Jen Betton's Blog, page 4

Pacing in Knuffle Bunny

There is some really nice pacing in Knuffle Bunny, by Mo Willems, and it's interesting to see how it's accomplished.
© Mo WillemsThere are two trips to the laundromat – the languid, leisurely stroll at the beginning, and the mad dash towards the end. They both use the same number of spreads, and the same number of lines to tell the story, but my impression of the length of time when I was reading it was very different for the two episodes.

Here is the first section: Trixie and her dad are happi...

Calibrating your Scanner, Monitor, and Printer

In preparing for the two books I illustrated this past year, I needed to calibrate my system. There are a lot of articles out there about calibrating your monitor, or your printer, but scanner info was harder to pin down. So, here is a brief outline of my process. Color management is not my area of expertise, this is just what worked for me!
© X-riteWhat is calibration? Calibrating your devices adjusts them so that the color will be consistent (and hopefully accurate, too). If you've ever orde...

Close 3rd Person

A writing post. I'm working on a new manuscript (new-ish - it's been banging around for a while!) I've been taking some workshops at the Writer's Loft with the inestimable Karen Boss, an editor from Charlesbridge. In one of these sessions, she talked about writing in Close 3rd Person, and how frequently a manuscript could feel "closer" to the protagonist, which makes it more emotive. Here is an example that I found through KidLit411's weekly, which directed me to this article: 
John...

HEDGEHOG Has a Cover!!!

Here is the cover for my upcoming picture book - my first one as a both author and illustrator!!! HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG!!!
Hedgehog Needs a Hug © Jen BettonHedgehog wakes up feeling down in the snout and droopy in the prickles – maybe a hug will cheer him up! But all the other animals are afraid of his prickles. Will no one give him a hug? You can read more about the book on this page of my website.  In the coming months I'll be adding teaching guides and downloadable goodies, so check bac...

ABLA Writing Workshop: Big Sur on Cape Cod

I just returned from the East Coast version of the Big Sur writing workshop put on my my fabulous agency – Andrea Brown Literary Agency. It was a whirlwind weekend, with lots of great content.

The highlight of the event was the critique sessions - everyone gets paired with two mentors, who conduct two critique sessions each, for a total of four sessions. For picture book writers, that meant we could bring up to four stories to our sessions. My mentors were wonderful - very...

The Cover For: TWILIGHT CHANT!!

I can finally share some of the project I've been working on for the past year – the first picture book I've illustrated: TWILIGHT CHANT, written by Holly Thompson and published by Clarion. 
Twilight Chant, art © Jen BettonThis book is all about the animals that emerge in the evening, so it includes an ensemble cast of creatures: rabbits, a fox, bats, deer, june bugs, and of course, fireflies. In the coming months I will be able to share more of the process that went into my first book! F...

Picture Book Structure: Mid-Point Reversal Stories

After attending Toni Buzzeo's wonderful workshop at The Writers' Loft on picture book structures, I started noticing them everywhere. The classic "3 Tries" theme is the most common, but one other I keep seeing pop up is the "Mid-Point Reversal" (or "Mirror"): Where half-way through the story the plot takes a sudden turn. A few recent examples of this are:  A Perfect Day  by Lane Smith,  Nana in the City by Lauren Castillo, and A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Phili...

Show vs Tell: Word and Image Interplay

Here are three children's books where images are a delightful counterpoint to the text. In each book, the text suggests one thing while the images reveal more of the story, often with a humorous twist. These just happen to be three books I like, there are a ton of other examples out there.

This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen: These pages occur just after the main character explains he has stolen a hat.
"I stole it from a big fish. He was asleep when I did it. " Image © Jon Klassen "And he probably...

SCBWI Conference Tips!

Your bags are packed, your portfolio perfect (you might just fiddle with the order one more time), your business cards in hand.... all that's left to do is go, right? After attending both the LA and NYC conferences several times, here are a few things I've found helpful!


Be brave! Talk to people around you, be friendly! You never know who you might meet! At my first conference, when I didn't know a soul, I met dynamite illustrator Richard Jesse Watson this way. The fol...

HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG!!!

So you may have noticed I have not posted any new work in a while. That isn't because I haven't been working on things, but because I have BIG news!! Penguin has purchased my book, HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG!!!!!!!!! This will be my debut picture book as an author-illustrator! I am so thrilled to announce I am working with the incredible Art Director Cecilia Yung and fabulous Editor Susan Kochan over at Penguin's imprint Putnam. My lovely agent, Jen Rofé, negotiated the deal.


Here is the announcemen...