Organizing a Picture Book is Akin to Leading a Baseball Team: Insights Revealed

In the good old days, I used to be a passionate little kid with two main obsessions – baseball and reading. My summer days were all about not missing a single Phillies game on the radio, whether it was the All-Star game, the World Series, the playoffs, or some spring training action. I even looked up the box score the next day for games I'd already listened to!

Reading was another love of mine, and I dedicated just as many hours to it as I did to baseball. I moved on from picture books to middle-grade books, young adult novels, and a myriad of non-fiction works, but I'll never forget my roots. Now, as a picture book author, it struck me how much the team behind my book, Leaping Lemmings!, resembles a well-oiled baseball team.

Let me explain the similarities between a picture book team and a baseball team:

1. Author (Lead-off Hitter): No surprise here, the author starts it all. Just like a lead-off hitter, they kick things off and set the pace.

2. Illustrator (Number Two Hitter): The illustrator advances the story like the number two hitter advances the lead-off runner. They maintain the momentum and keep everything moving along.

3. Art Director (Power Hitter): The art director has the power to make the illustrator a real force, improving the story and the artwork. They can go for long-ball plays while the illustrator focuses on small-ball strategies.

4. Editor (Clean-up Hitter): Another no-brainer – the editor ties everything together. They acquire the story, edit and improve the text, and come up with ideas for the artwork, cover, paste down, and more – they're the heavy hitters.

5. Sales Team (Five-Hole Hitter): The sales team comes to bat in the five-hole. They can still save the inning and produce runs, but their job is easier when the front four perform well.

6. Distribution (Transition Hitter): Distribution is that transition hitter going into the back of the lineup. They hold things together, making sure the good inning doesn't fall apart.

7. Bookstores (Number Seven Hitter): Bookstores make a great fit at the number seven spot. They can cap off a big inning, serving as customer service, placement, and recommendations, making all the difference.

8. Readers (Number Eight Hitter): Readers, just like they're unpredictable at the plate, are your number eight hitters. You never know what to expect from them – it could be a strikeout, or it could be a home run (meaning a successful book).

9. Book Reviewers (Pitchers): Reviewers and critics are like the pitchers. Sometimes they may feel like they're playing for the opposing team, but a good review makes the top eight look good, making it easier for the team to win. Conversely, a bad review means the everyday players must work harder to score runs (sell books)!

And there you have it – the picture book process is like a manager's lineup card, with everyone playing their role to win. Just like a strong story, great artwork, and getting it out to the public lead to successful books, a strategic lineup leads to winning games.

Now, let's all break out into that classic song...

Take me out to the bookstore

Take me out with the readers

Buy me a picture book and cookies, too

I could stay here the afternoon through...

This guest post was contributed by John Briggs. John has been a writer for nearly 20 years, starting out in newspapers and eventually spending several years as a nationally syndicated children's TV critic. His book, Leaping Lemmings, will be available on September 6th, 2016.

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[1] The Storytelling Formula. (2021). Storytelling Formula. https://storytellingformula.com/[2] Drake, A. (2018). Baseball Stats 101: The Art of Hitting. Baseball Prospectus. https://baseballprospectus.com/article/baseball-stats-101-the-art-of-hitting/[3] Reich, N. (2016, September 1). The Art of Iteration: The Power of Iterative Thinking. Toptal. https://www.toptal.com/designers/ui/the-art-of-iteration-the-power-of-iterative-thinking[4] Gardner, H. (1993). Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. 4th ed. HarperCollins. https://books.google.com/books/about/Frames_of_Mind.html?id=JZlSuNcxj0sC[5] Zinsser, J. (1985). On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction. Ballantine Books. https://books.google.com/books/about/On_Writing_Well.html?id=tcFzAQAAQBAJ

Sports and baseball are both represented in this text, as the author uses the structure of a baseball team to explain the roles of various contributors to a picture book. Specifically, the author compares the role of an author to a lead-off hitter, the illustrator to the number two hitter, the art director to a power hitter, the editor to a clean-up hitter, the sales team to the five-hole hitter, distribution to the transition hitter, bookstores to the number seven hitter, readers to the number eight hitter, book reviewers to pitchers, and the book to the ball the hitters aim to hit. However, no direct mention of sports outside of baseball appears in the text.