Seeing in Scenes by Lisa Amstutz

One of the best pieces of writing advice I’ve ever received came from author Candace Fleming. This advice transformed my picture book process and made my writing much stronger. What was it? Look at your book as a series of scenes.
 
When I’ve discussed this light-bulb moment with illustrator friends, they look perplexed. They naturally see their stories as a series of scenes—perfectly illustrated in full color, of course—and assume everyone else does too. Sadly, my author brain doesn’t work that way.
 
So what is a scene? Most of us are familiar with the idea of a movie scene, or a scene in a play. But if you’re not an illustrator, you may have never considered scenes in a picture book. Here are a few basics.

• Often, each scene will take up one spread (facing pages). Sometimes there are two scenes on a spread. Or a scene might carry over several spreads. But to start, try looking at each spread as a complete scene.

 

• A scene has a distinct setting. Whether you describe it or just show it in the art, the text in each scene is grounded in a specific time and place. You’ll want to vary these settings throughout the book to add visual interest.

 

• Each scene has one or more characters.

 

• Each scene features an action or change. You can start with a spread of backstory if needed, but after that, each scene should advance the plot. It should make the reader want to turn the page to see what happens next.  

 
To determine if your scenes need work, try paginating your manuscript or making a dummy. This will help you more clearly assess them. If you have trouble figuring out where to add page breaks, your scenes may need work. Another trick is to make a list of the scenes in your story. Summarize each with a sentence. Can you boil your story down to 12-14 sentences?
 
Once you get the hang of seeing in scenes, you’ll look at your picture book in a whole new light. Give it a try!
 
Lisa Amstutz is the author of 100+ children’s books. For more about her books, mentorships, and critique services, see www.LisaAmstutz.com.

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