The ideas I had were formed into text and word after word had to be examined. Do I need it? Can I do without it? I needed to remind myself that the best picture books can tell a story with the fewest or no words at all.
When I began the Lenoxx book it was in rhyme, not very good rhyme, and far too long for a picture book. Over several years, I wrote and rewrote and sketched and discarded many pages. When I thought I was ready I used a layout program to piece it all together. In Design allowed me to view the pace of the text, change it where it needed to be changed, and/or cut out portions.
Once I was truly satisfied with the text, I began the long process of creating the images that had
been dancing in my mind for years. Of course, some images needed to be revised to match the newer text, and vice versa. Sometimes the images dictated newer text changes. That is the beauty of using a layout program, at least for me, so that I can see the progress in real time.
Having finally finished all the illustrations and reading through the entire layout program, I realized that the reader might find a gap within some of the pages and the story telling. New illustrations and a bit of text needed to be inserted to solve that issue.
Once ready, the layout was converted to a PDF ready for printing. I submitted that to a printer, and once the files were uploaded and approved I had a chance to review all of the work before allowing it to be printed and distributed.
The book is done and out there now and time will tell if it is enjoyed as it is meant to be.
I still have the original pencil sketches from years ago and did use them as reference for the new full color illustrations.
