3 Tips to Quickly Finish Your Picture Book Dummy

Complete your manuscript first and build the dummy from your text. The text requires the least revision effort in your dummy process. It is easy to move text around, cut it, and add to it.

Furthermore, avoid jumping ahead or multitasking. Your dummy won't get done any faster by getting ahead of yourself.

Organize your manuscript across the pages of a physical dummy. Avoid working digitally at this stage. Now is the best time to finalize critical decisions, like how many pages you need to tell the complete story, where your page turns are, and how you are building drama with the text placement.

When you've finished your "text dummy," review and revise it carefully, then move on to the art.

Sketch spots for every character in as many poses, actions, and circumstances as you can think up. Since sketching twelve or so spreads is an intimidating task, it helps to break them down into many smaller sketches.

Organize the spots across your dummy. You've already established the order and cadence of the story during the "text dummy" stage.

I usually have so many spots that I don't use them all, but they can be combined with other sketches or used in the background.
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At this point, sketch around the spots, leaving some as-is, and decide which will be full-page illustrations or spreads.

Let's Recap:

3 Tips to Quickly Finish Your Picture Book Dummy

1. Complete your manuscript first and build the dummy from your text.
2. Keep a physical dummy.
3. Sketch spots for every character in as many poses, actions, and circumstances, as you can think up.

Thank you for reading! If you are interested in more tips, check out my other blog posts by using the Category List on this page.

This post was proofread by Grammarly