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by Gina Perry
I am a long-time Storystorm participant. I love finding new ideas! What I don’t love is the stuck point. You know what I’m talking about. When you love your character, but you lack a plot. Or when you have a great story arc, but something about the voice isn’t working out. Or, when you know it’s a good idea, and you have catchy refrains, but your character is missing that something special. And worst of all, when all you have is a catchy title or premise! But don’t fret, a stuck point is not a dead end. Today I’m sharing 5 techniques that have helped me get stories back on track:
- Put it away.
Try not to think about the project AT ALL for several days to a week. Then pick it up again and see if anything new jumps out.
- Break it down.
Dissect all the elements and decide if any of them could be more interesting. With THE KING OF BOOKS, my main character started as a basic orange cat. I flipped through old work and saw a simple illustration I did of a tiger wearing a crown on a pink background. Huzzah! A more exciting character and setting is born!
- Start from Scratch. Picture books are fragile, but short. Have you tried writing your story over again? You could change the setting, the voice, or the main character. It doesn’t hurt to give it a try, then compare and see if it shines a light on a better path. For my picture book SMALL, I had to try a few settings for the story before I landed on the city. It was full of diverse challenges and perfect for my tiny protagonist.
- Play favorites.
I write funny picture books. If I’m not having fun making a book, it’s a problem. But even if you write serious picture books, they should have an element of wonder or magic, right? Try injecting your story with your favorite foods, animals, activities, humor, games, etc. What makes you feel like a kid? What would the ‘normal’ adults think is childish for you to collect or enjoy? Are you an artist who finds yourself drawing the same thing over and over? Weaving favorites into your story will make it feel more personal and authentic. And keep you motivated through the long journey to publication.
- Frankenstein’s Monster.
If you only have a catchy title or premise, go back through all your ideas and see if you can patch together a story using multiple nuggets. Are there patterns to your ideas that go together? Is there a big emotion you return to over and over? Why can’t your rainy day story also be about monsters and pancakes?
Gina Perry is an author and illustrator from New England. Her latest picture book, THE KING OF BOOKS, is out now from Feiwel & Friends. She is also the creator of the monthly illustrator event #KidLitArtPostcard. You can find Gina on Instagram @ginaperry_books or BlueSky @ginaperry.bsky.social or follow her author newsletter Doodle Mail.
by Ursula Murray Husted
Want more free comics like this one, teaching guides to my books, or step-by-step videos/pdfs with classroom art activities? Go here!
Ursula Murray Husted is the creator of the graphic novels A Cat Story and Botticelli’s Apprentice. A lifelong artist, former professor, and advocate for the arts and art history education, Husted teaches formal comics classes, lectures, and art history workshops ranging from graduate university seminars to pre-K. Husted received her PhD from the University of Minnesota, MFA from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and BFA from Marshall University.
by Marcie Colleen
Lately I have been reading and studying the poetry of Mary Oliver. Slowly. Intentionally. Not to rush through it or “get” something from it, but to sit with her language and the way she notices the world.
Reading her work has made me think a lot about attention—about what we choose to notice, and what we allow ourselves to linger with. Mary Oliver’s poems don’t hurry. They observe. They stay. They remind me that paying attention is not passive. It’s an active, generous way of moving through life.
That way of noticing has been echoing for me because it’s the same kind of attention that lives at the heart of my picture book THE BEAR’S GARDEN, illustrated by Allison Oliver (Macmillan, 2020). In that story, the world is busy and rushed. Whole neighborhoods are forgotten. Broken. Overlooked. But the child sees something else. She notices small bits of beauty where others see only neglect. A reflection. A shape. A possibility. And because she notices, she begins to tend.
She doesn’t force the garden to grow. She watches. She believes. She whispers encouragement. She stays with it—day after day—through heat, wind, and uncertainty. And slowly, because of that attention, others begin to notice too. First quietly. Then together.
This practice of slowing down and choosing what to pay attention to has been with me through this first half of StoryStorm. Thirty ideas in one month can invite comparison, urgency, and the feeling that creativity needs to be performed on command.
So let’s gently set that aside.
Your job this month isn’t to perform.
It’s to live with attention.
Creativity doesn’t need to be summoned or proved. It doesn’t respond well to force. What it responds to is presence as your daily life unfolds, even when nothing particularly dramatic seems to be happening.
Living with attention means slowing down enough to notice what usually gets brushed past. A feeling that lingers. A moment that makes you pause. A thought that quietly returns when everything else moves on. These are small things. They’re easy to miss. And they’re exactly where stories begin.
You don’t have to catch every idea. You just have to savor enough moments that curiosity has room to grow.
Mary Oliver understood this deeply. Her poems remind me that noticing is a choice. That attention shapes meaning. That what we turn toward matters.
And THE BEAR’S GARDEN reminds me of something else: that noticing is an act of belief. Belief that what looks small or overlooked is worth caring for. Belief that tending—even quietly, even imperfectly—matters.
When we allow ourselves to savor a moment rather than rush past it, curiosity naturally follows. It asks gentle questions: Why did that stay with me? Why does this matter? You don’t need answers right away. Curiosity doesn’t demand them. It just wants space to exist.
Some days, that curiosity will bloom quickly. Other days, it will barely stir. Both are part of the work.
Some days will feel quiet.
Some ideas will barely whisper.
Trust them anyway.
Quiet days are not empty days. Whispered ideas are not weak ones. Many of the stories that stay with us the longest begin this way—small, unassuming, easy to underestimate.
StoryStorm doesn’t require brilliance on demand. It asks for openness. It asks you to notice what you’re already living. To write down what sticks, what returns, what gently taps you on the shoulder when you’re not trying so hard.
If you miss a day, that doesn’t mean you’ve failed. If an idea feels incomplete, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t count. An idea can be a sentence. A question. A feeling you don’t yet have words for. Write it down anyway. You’re not finishing stories this month—you’re planting them.
And perhaps most importantly, you’re practicing trust.
Trust that your life is already full of material.
Trust that attention is enough.
Trust that you don’t need to force meaning for it to exist.
Because when you savor life—really savor it—stories follow.
Not all at once.
Not loudly.
But faithfully.
So let this month be gentle. Let it be curious. Let it be quiet if it needs to be.
You’re not behind.
You’re not doing it wrong.
You’re living with attention—and that is the work.
Marcie Colleen is the author of numerous acclaimed books for young readers. Her writing spans picture books, chapter books, and comics. No matter the format, her stories reflect a deep love of community, creativity, and joyful connection. For more information about Marcie’s projects, visit ThisisMarcieColleen.com. You can also find her on Instagram @marciecolleen and Bluesky @marciecolleen.bsky.social.
by Michael Leali
Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by inspiration. Story ideas come to me on a weekly and, not infrequently, daily basis. An observation at the bookstore, a snippet of overheard conversation, the image of a young child chasing her dog. Everywhere we go there are seeds that can grow into something more.
I have more story ideas than I will ever have time to explore. And writing time is precious and inconsistent, so I must be selective. As someone with many, many only-just-begun manuscripts that have been abandoned for the next shiny idea, I’ve learned to pause when inspiration strikes. Give my nascent ideas room to breathe. That’s the only way I see a project through to the end.
Listing out my ideas helps me organize, reflect upon, and recall my sparks of inspiration. Revisiting my lists not only reminds me about my story ideas, but it also acts as a gauge. How excited am I about one idea over another? Which ideas continue to rise to the surface? When I’m bored, which stories do I daydream about? The longer I wait and let the ideas fight amongst themselves, the stronger some story ideas become.
Storytellers and future readers deserve only the best ideas because time is a precious, limited resource. Not only are we giving of our time when we commit to putting a story on paper, we’re also asking our future readers to dedicate their time to reading the story. We must give them a story worthy of the time they are sharing with us and our art.
So, how do I know which story idea to pursue? Here are a few cues I wait for that tell me to stop waiting and start writing:
- Shaken Soda:
For me, art is a joyful thing. I love the act of making something from nothing. When I feel the story idea ready to erupt, bubbling and gurgling like a shaken soda can, I know it’s time to write. This usually only happens after I’ve been gripped by daydreams of the story for weeks or months. Often, I will have written a few lines or brainstormed some world building—I allow myself to write around the story, but not the story itself. When I have all this, and I’m ready to burst from excitement and the gleeful prospect of spending countless hours in this world, only then do I sit down to write. - Say Something:
I can turn just about anything into a story. I think many writers can! But just because I can say something, it doesn’t mean that the story is saying something. For me, every great story is a highly entertaining narrative that reflects something about the human condition. This doesn’t mean that every story needs to be overtly philosophical or wildly moving, but every story should reflect and connect on a human level. I write a better story when I know my story has something to say. - Daydreams:
A great story idea will rise to the surface of my thoughts over and over again. Whether I’m walking the dog or doing dishes, in those moments where my body is distracted and my mind can wander, I’ll find myself consistently returning to a particular story idea. It will grow slightly or flip around, and I’ll see it from a new perspective. This is a sign that the story has a beating heart. It’s living and now I need to care for it.
If you’re like me and facing the overwhelm of indecision—or making the “right” decision—try paying attention to these cues. Don’t let the gift of many story ideas feel like a burden. Because it is a gift! Let your creativity generate more creativity. But be patient. Let the very best you have to offer rise to the surface. And then… get writing!
Michael Leali is the award-winning author of The Civil War of Amos Abernathy, which won SCBWI’s Golden Kite Award. His work has also been twice nominated for Lambda Literary Awards among many other honors. His other middle grade novels include Matteo and The Truth About Triangles. He is a veteran high school English teacher, a seasoned writing coach, and he now teaches creative writing at the University of San Francisco. He holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Follow Michael on Instagram @michaelleali and learn more about him and his work at michaelleali.com.
by Ariel Bernstein
One of my favorite parts of the writing process is wondering which line will lead my friend and critique partner, the author Ali Bovis, to comment that a character is ‘a piece of work.’ She doesn’t quite mean it in the same way as Merriam-Webster’s definition of ‘a complicated, difficult, or eccentric person.’ She means it in the kidlit way of saying THIS is a kid character (human, animal or other), the good and the bad. Because there is nothing I love better in a book than seeing a kid character reflect young readers on their level, accepting them for who they are.
The first time I remember seeing a piece of work character was in that most iconic of children’s books, Maurice Sendak’s WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE. Many people understandably comment on the Caldecott-winning art and the indelible images of the wild things as reasons for why the book has endured for each new generation of readers. But I think what children most respond to is the subtle message that Max, who acts badly and never actually apologizes, is not seen as a ‘bad child’ but as a child who is still learning about lashing out and seemingly unfair consequences and above all, is a child who is still deserving of love (and what is love but a parent who leaves their child a hot supper after a tantrum).
In my new early reader, OLIVE & OSCAR: THE FAVORITE HAT, illustrated by Marc Rosenthal, I knew Olive would be the “piece of work” character. Her first act is actually kind as she gifts her friend Oscar the aforementioned hat. But as the day goes on and the friends find themselves in need of objects (something to dig sand with, something to hold groceries when a bag breaks, etc.), Olive volunteers Oscar’s new hat without hesitation and without much thought as to whether it’s an appropriate use of Oscar’s hat or if Oscar himself wants to use his new hat for such purposes. Some people (adults) would recognize this behavior as less than ideal as Olive is being rather presumptuous. But at a kid level through a kid lens, it makes sense. If you don’t have a shovel for sand, why not use a hat? It’s there. Why should a kid be expected to think first of the consequences of a sand filled hat? Just because Olive is making a bad decision doesn’t mean she’s a bad kid. She’s just a kid. A work-in-progress kid. Who also happens to be a “piece of work.”
Of course not every children’s book needs a piece of work character, and I would say most children’s books don’t have one at all. But when a book has one and it works, it can create a story full of understanding, humor, endearment and emotional resonance.
Some more of my favorite books with such wonderful characters include Kelly DiPucchio and illustrator Greg Pizzoli’s DRAGON WAS TERRIBLE, Ryan T. Higgins’ WE DON’T EAT OUR CLASSMATES, and Katrina Moore and illustrator Zoe Si’s TEENY HOUDINI series.
I would add my picture book MABEL WANTS A FRIEND, also illustrated by Marc Rosenthal. It was suggested that I remove the scene where Mabel stole a child’s toy in case it made Mabel too unlikeable. I decided to keep the scene because I felt the reader needed to see who Mabel truly was, warts and all, before a friendship helped changed her desires and priorities. Mabel did a particularly bad thing, and while she deserved her friend Chester’s condemnation, she also deserved a chance to learn and grow from her mistake.
These piece of work characters of course can and should learn from their mistakes as kids eventually do. Max decides to leave the wild things and return home. Olive offers to replace Oscar’s ruined hat. They haven’t suddenly become different characters and the expectation isn’t that they will never make a bad decision again. But they’ve learned a little and understand a little more. The fact that they were seen and accepted—the mom still loves Max and Oscar still loves Olive—make it easier for these characters to grow at their own pace. And a young reader can see that when they too make a mistake, they should also still be loved and understood.
My writing prompt for you is this:
Create a character and then think…what it is about them that makes them a “piece of work”?
- Is there a scene where they are impulsive, presumptuous, angry, greedy, overwhelmed, bossy?
- How do you make these traits into something relatable to a young reader?
- How do you make the readers feel seen through your character rather than judged?
Ariel Bernstein is an author of picture books including WE LOVE FISHING! (starred review Publisher’s Weekly), YOU GO FIRST (starred review Kirkus Reviews), and MABEL WANTS A FRIEND (starred reviews Kirkus Reviews and Publisher’s Weekly), all illustrated by Marc Rosenthal. She also wrote the WARREN & DRAGON chapter book series, illustrated by Mike Malbrough. Honors include a Publisher’s Weekly Best Book of 2024, Charlotte Zolotow Highly Commended Title, Junior Library Guild Gold Selections, CCBC Choices, and Bank Street College Best Book of the Year. Ariel lives in New Jersey with her family and you can find her online at arielbernsteinbooks.com.
by Trisha Speed Shaskan
During the summer of 2005, because I had taught creative writing classes to children, I was hired to teach mystery writing. The catch was: I didn’t have a clue as to how to teach it. But I loved Sherlock Holmes. And I had a motive: I needed the income. So, I read a craft book on mystery writing and studied a book on how to teach the subject to kids. One approach was to write the mystery backwards (plotting vs. pantsing). You decide who committed the crime, figure out who the suspects are, plant clues, then circle back to the start and begin writing. Kids wrote about runaway chickens, flying robots, and a shapeshifting bear!
That year, I was also a student in an MFA program where I studied creative writing. I sold my first book, THE TREASURE MAP, an easy reader to Capstone Press. Afterwards, the editor asked me to write books-for-hire, meaning I’d be paid a flat fee to write them, but wouldn’t own the copyright or receive royalties. I wrote educational-based books such as IF YOU WERE ONOMATOPOEIA.
Several years later, an editor at Capstone who knew my husband Stephen was working on becoming an illustrator asked us to collaborate on the book-for-hire, Art Panels, BAM! Speech Bubbles, POW! Writing Your Own Graphic Novel. The format was new to me, but I deduced Stephen could help guide me because he’d been reading comics since he was a child. From craft books, I learned about panels, splash pages, and emanata, which are the visual elements that emanate from a character or object in a comic, such as stink lines!
Afterward, Stephen and I taught graphic novel classes to elementary students based on that book. We witnessed how much kids loved creating comics!
A couple years later, Stephen celebrated the release of his first traditionally published picture book. We both had agents. Together, we were invited to pitch an illustrated early chapter book series to a publisher. For the first time, we brainstormed fictional story ideas together. Because of the summer class I’d taught, we had a breakthrough: We created Q & Ray a mystery series about a hedgehog and rat who solve mysteries at Elm Tree Elementary. The characters are forest animals. Q is a hedgehog because they’re found in England where Sherlock Holmes originated. Ray, a rat, is her best friend.
We had fun naming characters. Q is short for Quillan since she has quills. Q & Ray is a riff on Q & A, questions and answers, which is the heart of a mystery. The media specialist is Mr. Shrew based on the media specialist extraordinaire (now author) Mr. Schu. The main teacher is Ms. Boar!
Coming up with a story, pitch, and sketches took 2 months. When our agents submitted the series: Plot twist. It was rejected. The editor “liked it, didn’t love it.” We loved the idea, but the format was very specific. We wondered: What to do?
At my job as a literacy coach, the students wanted to read Baby Mouse and Lunch Lady, but those graphic novels were too difficult. We suspected kids might like a young graphic novel series. To learn how to write the format, I reread Story by Robert McKee since graphic novels are similar to screenplays.
A couple months later, our agents sent it out on submission. Suspense! And…rejections. Publishers weren’t as familiar with younger graphic novels as they are now. Finally, we sold the 3-book series. We had proof that all our work wasn’t lost.
While working on the series, I could hear Stephen in the next room laughing while drawing. He’d found utter joy in the format! And because of Q & Ray, Stephen created the young graphic chapter book series, Pizza and Taco, which has resonated with children all over the world. The 10th book in the series was published this month:
Has the story you’re creating had plot twists or cliffhangers? Perhaps a new experience that’s come your way might help inform it? Or maybe trying a new format might help shape it? I’m no detective, but I have a hunch you’ll close the case on your story soon!
Stephen and Trisha at their launch for Q & Ray at Red Balloon Bookshop
Questions for You:
- Is there a new genre you want to try?
- Is your story fresh? If not, can you take bits–a title, phrase, character, etc.–and use it in another story?
- Is there a fun way to play with the characters’ names in your story?
- Have you tried brainstorming story ideas with a close friend or family member?
- What are the children reading? Excited about? Is there something they want to read that hasn’t been created?
- Last, but not least: Are you having fun?
Trisha Speed Shaskan has written fifty books for children, including her latest picture book The Itty-Bitty Witch illustrated by Xindi Yan. Trisha and her husband/author/illustrator Stephen Shaskan have created the picture book Punk Skunks and Q & Ray graphic novel series. They love to visit elementary schools and libraries where they share their passion for creating books for children. Trisha has taught creative writing to students at every level from kindergarten to graduate-school. She has an MFA in creative writing from Minnesota State University. Trisha and Stephen live in Minneapolis, MN with their beloved dogs, Beatrix and Murray. Visit Trisha at trishaspeedshaskan.com or on Instagram @trishaspeedshaskan.
by Casey W. Robinson
As an English major, I wrote A LOT of papers in college. Whenever I’d get stuck, I’d pull E.E. Cummings: Complete Poems 1904-1962 off the shelf, flip open to any random page, and point. I loved e.e. cummings because he threw words together in unexpected combinations, often smooshed together with no spacing, or dangling one letter at a time in between hard returns
d
o
w
n
the page.
There was something about his word choice though, the jolt of the unexpected, that almost always jostled me out of my creative funk and got me back to writing. I think this little trick worked because it did two important things: it changed my visual surroundings and it asked me to pay attention.
When I’m looking for new manuscript ideas, the first thing I do is change my surroundings. More often than not, I go for a walk around my neighborhood. Even a well-worn familiar path can show you something new if you are committed to the mindset of observation. I remember reading about one celebrated author (pretty sure it was Hilary Mantel, but I couldn’t find the reference) who went for a walk every morning and tried to write one sentence in her head to describe what she observed. Maybe something about the slanted morning light, or the crisp snow underfoot, or the windchime of icy tree branches. Anything to practice noticing and capturing. It’s more challenging than you think! But when I’ve remembered to do this—first, looking for something noteworthy and in the process really noticing everything around me—I’ve come home with the start of a poem, or an interesting phrase. At the very least, I come home clear-eyed and ready to write.
You can also change your literary surroundings. Read something by someone new, and if you can, read it aloud. This works particularly well with picture books, thanks to their brevity and musicality. But the beginning of a novel or a poem can work as well. Pay attention to how the words sound, how they make you feel, the images they conjure. How and when does voice emerge? I’ve started spending Wednesday mornings at my local library, and my first order of business is gathering a stack of 5 or so new picture books to read. If one of them really strikes me, I’ll retype the text into a Word doc, studying as I type the author’s word choice, the page turns, the pacing and narrative arc. By the time I’ve finished the stack, I am in the right mindset to start playing around with an idea or two of my own. Kind of like listening to the right playlist to get you in the mood for creativity.
Most writers I know are, by nature, endlessly curious, questioning creatures. I think we are collecting ideas all the time, even when we’re not meaning to. I wrote my first draft of SMALL THINGS MENDED after a chat with my friend Heidi Stemple.
We had been talking about comfort TV shows to counter our pandemic blues. She mentioned a British show called “The Repair Shop,” and I got off the phone wondering whether someone would ever accidentally start a repair shop. And if they did, what would they fix? What would kids consider treasures worthy of repair? I sat down and wrote the first draft in one go. I never even watched an episode of that BBC show!
Most of what I need to do to bring new ideas to the page is get out of my own way. Our unconscious brains are full of trickery and potential if we would just let them play! What is that Mary Oliver quote we all love . . . “Instructions for living a life: Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.” Well that’s good advice for us creatives, too. Notice, wonder about things, and see where it takes you.
Casey W. Robinson’s latest picture book, SMALL THINGS MENDED, illustrated by Nancy Whitesides, was a New England Book Award winner, a Christopher Award winner, a Crystal Kite Award winner, and received a 2025 Massachusetts Book Award Honor. Casey’s debut picture book, IVER AND ELLSWORTH, illustrated by Melissa Larson, was a finalist for the Crystal Kite Award and Pennsylvania Young Reader’s Choice Award. Her next book, THE SHARING HOUSE, illustrated by Mary Lundquist (Rocky Pond Books/Penguin), will be out in May 2027.
Casey grew up in Maine and used to keep a shoebox of favorite words and phrases under her bed. She now lives with her family just west of Boston, in a yellow house overflowing with books. When she’s not writing, Casey manages book events for her local indie bookseller, The Silver Unicorn Bookstore in Acton, MA. Find Casey on Instagram @cwrobinson or at caseywrobinson.com.
by Courtney Pippin-Mathur
A character and the plot are fundamental parts of a story. But what about emotion?
I often tell my students to find the Universal Emotional Connection. Love, jealousy, pride, curiosity, acceptance (to name just a few), these are the emotional heart of your story and what will make a reader connect with your book.
I especially like to draw emotions. I don’t always have an idea of what to draw, but if I start with an emotion, it flows a bit more easily.
Often it will reflect how I’m feeling in the moment, something like…
Anger:
Joy:
Loneliness:
These are fun (and give me the buzz of creation), but they don’t always lead to an idea, so sometimes I add another character:
Grief:
or an interesting setting:
Or my personal favorite, two individuals in that quiet but simmering form of disagreement. (I think I just like to draw grumpy people.)
Sometimes an idea will pop into my head as soon as I draw the character, but sometimes the art will serve as my list of ideas that I can return to later for story inspiration.
And if you don’t draw, (or need some emotional inspiration) no problem!
Start with a list of emotions like this one I found on the American Psychological Association site.
Now try adding a noun (person, place or thing) to an emotion and see how that works.
For instance:
- Comfortable cow
- Daring rat
- Flabbergasted chef
- Cautious kid
Keep playing around with the words or sketches until you find something that makes you giggle or think, “I could write a story about that!”
Courtney Pippin-Mathur is the author and or illustrator of several picture books including Dinosaur Days (author), Maya was Grumpy, and Dragons Rule, Princesses Drool. She makes lots of other types of art including paper machè, clay and acrylic painting. She teaches online (and occasionally in person) at The Highlights Foundation and through personal mentorships.
You can see more of her work at http://www.pippinmathur.com/ or on Instagram or Bluesky @pippinmathur.
by Kirsten Pendreigh
For today’s nonfiction authors, there’s an ocean of fascinating topics at our fingertips—in magazines, documentaries, nonfiction books and social media. But which ones are picture book worthy? Which ones merit long months of research with no guarantee of publication? Which ones will sustain your interest—for years!—as you prepare and later share the book with kids?
When I’m drawn to a potential nonfiction topic, I ask myself two quick questions:
- Would this appeal to kids? and
- Has it been done before?
Then I do some cursory research, let it percolate for a week, and if I’m still excited, run the idea through a more rigorous checklist before diving in.
I’ll take you through how that worked for my recent nonfiction book WHAT FISH ARE SAYING: Strange Sounds in the Ocean, beautifully illustrated by Katie Melrose and published by Sourcebooks Explore.
One morning, my local radio station interviewed a marine scientist about a new library of fish sounds. A library of what now? I put down my coffee and listened closer. When he played some of the bizarre fish recordings, I was hooked. (Pun intended!) Fish can talk? Each species makes its own unique sound? We can study those sounds and use them to protect marine life?
I broke my own rule of letting the idea percolate and began my checklist while my coffee was still hot!
- Would this topic interest kids?
My gut told me yes. Like me, I imagined kids would be delighted to learn that fish “talk” and in such bizarre and funny ways. (I later surveyed kids at school visits and got a resounding thumbs up.) An especially kid-friendly aspect is that one of the loudest—and most important—sound makers in the sea is also one of the smallest: the snapping shrimp. It sounds are like popcorn popping, and noisy shrimp are a key indicator of reef health. (Also, there are fish that make sound by farting and burping. Crowd-pleaser!) - Has this topic already been done?
Nope! There was no other fish-sound specific kids book published. And the science of marine acoustics is so cutting-edge, new discoveries and recordings are being made daily.
*If a topic has been done before, can you approach it in a new way or add significant new insights?
I moved on to more questions:
- Does this topic have curriculum connections?
Yes. Elementary students typically do units on ocean ecosystems and organizations like Blue Schools run ocean education programs in many US and Canadian schools. I knew I could link sound libraries and lots of kid-friendly research sites for educators to further explore. - Do you have a unique approach in mind?
Yes! I could have taken a straightforward “here are some fish and these are the sounds they make and why they make them” approach. But in today’s competitive commercial nonfiction market I needed something more engaging. The fact that the story is about sounds dictated my direction. Onomatopoeia and rhyme swam into the mix! Right off the bat, I jotted down simple rhymes based on sound descriptions assigned by scientists: Boop! Whoop! Moan! Groan! So fun! I realized this could become an amazing read-aloud. (Later, I added a refrain, (It’s Noisy Down Below!), some direct questions to engage young readers, and recurring cameos by the amazing snapping shrimp—a little “Easter Egg” on each spread. Lots to explore visually and lyrically and encourage re-reads!)
Can you spot the snapping shrimp?
- Are there layers?
Yes. To me, the best nonfiction books have many layers, and different entry points for different ages. The simple, fun, rhyming text was plenty for little ones. But for older readers the text and backmatter are a launching pad to discuss reef restoration, the impact of human noise, symbiotic relationships and so much more. (From the start I knew I’d be able to provide links to recordings and more amazing fish sound resources—feel free to check them out on my website). There’s also a literacy layer—teachers report that reluctant readers love sounding out the fish noises and become excited to read further. Finally, there’s a layer of scientific discovery and hope as sound mitigation is proving an affordable and practical way to help protect marine life. - Will my book inspire curiosity and further learning?
I think this is a great guiding question for any nonfiction author. Are you only interested in teaching kids about a specific topic or do you want them to enjoy engaging in your book so much that they seek out more information about the topic and more nonfiction books to read? As I was preparing this post, WHAT FISH ARE SAYING made a Best of the Year list in the category of Books that Build Curiosity. The reviewer said: “These are the stories that make kids ask questions, wonder about the world, and see things in a whole new way.” What nonfiction author could ask for more?
I encourage you to dive into topics you really love and find your unique way to engage kids. But first, protect your precious research and writing time by running a checklist!
I’ve abandoned many nonfiction picture ideas when they don’t make it through my checklist. That’s part of the process. Each time, I still learn amazing things and become better at figuring out what topics and treatments will sell. WHAT FISH ARE SAYING hit all the marks for me, and I’m delighted it received starred and glowing reviews. But the best reward is when I read it aloud, hear kids yell the refrain, and see them stretching their hands up high to ask me all their fishy questions!
Conducting the refrain at the Vancouver Writers Fest. Chopsticks double as sound makers and batons!
Kirsten Pendreigh is a poet, journalist and children’s author from Vancouver. Her books celebrate our early instincts to care for the creatures that share our planet. Kirsten’s nonfiction titles, WHEN A TREE FALLS and WHAT FISH ARE SAYING use lyrical language, onomatopoeia, rhyme, and other poetic devices to engage children in the cutting-edge science of underwater species communication and the crucial role fallen trees play in regenerating the forest.
Kirsten’s fiction picture books include MAYBE A WHALE, LUNA’S GREEN PET and the forthcoming CAMPING IS A TERRIBLE IDEA. Find out more (and listen to the fish!) at kirstenpendreigh.com and follow Kirsten on Instagram @kirstenpendreigh.
by Rob Sanders
Have you ever been told, “Just wait and inspiration will strike”? The adage gives the impression that inspiration is out of our control, and we have to wait on its arrival, no different than waiting for lightning to strike. Then there’s the opposite side of the coin when we’re told, “Inspiration is everywhere. If you can’t find it then you’re not looking.” That saying makes me feel as if there’s something lacking in my creative spirit if I’m searching for ideas, writing solutions, or inspiration and they’re elusive. Perhaps the root of inspiration lies within the creative spirit itself, or as I like to call it—the creative muse.
You may have met your creative muse without even realizing it. Have you ever had a serendipitous moment when the perfect word or phrase came to mind? Ever been on a walk and quite literally could see the tree rather than the forest for a new project? Ever visited a museum and found the impact of the work gave you creative energy for days? That, my friend, is your creative muse at work.
Your creative muse is not some magical being that waves a wand indiscriminately or something that you conjure up by dancing around a fire with your critique partners. Your creative muse is an ever-present part of you—sometimes active, sometimes silent, always waiting to be fed and nourished.
In The Miracle of the Artist’s Date Julia Cameron explores what I think is the key to feeding your creative muse—the artist’s date. Long before I read Cameron’s book, I went on what I called creative encounters. My encounters included museums, musicals, one-day trips, hikes, and more. Those creative encounters did exactly what Cameron says an artist’s date does, they nourished my creative spirit, my creative muse.
I recommend treating your muse to a creative encounter at least once a month. What ignites your creative energy and inspires your writing muse will be unique to you. For some it may be live theater, a concert, or another kind of performance. For others it may be touring an art installation, gallery, or museum. Others may benefit from a trip to the beach or time to think during a walk through the woods. Scouring cookbooks, trying out a new recipe, or recreating a family meal from years gone by may inspire someone else. Whatever you choose, I recommend that you let your creative encounter be something out of your normal routine, something special for you, and not something related to research for an upcoming project. I have found that creative encounters are most effective for me when I experience them alone—but that may vary from person to person.
The teacher in me also thinks there’s a need to reflect after a creative encounter to help your logical self realize what has impacted your creative self. Whether it be the day after, the next week, or a month later, think back on the creative encounter, what you enjoyed about the experience, and what changes you noticed in your creativity following the experience. Don’t get hung up on results since your muse may be inspired by an encounter months later, but do reflect so you can determine which creative encounters are most meaningful and helpful to you.
Here’s a goal for you—how about planning one creative encounter each month in 2026? Feed your creative muse and see what results come from it. Don’t wait for inspiration to strike—though it might. If inspiration is everywhere, grab it and hold on to it. But feed your creative muse, too. Now, go enjoy a creative encounter!
Rob Sanders, from Brandon, Florida, is a teacher who writes and a writer who teaches. He is known for his funny and fierce fiction and nonfiction picture books and is recognized as one of the pioneers in the arena of LGBTQ+ literary nonfiction picture books. Rob’s nonfiction books continue to break new ground, including the first picture books about the Pride Flag, the Stonewall Uprising, a transgender Civil War soldier, a gay presidential candidate, and the first gay marriage in America. His work also continues to introduce readers to heroes of the LGBTQ+ community—from Harvey Milk to Gilbert Baker, from Cleve Jones to Bayard Rustin, and more. His fiction explores friendship, relationships, standing up for others, and being allies. Blood Brothers, his first middle grade novel, written in powerful, raw verse released in July 2022 and was named an NCTE 2023 Notable Novel in Verse. 2025 releases included the warm-hearted story, Book Comes Home: A Banned Book’s Journey and André: André Leon Talley—A Fabulously Fashionable Fairy Tale, co-authored with Carol Boston Weatherford. 2025 will see the release of A Family of Readers (Charlesbridge) and Play Proud: Fiercely Fabulous Queer Athletes (Beaming Books). Rob believes in paying it forward. He serves on the SCBWI Impact and Legacy Fund Steering Committee and is a frequent speaker, teacher, mentor, coach, and critiquer. Rob is represented by Rubin Pfeffer and Amy Flynn of Aevitas Creative Management. Visit him at robsanderswrites.com and on Instagram @RobSandersWrites.
Writing for Kids (While Raising Them) 