks Miranda. It's a good reminder. I tend to leave my storyboarding until too late in the process!
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1/21/2014 10:39:33 am
Thanks for your visual help here. If you don't mind, what was the hardest part in choosing the order of scenes in "Water is Water" and how did you know you were onto the right decisions?
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