Maurice Sendak gives some insights into his writing style in Worlds of Childhood - The Art and Craft of Writing for Children
With me, everything begins with writing. No pictures at all - you just shut the Polaroid off; you don't want to be seduced by pictures because then you begin to write for pictures. Images come in language, language, language: in phrases, in verbal constructs, in poetry, whatever. I've never spent less than two years on the text of one of my picture books, even thought each of them is approximately 380 words long. Only when the text is finished - when my editor thinks it's finished - do I begin the pictures. Then I put the film in my head.
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Sendak is perhaps best known for his classic picture book Where the Wild Things Are. Other books include Higglety Pigglety Pop; In the Night Kitchen and Outside Over There.
Images and Text
Sendak's name has become synonymous with the now iconic images from Where the Wild Things Are. It is easy to forget that the book is so successful, not just because of the illustrations, but through the melding of a well crafted text along with the illustrations. Those famous illustrations were sparked by the text, and not the other way around. The language came first.
Not all author/illustrators operate this way, but this insight into Sendak's approach is very interesting. It reflects the power of words and language. It also highlights the importance of a perfect match between words and illustrations, so that the two blend seamlessly together. Each is equally important, and each complements the other, in a well constructed picture book.
Do your words paint a picture?
If you are a writer, the publisher will assign an illustrator. Most times, you will not meet the illustrator, so there is little or no collaboration. All the illustrator has to go on, are your words.
You begin to see that each word in a picture book is absolutely crucial in painting that picture, firstly for the illustrator, and secondly for subsequent readers. Remember, Sendak says it can take him 2 years to write the text alone -approx 380 words. A short text needs to be exacting. Every word counts.
Suggestion
Read over Sendak's quote again, and then look at his picture books, with his words in mind.
