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In Defense of Quiet Books or Still Waters Run Deep

7/12/2013

20 Comments

 
In this post from Marsha Diane Arnold (below) she writes about the value of quiet books.
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Any picture book writer who’s been around awhile is almost certain to have received a rejection that reads something like this: “Lovely message, beautifully written, but too quiet for today’s market.”

Though “too quiet” has always been around as a reason for rejection, it seems to be used more and more in today’s world, a world that plays mostly fortissimo. It would do writers well to consider this phrase, what it means, and how we should react to it.

 “Wait!” I hear you cry. “What about Margaret Wise Brown’s Goodnight Moon that’s been reprinted year after year? And Jane Yolen and John Schoenherr’s Owl Moon has been loved since 1987.”
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“Shhhh,” I say. These quiet books have done exceptionally well, but they’re not really fair comparisons to today’s books. They were well established long before the cacophony of our time took hold.

However, there are recent books that hit the “too quiet” ball out of the library, so to speak.  My friend and sometimes critique partner Deborah Underwood’s The Quiet Book is a poster child for quiet books everywhere.

Look also at the lovely Caldecott Medal winner, A Sick Day for Amos McGee (Philip C. Stead, Erin Stead) and the recent If you want to see a whale (Julie Fogliano, Erin Stead), both Neal Porter Books published by Roaring Brook Press. Then take a walk with the young girl in Extra Yarn, Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen’s 2013 Caldecott Honor Book. Indeed, if you look at the last 10 years of Caldecott books, many of them could be described as quiet.

What do editors mean by “too quiet”? Was the story not to their liking? Is the story not engaging enough to attract enough readership in a tight market? Or was it simply boring?

We may never get a satisfying answer about the meaning of “too quiet.”  But if our writing tends toward quiet we can study quiet books that have done well and think about how they’re different from our own rejected quiet ones.

Having recently sold a quiet picture book text, I pondered what made it different from my other rejected quiet stories.  I came up with a list describing what the best quiet books do and what picture book writers should aim for.
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Quiet books must be engaging. That could mean having a fascinating hook or a captivating character.

Quiet books must be as vibrant as shining landscape paintings, which are also quiet, yet full of life.

Quiet books can never be synonymous with boring or nothing much happening.

Quiet books’ beautiful writing should not overshadow characters, plot, and action.

Quiet books can still have action, tension, and characters that grow and change.

Quiet books make us think because of their layers and depth.

Quiet books invite the reader inside to explore, discover, and wonder. The story and book should allow space for that exploration.  Extra Yarn is a good example of such a book.

The best quiet books take a simple or everyday event and elevate it to the magical.

If your manuscript doesn’t do one or more of these things, it’s too quiet for our hearts and minds to hear. Try again. 

If you’re talented enough to have your quiet story catch an editor’s eye, then what?  Where do quiet books fit into today’s market?  How can they find a place in our world’s unending din of distracting noise?
Maybe it’s time for the quiet books to get a little bit noisy. Quiet books unite! Perhaps their motto should be, “Still waters run deep.”

Shallow rivers move swiftly, appearing more alive than deeper water.  But that’s an illusion. Quiet people and quiet books, like rivers, often surprise us with their interesting, unexpected, and complicated ideas…with their depth.

Quiet books ask us to slow down, to go inward, to focus.  They rescue us from the non-stop whirlwind. For children who are shy or anxious, quiet books encourage and help them realize they’re not alone.

My children enjoyed quiet books some 30 years ago; children still enjoy them today.

As parents, grandparents, and guardians we must also ask questions. Which books would we prefer our children to pull from their bookshelf night after night? How do we want their brains wired and rewired? What reel do we want them to have running in their heads for the rest of their lives?

So what’s a writer who loves writing quiet books to do? Just as we had to write better picture books as the market tightened, so must we elevate ourselves to the challenge of writing better quiet books as that market tightens. Our children need them, parents need them, the world needs them.

Now, won’t you please excuse me while I go read Miss Rumphius to my granddaughter?
Marsha  Diane Arnold is an award-winning children’s book author with a heart of gold. Besides writing, she enjoys visiting schools internationally, nationally, and through Skype, sharing her love of books and writing through presentations and writing “funshops”.  In 2008 Marsha was honored as one of seven artists invited to be part of Sequoia National Parks Foundation’s Artists in the Back Country, the only children’s author ever invited. The program’s goal is to rekindle the American tradition of enhancing public appreciation of our natural world through the arts. She shares her adventures in the high Sierras at www.earthsvoices.com

When not creating imaginative worlds and wacky characters at her home in northern California, Marsha also enjoys traveling the world, scuba diving, and (like her characters) always trying new things.  To learn more about Marsha’s books or to contact her, visit www.marshadianearnold.com. You can also find out more about Marsha’s phenomenal home school e-course on Writing Wonderful Character-Driven Picture Books at http://www.picturebookacademy.com/writing-character-driven-stories.html
20 Comments
Marcie Atkins link
7/12/2013 12:49:22 am

YES!!!!!!! A thousand times YES! Thank you for this post and for your thoughts on quiet picture books. I love to read them and write them. And your thoughts on how to make them better are wonderful. Thank you for championing the quiet picture book.

Reply
best essay papers link
3/22/2018 05:06:06 pm

I can still remember the day when we were taught how to write a quite book as a final requirement on my creative writing class. It may look so easy, but factors and elements you have to deal with are hard to achieve. Though you are finished writing it, you still have this different kind of doubt that bugs your mind; identifying if what you did was right or wrong. Most of the time, these books are for children. It has to be engaging and informative at the same time. The grade I got from that test was quite good, and I felt proud of myself after that!

Reply
Amanda J Harrington link
7/12/2013 12:54:11 am

I think writing a quiet book is an exercise in self-belief, more than in any other type of book.
The idea that is has to be 'noisy' and full of action has been around for a long time, but I love the idea of a story having its own voice, one that you hear speaking just to you.

Reply
Patricia Tilton link
7/12/2013 01:39:19 am

Thank you for this post. Needed to hear it today! Some of my favorite quiet books are ones you mentioned. I have a quiet book that has a magical feel to it. Not an easy to promote.

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Christine M. Irvin link
7/12/2013 03:16:36 am

Great article. Thanks for sharing!!! (And best of luck with your bunions!)

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Darshana Khiani link
7/12/2013 04:20:49 am

Beautiful, eloquent post. Thank you Marsha.

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Romelle broas link
7/12/2013 02:45:15 pm

Excellent article, Marsha! I appreciate your List of what makes a good quiet book. You are right. I see quiet books published and yet editors say they don't want it. But now I know it has to be an exceptional quiet book to stand out!

Reply
Mary Nida Smith link
7/12/2013 10:13:32 pm

Children and adults who read "quiet books" need them to relax in this busy, mad feeling world's activities. "Quiet books" allow children to dream and hold on to like a soft cuddling bear.

Reply
jane Yolen link
7/12/2013 11:06:00 pm

Just a small historical note: The first four editors who saw MOON turned it down as "too quiet." None of them would have signed up John Schoenherr to do the pictures. He simply wouldn't have been on their radar.

Jane

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Ellen L. Ramsey link
7/12/2013 11:14:34 pm

A wonderful post. I quietly and deeply thank you!

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Amy Benoit
7/12/2013 11:16:16 pm

Thank you, Marsha!

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Marsha Diane Arnold link
7/12/2013 11:22:16 pm

I'm delighted you all enjoyed my post. Amanda, an exercise in self-belief is a good way to put it. Jane, I'm honored you took the time to share your knowledge. Thank you.

Now, shall I make my confession? One day after I finished this blog, a quiet manuscript of mine that I adore was rejected for being "too quiet!" Sad, but true. However, the editor said wonderful things about it and in the end said it was "too quiet" AND too like another book they'd recently published. And the other book was by darlings of the industry, major award winners. So I like to imagine/fool myself into thinking it may have been taken if not for the other book. We have so many hills to climb as writers. Off to climb the next as I search for the perfect editor for my "too quiet" story. :)

Reply
Andrea Alban link
7/13/2013 02:07:25 am

My three picture books are quiet AND I wrote them in verse. My three publishers are major New York houses. But before the first YES, I received 49 rejection letters, many of which included "too quiet for today's marketplace." Proves the point: all it takes is one editor to fall in love with your idea, style, and prose. As Jane Yolen says, "Take joy [in the process]." Publication and adoring readers will follow.

Reply
kelly mcd
7/13/2013 04:47:36 am

Thats wonderful to see

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Dominique White link
7/13/2013 06:57:12 am

Thank you so much for this insightful article. I have been selling Walker Books delightful "quiet" books such as Extra Yarn and Hooray for Fish for some time to Spanish parents who want English language picture books for their Young children. Quiet books are particularly successful in Spain because Spanish children's literature tends to be whimsical, fairytale-like and character-led.

I agree wholeheartedly with motto you give for the bolstering up of this genre: Still Waters Run Deep. I also congratulate you for the challenge you set your fellow writers: "Just as we had to write better picture books as the market tightened, so must we elevate ourselves to the challenge of writing better quiet books as that market tightens". I look forward to the results!

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Deb link
7/15/2013 08:31:58 am

what an insightful post on the power of quiet! thanks!

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Colleen Muske link
9/6/2013 04:44:36 am

Just what I needed to hear! Thanks for the great post. I'm patiently collecting rejection letters for my sweet, well written, but too quiet picture book :)

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Cecilia Clark link
4/14/2014 01:34:37 am

thank you. Simply and quietly, thank you.

Reply
Maria Marshall
4/14/2014 10:14:30 am

I love "A Sick Day for Amos"! Thank you for your comments and supportive ideas concerning the need and value of continuing to create soothing, quiet books.

Reply
Kaden link
5/25/2014 03:13:33 am

I became honored to receive a call from my friend as soon as he uncovered the important points shared in your site. Going through your blog post is a real excellent experience. Thank you for taking into account readers like me, and I wish you the best of achievements as being a professional in this field.

Reply



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    Meet the Friday Blogonauts

    First Fridays will feature Bryan Patrick Avery, published writer , man of mystery, and professional magician among other things.

    Second Fridays will feature  awesome multi-award winning author Marsha Diane Arnold who will be writing about character-driven and/or nature-based books and/or anything she likes :)

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  • Home
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