Kicking Your Picture Book Up a Notch (Without Adding Length)

Picture books are jewels in the world of literature; artistic, fun, informative, and full of heart-shine. One important aspect is that they are short. Many publishers insist on less than 500 words. Yet they must have characterization, plot, setting, theme, and mood—all the same things a 90,000-word novel has.

The other thing they must do is grab and retain the interest of young minds. Those minds are racing at phenomenal speed. It’s a tricky business to get that young reader to stick with a story.

Below are some suggestions for things you can do to add a little kick to your picture book without adding much in the way of length.

I’ve provided the titles of books that illustrate the techniques listed.

Can you work in any of these tried-and-true methods? If you can, your picture book will be memorable to a young child in more than one way. So, go for it!

Use wordplay/games/riddles/math

• Du Iz Tak? by Carson Ellis (Walker)
• Ain’t Gonna Paint No More by Karen Beaumont (Harcourt)
• 7 Ate 9 by Tara Lazar (Hyperion)
• A Greyhound, a Groundhog by Emily Jenkins (Schwartz & Wade)

Include refrains

• Pout Pout Fish by Deborah Diesen (Farrar, Straus & Giroux)
• My Little Sister Ate One Hare by Bill Grossman (Crown)
• Trashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman (Harper)
• Shake My Sillies Out by Raffi (Knopf)

Use onomatopoeia

• Squeak, Rumble, Whomp! Whomp! Whomp! by Wynton Marsalis (Candlewick)
• Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. (Simon & Schuster)
• Watersong by Tim McCanna (Simon & Schuster)
• Click Clack Moo by Doreen Cronin (Simon & Schuster)

Give away secrets to the reader

• Officer Buckle & Gloria by Peggy Rathman (G. P. Putnam’s)
• The Day the Babies Crawled Away by Peggy Rathmann (G. P. Putnam’s)
• Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willems (Hyperion)
• Thunder-Boomer! by Shutta Crum (Clarion/HMH)

Break the invisible “wall” between reader and book

• Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems (Hyperion)
• The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! Jon Scieszka (Viking)
• Is There a Dog in This Book? By Viviane Schwarz (Candlewick)
• Counting to Bananas by Carrie Tillotson (Flamingo Books)

Add metafictional elements

• The Book with No Pictures by BJ Novak (Dial)
• Tuesday by David Wiesner (HMH)
• Chloe and the Lion by Mac Barnett and Adam Rex (Hyperion)
• Under a Pig Tree by Margi Palatini (Abrams)

Add mini-plots to the illustrations, or dueling plots

• Dear Mrs. Larue: Letters From Obedience School by Mark Teague (Scholastic)
• Something From Nothing by Phoebe Gilman (Scholastic)
• The Story of Chicken Licken by Jan Ormerod (Walker)
• Meanwhile Back at the Ranch by Trinka Hakes Noble (Puffin Books)

Create physical interaction with the book

• Press Here by Herve Tullet (Chronicle)
• Warning: Do Not Open This Book by Adam Lehrhaupt (Simon & Schuster)
• Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson (Greenwillow)
• Are We There Yet? By Dan Santat (Little, Brown)

Add non-fiction addenda (can include historical background, teaching ideas, biographical details, science facts, etc.)

• One Leaf Rides the Wind by Celeste Mannis (Puffin)
• Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin (HMH)
• Strong as Sandow by Don Tate (Charlesbridge)
• Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride by Pam Munoz Ryan (Scholastic)