Peek inside my notebook to get inspired, make new connections, develop your craft, and grow as a children’s book writer.

Rule breakers are stories that shouldn’t work but do. I imagine pitching these books was more than a little iffy. Many people probably dismissed them or didn’t understand the vision. They don’t follow the conventions of the genre, but the world is a better place because someone ignored the rules.

Getting a pet is a common picture-book theme, but this story doesn’t follow the traditional arc. The nameless heroine doesn’t overcome anything. She doesn’t change. At best she comes to accept that sloths don’t do much. Really the book is less about training a new pet and more about companionship, small-town neighbors, and imagination. The story sounds like a muddle on paper, but it leaves readers feeling tender and dreamy. The result is something that feels less like a picture book and more like childhood.

Starcrossed is the kind of book that might be dismissed as “too creative” or “too sophisticated” in manuscript form. There are two main characters, and one is a constellation! This book is full of big words and big ideas. It’s inspired by a binary star system and 64 pages, which doesn’t exactly scream playful romp, yet it’s full of mystery and wonder, not telling and knowing. There’s a wistfulness about this book that dreamers will treasure.

With an adorable ghost and a fun how-to format, this book feels on trend at first glance. But imagine it in development. The story begins with a young girl befriending a ghost, and much of the book is full of silly details about what it’s like to be a ghost. But then the girl has children of her own and grows old. She grows weaker and more forgetful. In the end, she dies. Repeat: The main character in this picture book dies! Did they lead with that in the pitch? I would guess not. But it all feels right when she becomes a ghost and she flies away with her best friend.

The Chirri & Chirra books are filled with suspense, wonder and delight, but zero conflict. The two twins might as well be the same character. There’s no big concept or hook. No flashy bold colors. No real character development. No lesson. Barely a theme. It’s the kind of book that you read at bedtime to have good dreams. And it turns out that’s a book I want to read again and again.

Carson Ellis is a creative genius and deserves every hall pass in the world. But if someone else proposed this book, would it get made?It’s surreal and as strange as a child’s mind. That’s why it works.

Try This

Are these the kind of books you love reading? Yeah, me too. Picasso said, “Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist.” Read widely and deeply. Take notes. Understand the rules. Practice them. Then throw them out and make something totally new that no one else could make. At the very least, you’ll have fun! Does your book break any rules? I would love to know!

Buy me a coffee or visit my curated bookshop to add a title mentioned in the Notebook Sessions to your library.