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MOWMT Day #28: Janie Emaus Packs Prose


Packing Your Prose with Action and Repetition

by Janie Emaus


Twenty years passed from conception to the birth of my first picture book. I’d say that’s a pretty long gestation period. During those two decades, I saw a lot of action. On the baseball diamond. On the hockey field. In the dance studio. In my backyard.


From hard bleachers to cushy auditorium seats, I watched my daughter and then my grandchildren. And I learned no matter the generation, all kids have one thing in common. They love to be in motion. They crave activity. And they love making up silly words while they play.


It follows that that they would like stories with action. And with that realization in mind, I reworked my story. But first, I read and reread hundreds of picture books, studying how accomplished authors used action verbs and rhymes in their stories.

One of my grandson’s favorite books was Mean Jean Recess Queen written by Alexis O’Neil and illustrated by Laura Huliska-Beith. Alexis starts right out with action. “Nobody swung until Mean Jean Swung. Nobody kicked until Mean Jean kicked. Nobody bounced until Mean Jean bounced.” I could see this happening. “If kids crossed her, she’d push ‘em and smoosh ‘em, lollapalosh ‘em, hammer ‘em, slammer ‘em, kitz and kajammer ‘em.” How could you not want to keep on reading this book and then read it again? Thanks to my grandson I had the privilege of reading this book several times a night. While he giggled, I studied the text.

By her use of playful words and lots of action, Alexis delivers a message about bullying in an engaging, fun way.


Another book with fun, active words is Pippa’s Passover Plate, written by Vivian Kirkfield andillustrated by Jill Weber. In this book Pippa, after cleaning her house, searches for her Seder Plate, an important item for a Passover Seder. Vivian’s rhymes are full of action verbs, making the reader feel they are right there with Pippa. “Hurry, scurry, Pippa Mouse, washing, scrubbing, cleaning house.” She could have written Pippa Mouse is cleaning house. But that doesn’t really show the action. By using the recurring phrase “Quiver! Quaver! Shiver! Shake!”, kids can anticipate the next time it appears in the book and say it along with whoever is reading it out loud to them.

A new book, one which I have recently discovered is Cinderella – with Dogs!, written by Linda Bailey and illustrated by Freya Hartas. I’ve been reading and studying this book as I make notes for my current work in progress. It a unique spin on the time-tested Cinderella story. And chock full of action verbs and fun repetition. “Suddenly the door flew open. Here I am,” cried the visitor. “Your fairy dogmother! Woof!” Every time Cinderella reminds her Fairy Dogmother that she needs something for the ball, her dogmother pulls out a magic wand, waves it and says “WOOF POOF!”




Another recently published book is My Mommy, the Octopus written by Wendy and Nonnie Gerber and illustrated by Tori Davis. The title alone evokes a lot of action as one can imagine a mom with eight arms, performing a multitude of tasks at the same time. In this delightful tale, a boy gives a task to each arm. The action-packed words leave way for wonderful illustrations. The arms throw balls, bake cookies, build castles, and hold books. And best of all, they open wide for a hug.


With action and repetition in mind, I worked for months on my latest book, Easter Eggs and Matzo Balls. In this story, blending both Easter and Passover, Michael wants the Easter Bunny to bring his stepsister, Anna, something special in the Golden Egg.



He suggests various Passover items. But even after squishing and squashing, the Easter Bunny can’t make any of them fit. “I rolled the placemat in the egg. I hopped and wiggled my nose. Push. Pat. Squish. Squash. I can’t get the egg to close.” This phrase is repeated with each item the Easter Bunny tries to get into the egg, giving the reader something to anticipate and repeat. In the end Michael and the Easter Bunny save Anna’s favorite part of the Passover Seder.


As you revise and revise again, keep action verbs in mind. Tantalize your reader with your world. Bombard them with fantabulous, splashalicious words that dance and prance and gallop off the page and into their young hearts. And they will want to read your book again ad again.


To paraphrase the filming industry -- Write! Create! Action!


PRIZE: Winner's choice of one of Janie's blended picture books or a picture book critique.

Janie Emaus believes when the world is falling apart, we’re just one laugh away from putting it together again. Her picture book, Latkes for Santa Claus was a finalist in the 2022 International Book Award. Easter Eggs & Matzo Balls is her second blended holiday picture book. She is also the author of the novel, The Time Traveling Matchmaker. Her essays, stories and articles have been published in numerous magazines, anthologies, and websites. In 2016 she won an honorary mention in the Erma Bombeck Writing competition. But no award is more important than family. To learn more about Janie visit her at www.janieemaus.com.











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