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Picture Stories
Picture stories are stories that are normally told through pictures. They normally refer to different incidents or fictions that are created especially for children who cannot properly read. A picture story is a story that is in book form for 0 to 6 year old children. As there are about 500 words in this sort of story book, many writers think that it is an easy thing to write. However, this school of thought is absolutely wrong. The writing of picture stories is actually the hardest and one of the most competitive genres of story writing. It is thus very important to know the basic elements that should be in a picture story. Following are the basic elements that should be in every picture story.
1. Format
All the picture stories have a certain format that they follow. The picture stories have a particular number of pages. At an average there are about 24 to 40 pages in this sort of story book. This number is usually divisible by 8. The front cover and the back cover are included in these pages. Thus, it is very important to choose the format of the story and to decide and select the way your contents’ division will be throughout the story book across every page. The content must be related to the pictures.
2. Illustrations
Writers and authors of picture stories do not necessarily need to have the ability to illustrate the books they have written. However, many famous picture story writers do have these abilities. For example, Jez Alborough, Jane Hissey and Nick Sharratt are all writers and illustrators. If you are not an illustrator by profession, it is always better to send a professional editor the content that you have produced. If the editor thinks that your content needs to be illustrated, he/she will hire an illustrator when the content is published. Picture stories should provide opportunities that give imaginative illustrations. The text that you are using with these picture stories should clearly tell what and where these pictures are and where they should be.
3. Simple Plot
The plot should be singular, and that must be easy and clear. Young children always learn from the repetition of things and love to place themselves in with these stories, so repetition and refraining should be used skillfully. This gives an extra advantage. Onomatopoeia, alliteration and rhyme are also very popular. Unexpected mishaps and sudden actions can also get children’s attention in a very effective manner.
4. Empathy
Writers of the picture stories need to build empathy with children that are young. They must be capable of reproducing and retaining the feelings that are there in the childhood of every child, and the story should give the children a feeling of being young.
5. Adult Appeal
Picture story books should be appealing and attractive for adults as they are the ones who are going to buy these books and read them to their children. If we talk about teachers and parents, they want educational value as well. So it’s always better to add some content that has learning concepts in it as well, like shapes, numbers and colors.
6. Themes
These stories should include situations from real life, like potty training, moving to a new house or going to school. These things are popular, as are the relationships in family, machines, pets and domestic activities. Updated and modern versions of picture stories have a bigger market and have more sales, especially if these stories explore a new angle of the existing stories.
7. Memorable Characters
Young children love animals like lions, bears, horses, etc., and there are certain stories in which these animals are given human characteristics with the help of their actions. For example, Paddington Bear, Spot and Elmer are all presented having human qualities. The publishers of these picture stories normally want to market these books and stories abroad. So animals can be transferred more easily than people because the people shown in these stories have different customs and clothing, which can be unfamiliar to the children living in a particular area.
The above mentioned features are the basic features of picture stories. Pictures stories are one of the best ways to make your children learn different things.