Justin Chanda,
publisher at Simon & Schuster, loves picture books. He talked about
how he takes a good manuscript and makes it great. Picture books have an
economy of language––less is more! If you are writing in rhyme, be
careful because rhyming must be done so precisely. All picture books,
however, must have rhythm. (Read your books as they are meant to be
read: out loud!) To make sure you have the right page turns, be sure to
paginate your manuscript, at least for your own knowledge of where
effective page turns might be. And his biggest editorial note: “Let the
art carry this!” Remember that it’s a PICTURE book, and it’s the
blending of art and text that make picture books great.