By Lacey Gunter
I know most of you MMWs and friends write something other than picture books. But no matter what genre you write in, being able to write succinctly is a valuable skill to have. This skill is especially useful for writing pitches and queries. So here are a few reduction writing challenges to get you thinking about how to get to the heart of what you need to say.
Challenge 1:
With the novel you are working on (or a much beloved novel, if you're not very far in the writing process):
1. Rewrite the novel using no more than a single page per chapter.
2. Summarize the novel using no more than a single paragraph per chapter. Try to keep the paragraphs within 5-10 sentences.
3. Summarize the novel using no more than a single sentence per chapter.
4. Summarize the novel using a single word theme for every chapter.
Challenge 2:
Rewrite the novel you are working on (or a much beloved novel, if you're not very far in the writing process) as a picture book for children. Decide what ideas can be expressed through the pictures and what ideas actually need to be stated in words. Try to use words and ideas that a child could understand and keep the word count under 1000 words. Do your best to make it interesting enough to keep a young child's attention.
Challenge 3:
Pick a scene from your book and try to rewrite it using the same number of sentences, but with only 3-5 words maximum per sentence.
Try one out. You might just come up with the perfect twitter pitch or the latest and greatest picture book. You never know!
I know most of you MMWs and friends write something other than picture books. But no matter what genre you write in, being able to write succinctly is a valuable skill to have. This skill is especially useful for writing pitches and queries. So here are a few reduction writing challenges to get you thinking about how to get to the heart of what you need to say.
Challenge 1:
With the novel you are working on (or a much beloved novel, if you're not very far in the writing process):
1. Rewrite the novel using no more than a single page per chapter.
2. Summarize the novel using no more than a single paragraph per chapter. Try to keep the paragraphs within 5-10 sentences.
3. Summarize the novel using no more than a single sentence per chapter.
4. Summarize the novel using a single word theme for every chapter.
Challenge 2:
Rewrite the novel you are working on (or a much beloved novel, if you're not very far in the writing process) as a picture book for children. Decide what ideas can be expressed through the pictures and what ideas actually need to be stated in words. Try to use words and ideas that a child could understand and keep the word count under 1000 words. Do your best to make it interesting enough to keep a young child's attention.
Challenge 3:
Pick a scene from your book and try to rewrite it using the same number of sentences, but with only 3-5 words maximum per sentence.
Try one out. You might just come up with the perfect twitter pitch or the latest and greatest picture book. You never know!
