Craft a Picture Book That Sells OnDemand Webinar
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
- The nuts and bolts of the picture book form
- The key elements that a picture book needs to get an agent's attention
- What makes kids (and parents!) love a picture book
- How to plot your picture book
- How to create characters that resonate with kids
- How to craft sentences that sing (and don't have to rhyme!)
- The basics of page turns, pacing, and length
- How to format your manuscript, explain illustrations, and get your submission in shape
- The state of today's picture book market
- Case studies of excellent picture books succeeding today
ABOUT THE WEBINAR
With beautiful illustrations and engaging text, picture books are a delight for young readers, and a favorite of parents and librarians. Agents and editors are always on the lookout for the next story that'll become a hit with kids. But just because picture books are short and sweet doesn't mean they're easy to write! Craft is key to selling a picture book, but it's not always simple to hone a perfect manuscript, especially when the word count is so tight.
Blair Thornburgh wears many hats in children's books: she's an author, with her debut picture book, SKULLS!, coming from Simon & Schuster in 2019, she holds an MFA in Writing for Children from Hamline University, and she's worked as an editor on books for all ages of kid readers, currently at Dovetail Fiction and previously at Quirk Books, where she worked across picture books, middle grade, and young adult.
During this webinar, you'll learn how to take your picture book from inspired idea to fully-fleshed concept that grabs readers' attention,in the span of just a few hundred words! Discover what makes a strong commercial premise, how to craft characters kids will love, how your word choice, prose, and rhythm makes a good idea truly great, how to avoid pitfalls and common slip-ups, and pitch a picture book that agents and editors will clamor for. You'll also learn about today's picture book market and what's selling well (and what's not). By the end of this webinar, you'll feel empowered to take your picture book project to the next level of craft, whether that's submitting it for publication, undertaking a top-down revision, or even writing up a brand-new idea!
INSTRUCTOR:
Blair Thornburgh is the author of the picture book SKULLS!, coming in 2019 from Atheneum/Simon & Schuster, and the YA novels WHO'S THAT GIRL and ORDINARY GIRLS, both from HarperTeen. She works as a developmental editor at Dovetail Fiction, a YA fiction packager under Working Partners. Prior to joining Dovetail, she was Senior Editor at Quirk Books, where she edited many children's and YA titles in fiction and non-fiction. Named one of Publishers Weekly's Rising Star Honorees for 2017, she is also a graduate of Hamline University's MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults.
NOTE: Writer's Digest does not offer refunds for OnDemand Webinars. All sales are final. OnDemand Webinars do NOT include a critique.
