From Weak to Wow: The Essentials Your Picture Book Might Be Missing

Karen Ferreira

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In this session, you’ll discover:

Whether you’re revising a manuscript that feels off or just starting to write your first story, this session will help you understand what makes a picture book truly work. You’ll learn the essential story elements most aspiring authors miss and get a clear 3-level framework to write and improve your manuscript with confidence.

Session Links:

– GetYourBookIllustrations.com

_ Kidlit Chronicle

Bonus:

– The 3-Level Fix Framework

Click Here To Access The Bonus Now

Comment Below With Your Key Takeaways Or If You Have Questions About The Session.

41 Comments

  1. Thank you for your lovely presentation! I am finding through these sessions that perhaps I am not letting the pictures do much of the work. This gives me yet another layer to refine in my PB transcripts!

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  2. Such an excellent presentation! Succinct yet in-depth information conveyed in an easy-to-digest-and-apply way. I’m sure it will immensely help me improve my children’s picture book, even though I’ve taken lots of previous writing classes aimed at adult creative nonfiction writing and am a published author of 2 and soon to be 3 nonfiction books.

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  4. Karen & A’sea,
    Words cannot express the appreciation I have for the both of you in not only delivering an outstanding Day 1 summit as I’m sure the rest of the week will reflect, for helping me to go from beginning writer to author! Easy to access each presentation; easy to input feedback to speakers; and easy to download Bonus information to further our author journey. (I’m practicing repetition. LOL!)
    Your session on “What Makes a Picture Book Work,” is an absolute must, no matter if you’re beginning your journey, in the middle of your journey, or have gone through other training. The key elements are something we should revisit every so often to sharpen our skills. Thank you for another invaluable session and a way to stay connected to Children’s Book Mastery! NGHo – Gong Ho for Books!

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  6. Thanks for your great lecture on picture books. I believe that it has convinced me that I have to do a early reader book. My books are based on a farm and I will write a book about meeting baby animals and taking care of them. II am just about to publish an early reader/chapter book on the animals in the farm. Thanks Jen

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    1. Okay, great. It’s very important to have clarity on the age group and type of book, so this is a good conclusion!

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  7. This session is just SO GOOD!
    You really pull everything together and make your points nice & clear.
    Best session so far!!!

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  9. Thank you, Karen! this was the best session today. I have taken many notes and will be able to apply them to my WIP.

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  10. Such a great 10,000 foot view of what makes a picture book work. Karen has distilled so much information and packed it into this presentation that is easy to understand. Well done!

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  11. Thank you, Karen, for such great information and direction. I’ve had a couple of books professionally edited. After watching your video, I realized that a lot of the questions you gave us are what an Editor looks for when reviewing a manuscript. Maybe, if I apply these questions to my manuscript and revise accordingly before I send it to the Professional Editor, I will likely have a much better manuscript to present. Not to say or discount the great value of having my manuscript professionally edited…that is a given. But, to present a better document that I’ve put even more effort into by applying your questions, well, I’d be really, really proud of that. And, maybe the next revision will be less painful. ;)) Thank you, Karen, for another thorough study and great presentation to help us in our author journey. You are GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!

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  12. Thank you, Karen, for a session filled with helpful tips as I review my manuscript and revise. I also appreciate the FREE resources you provided. Thank you, too, for this whole Children’s Book Mastery week! What a wealth of information for aspiring writers…

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  13. Excellent Day 1. So much great information from everybody. Thank you Karen for breaking your session down to a very easy to understand process. Now I feel I can go back to my published picture book and reform it with better purpose with also a much better answer to ‘WHY’.

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    1. I’m glad you’re getting value from the sessions, Liz. Great on the better answer to “why”!

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  14. Wonderfully informative session – thank you, Karen! There are so many take aways as the session was jam packed with helpful, practical tips. The 3-Level Fix Framework, in particular, will be a go-to resource for me from now on. Thanks again!

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  15. I have been reading and researching about writing short stories and picture books. I have learned a lot but your session still taught me something new! I love those kind of sessions. Each takeaway builds up my skills as a writer. Thank you

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  19. Dear Karem,

    Thank you for your clear and structured presentation that really helped me a lot. However I would like to know how do you balance as a writer (who does not have any experience with drawing or techniques to ilustrate a book), with the “quote” (a picture is worth than one thousands words?) As a writer of children’s books I have a problem finding illustrators who can picture my words in an illustration that complements my text. Can you elaborate more on this please? and the ones that I have found are either too expensive or are not sensitive enough with multicultural issues that pertain to my characters.

    Reply

    1. Hi Pablo. I understand this can be trciky. Honestly, I think you need to keep searching until you find an illustrator who can capture your vision (and that fits in your budget). I know it’s easy to say, but it’s better to spend a bit more to create an amazing book, but I understand that obviously no one’s budget is limitless. That said, there are illustrators out there who will be able to create a beautiful book that complements your text at an affordable rate. Looking for new illustrators who are building their name and portfolio can be a good option.

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  21. KAREN: THAN YOU SO MUCH for this AMAZING presentation and for ALL THE HARD WORK you do to create this FANTASTIC learning experience every year. This was my second year, and I have learned SO MUCH from you and all the presenters. (I think my fingers are starting to PROTEST because of ALL the notes I’ve been typing! ;)) I thought I knew the mechanics of writing picture books, but your session TRULY OPENED my eyes in SO MANY WAYS! This session alone was like taking a FULL seminar! THANK YOU SO MUCH! And THANK YOU SO MUCH for ALL you do to support the children’s book writing community. It’s SO AMAZING HOW CONNECTED we all can be, even from ALL OVER the world. It’s TRULY the LOVE of BEAUTIFUL stories, and wanting to get them into the hands of little ones, that unites us. THANK YOU to EVERYONE!

    Reply

    1. Wow, Natalie, thank you! I’m so happy you find it so helpful, and I hope it helps you write amazing books. You’re right, the children’s book community is wonderful and definitely connected by our common love.

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  22. Thank you, Karen. This Summit has been amazingly inspiring and helpful. So much info. So. many notes. So much to process. I love learning about picture book writing and especially appreciate your tip to balance learning with doing.
    A huge thanks to all the contributors and also for giving us the bonus weekend to catch up on talks we missed.

    Reply

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