Writing Obsession

I was just thinkin’ that I get a little obsessed when the words won’t come and I can’t seem to get the lines just right. I know it is perfection that drives me. But could it be that perfection is what makes a good book?

In a children’s book EVERY SINGLE WORD counts - every stressed syllable, every verb, adjective, and preposition on each line. The use of capitalization and punctuation is also important in a children’s book. Even the white space counts. Together, these impact the way a children’s book is read and my job, as the author, is to communicate not only the story plot, but how to read the lines to fully experience it.

These details can make or break a children’s book’s success. However, success in my mind is not about finances. I’m going for the times when someone will see me in the grocery and say, “My kids and I love reading your books!” Or a social media response to one of my posts that reads, “We can’t wait to get your next book!” That’s what motivates me to keep writing - the desire to create books that families love reading together. This only comes from my drive for perfection.

When a story first comes to my head, I can’t wait to get the idea down on paper. Otherwise, I’m sure to lose it. Then I work to get that idea into some sort of storyline before reworking the lines, changing the words, refining the rhythm - for several months. I have to make myself put the story away for a few weeks so that I can return later to read it with fresh eyes and spot problem areas. When I’m ready, I’ll share it with my writing group friends for feedback to see if they can find areas that simply don’t jive. I take some of their feedback and leave some alone if it doesn’t seem to fit with my vision for the book.

And so, I refine, revise, and refine some more.

In the end, I’ll come to a final written piece ready to send to my illustrator so she can work her magic. Together, we will create our next beautiful and engaging children’s book.

I hope you will want to read it with someone you love.