“A standoff between the reader and the characters”

(written by me, illustrated by Shanda McCloskey, and published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

Author Tara Lazar knows tons about picture books, so it’s a pretty safe bet that I’ll learn something from her blog posts about writing them — even (or especially) when she uses one of my own books as an example.

Have a look at what Tara says about breaking “The Rule of Threes,” why it’s a good idea to do so, and how my newest book, Fire Truck vs. Dragon, goes about it.

(She begins, “A follow-up to Barton’s popular SHARK vs. TRAIN of 10 years ago (wow, time flies!), this new “battle” features a stand off between the reader and the characters.”)

While you’re doing that, I’ll be adding a few picture books to my to-read list. Even those I’ve already read, I know I’ll benefit from giving another look now that I’m equipped with Tara’s insights.