by Tammi Sauer
One of the ways I come up with picture book ideas is to push myself to put a twist on the familiar. This technique worked out well for me with my latest book MOSTLY MONSTERLY (Simon & Schuster, 2010) and my upcoming book ME WANT PET (Simon & Schuster, 2012).
The initial seed for MOSTLY MONSTERLY came from my editor wanting a young, funny Valentine’s Day book about friendship. She encouraged me to try to write one. Oh, the thrill! Oh, the pressure. I went to the library and read Every Valentine’s Day Picture Book Ever Written.
I discovered that most of those books were about cutesy things like kittens and puppies and mice. I knew my story had to be different, so I thought as un-cutesy as possible. And came up with monsters. Bernadette is an ordinary monster on the outside, but, underneath her fangs and fur, she has a deep, dark secret. She—gasp!—has a sweet side.
Even though my editor and I eventually decided to tweak out the Valentine’s Day references and make the book marketable year-round, the story is still very much the same. But it never would have come about if I wasn’t trying to find a way to make my story stand out from the competition.
ME WANT PET sprang from my desire to write a book about a kid who really wanted a pet. There was only one problem. Every publishing house already had a pet book. Once again, I knew my story had to be unique if I wanted any chance of selling it. So I brainstormed. And read, read, read, read, read, read. And thunked my head on the keyboard.
One day, it hit me. My pet story wasn’t going to be about a typical kid who wanted a typical pet. Mine would star a cave boy in pursuit of the perfect prehistoric pet. Ooga!
So give it a try. Come up with a basic topic (Valentine’s Day, pets, siblings, pirates, first day of school, etc.). See what else is already out there. Then brainstorm a way that sets your story apart.
Tammi Sauer spends the bulk of her free time hanging out with cowboys, chickens, monsters, ducks, princesses, three disgruntled chipmunks, and the occasional cave boy. Her next book, MR. DUCK MEANS BUSINESS (Simon & Schuster, 2011), debuts in January. To learn more about Tammi, please visit her at www.tammisauer.com.
Tammi will be giving away a signed copy of MOSTLY MONSTERLY at the conclusion of PiBoIdMo.
34 comments
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November 23, 2010 at 11:28 am
Catherine Denton
Tammi, I’m a huge fan of your picture books! Thanks for the tip of thinking outside the box. Sometimes I get stuck inside.
Catherine Denton
November 23, 2010 at 11:29 am
Julie
Tammi – thanks so much for the great post! I’m wondering how you did your research. Did you ask a children’s librarian help you find all of the “pet” books or did you Google search? I’m about to start researching dragon books, although I know there must be hundreds. I’m just curious about your process. Thanks again!
November 23, 2010 at 12:00 pm
Stephanie Shaw
Tammi,
It is so helpful to see what goes into the making of a great picture book. Thank you for letting us peek behind the curtain.
November 23, 2010 at 12:10 pm
Ishta Mercurio
Thanks for this post. So often, I fall into the pattern of writing what I think is a great story, only to find that it’s already been done. Reading up on the competition first and then thinking about how to differentiate my work from what is out there is a great approach to take.
November 23, 2010 at 12:20 pm
Diana Murray
Thanks for the inspiration, Tammi!
I love the story for how you came up with Mostly Monsterly (which is awesome). A great, methodical approach. With a little thunking, I just might be able to pull it off. Today’s idea shall be twisty! Thanks!
November 23, 2010 at 12:46 pm
Lynn
I like how you think. 🙂 Thanks for the challenge to us to break free of the usual and let our creative minds be free to explore, and make changes, and dare to be different.
November 23, 2010 at 2:28 pm
Megan K. Bickel
Good advice! And I love going and reading everything that is already out there. That is my favorite research!!
November 23, 2010 at 2:47 pm
Corey Schwartz
OMG, Me Want Pet. Me mad me didn’t think of that first!
LOVE IT!!! 🙂
November 23, 2010 at 3:56 pm
JonnyB
great, i think i’ll try that with some of this month’s ideas
November 23, 2010 at 4:53 pm
Sheri Dillard
Me want to thank you for this post! You are mostly masterly at this PB idea stuff! 🙂
November 23, 2010 at 5:13 pm
Anna
ME WANT PET sounds hilarious! And you’re right, it’s all about finding your unique spin on a topic. Thanks for the advice!
November 23, 2010 at 5:16 pm
Shannon O'Donnell
I LOVE Mostly Monsterly! Thanks for the great tips and encouragement. 🙂
November 23, 2010 at 5:27 pm
Catherine Johnson
Thanks for the great tips. We all need a reminder from time to time to not go with the first idea we think of, twist the situation to make it unique. I’ll look out for your book!
November 23, 2010 at 5:30 pm
Dana Carey
Fun stuff. And great advice–lots of reading, research and going way beyond our first impulses (which tend to be cliché). Thanks!
November 23, 2010 at 5:46 pm
Melissa Liban
What great inspiration. Your books all look fabulous!
November 23, 2010 at 5:58 pm
nina seven
excellent advice, tammi! i really enjoyed reading and learning from, your post.
November 23, 2010 at 6:07 pm
Marcy Pusey
Thats a great idea!!! I can have super common ideas too… and love the challenge of twisting it up somehow!
November 23, 2010 at 7:08 pm
Nicole Zoltack
Love the idea of Me Want Pet! Awesome.
November 23, 2010 at 7:54 pm
tammi sauer
Yay! I’m glad so many of you have found this to be helpful. 🙂
Bob Shea(!!!) is the illustrator for Me Want Pet. My editor recently shared his sketches with me. Woah. Me happy.
Julie…
These are a few of the ways I research a topic:
* visit the library and various bookstores (a lot!)
* check out publishers’ online catalogs
* choose the “children’s books department” on Amazon then type in the topic’s keyword (example: “dragon”)
November 23, 2010 at 8:22 pm
Nina Crittenden
Ooga! Me want read Me Want Pet!!!
Great post, Tammi! 🙂
November 23, 2010 at 8:36 pm
Lynda Shoup
Loved this post!
November 23, 2010 at 11:12 pm
ccgevry
Thanks for such an inspiring post. I was trying to come up with an alternate fairy tale story, but the idea is eluding me right now. I think some library research might be helpful and spark some thoughts.
Best of luck with your books.
Cheryl
November 24, 2010 at 8:20 am
laurasalas
Love your books, Tammi! Thanks for the great idea starter. My idea for today popped into my head before I even finished reading your post. I’m going to try your approach with several other topics today, too. Thanks for the inspiration.
November 24, 2010 at 8:56 am
Sarah Dillard
I love hearing how Mostly Monsters came about. It amazes me how often the original idea behind something becomes unimportant in the final work. But without that first step where would we be!
November 24, 2010 at 9:24 am
Heather Kephart
Tami, you are wonderful! I laughed out loud when I read the title ME WANT PET and, like others, I wish I’d thought of it – must be so fun to write.
Oh, to have access to those editorial “wants”. But we can all use your techniques. Pick “types” of books & study the market. Then craft a book that is unique and fun for a very young audience. I’m feeling so inspired. Thank you!
November 24, 2010 at 12:57 pm
Rachel
Thanks for the advice. Your books are always so clever, Tammi.
November 24, 2010 at 3:15 pm
Linda Dimmer
Great approach to story ideas. Love your books!
November 24, 2010 at 4:51 pm
Christie Wild
Tammi, Thanks for the great post! I use Amazon searches and libraries, too. But how do you actually READ all the books, or do you? Do you just read the summaries or do you actually buy all the books to read? Would LOVE to know. I’d go broke trying to read all the books out there. The libraries only carry so many. And I live in a small town. Would book stores order books knowing I’m not actually going to buy any of them? I doubt it very seriously.
November 24, 2010 at 9:26 pm
Lynne Marie
Thanks, Tammi! As you know I’m such a fan and can’t wait for the rest of your books (I have them ALL so far). For those who missed it, see the following link for more of Tammi’s insights on finding ideas. It will provide additional creative fertilizer for the purposes of this PiBoIdMo
http://mywordplayground.blogspot.com/2010/08/writing-promptthinking-inside-of-box.html
I know that I have a few more already LOL
November 25, 2010 at 2:23 am
Dorina Lazo Gilmore
Thanks, Tammi! I love giving the everyday a twist. Of course, I spent today coming up with offbeat story ideas about Thanksgiving. So fun!
November 25, 2010 at 8:51 am
kathy stemke
Thanks, great tips.
November 30, 2010 at 8:34 am
Connie Mustang
Hi Tammi!
I love your post. When we are toddlers, we seem to have more fun playing with the packaging then the actual gift. As writers we can do the same. We twist, fold. and imagine all angles of our stories to see what our imaginations bring. You may find it will actually inspire more than one story! As for the gift, it’s wonderful too, it’s whatever sparks the idea that gives your imagination a kickstart. Thank you for inspiring us to open our presents, and we don’t have to wait for Christmas. Look forward to reading your books.
November 30, 2010 at 3:51 pm
tammi sauer
Christie……I read as many books as I can at libraries and bookstores. But reading summaries online, in catalogs, and in the children’s issue of PW are also great ways to know what books are “out there.”
November 7, 2012 at 12:01 am
PiBoIdMo Day 7: Every Day Tammi Sauer is Structurin’ « Writing for Kids (While Raising Them)
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