And then I will find something in your home to tape your opening lines to:īecause this is the Really Important Writing Part: when you feel your Special Ideas can stand up to the Blood (paper cuts, yo), Sweat, and Revisions necessary to try to bring them forward, then they’re worth keeping them where you can see them-and sharing with the Special Folks that supported your participation in PiBoIdMo in the first place: Really? I will be right over to investigate your freaky slide-in-the-windows-General-Lee-style home. ’Cause I’ve already made them-and countered them-for you: You don’t get to make any excuses for not doing this. Use the tape that’s not on your nose to tape each of your Special Ideas’ opening line pages to a door in your home. But it’s FUN! And having fun is Really Important!

Yeah, it has absolutely nothing to do with writing. Write each Special Idea’s opening line (and title, if you’re feelin’ it) on its own piece of paper.

Got ’em? Awesome! Looks like you and your Special Ideas are bonding. Genius opening lines, ones that set up worlds where each of your Special Ideas can hang out and grow. Come ’round my brain often?” I mean opening lines for the stories your Special Ideas want to tell. So be a good host and offer your Special Ideas a little something. They rush over and give your poor sore head a reassuring pat.Īnd you realize you really like them, too. Nuthin’ you can do.)īut a few of your PiBoIdMo ideas don’t run away. (And the ideas in the last folder are bound to pop out and create Very Embarrassing Moments at parties. They’ll probably peek out to say, “Howdy!” from time to time. These hiding-in-folders ideas aren’t gone gone. *You agree that Ame shall not be held responsible for damage to your forehead-or table-and acknowledge that suing Ame would be pointless as she spends all her money on books and candy.

Possibly Too Weird To Share With Anyone Else Ideas.

Possible Tweet/Post/Social-Media-of-Your-Choice Ideas.

So you try my patented Idea Herding Method® and bang your head on the table*, causing most of your PiBoIdMo ideas to run and dive into various folders in your brain: And you don’t know to choose just two or three to focus on now.

But no matter how rockin’ each of them may be, you really can’t develop more than a few of them into picture book manuscripts at the same time. Your 29 ideas all have potential for something. (Except that 11:59 PM idea about the talking toilet. Your 30 ideas all have potential for something. There they are! Your PiBoIdMo ideas! Staring at you with perky eyebrows and expectant smiles and wiggling like puppies.

Boy and Bot by Ame Dyckman