This delightful little children’s book is about a little girl that has a vivid imagination and loves to talk and talk and talk. It is by a talented Australian author named Julie Anne Ford who has many years of experience working with little preschool-age children. It is entitled, “Gabby Likes to Talk“.
Roughs
These are the messy ideas that I put down as I read through the text. Many times I am not sure if the author can really tell what all of the items in the sketch are but these usually spur us to communicate much better. Sometimes, the author will take one look at this rough sketch and suggest a total change. But, most of the time this sketch is presented and it allows open and productive discussion between myself and the writer.
A picture is truly worth a thousand words when you are trying to talk about images and concepts with a writer. Sketches make it easier to figure out what an author really wants in their book.
Final Roughs
It is at this step that I clean up and remove the unnecessary items, allowing a cleaner layout to look at. Changes are usually requested at this stage if they are needed.
For example, the author suggested that the little girl should have her left arm extended above her head in this sketch instead of resting behind her head. I think it was a great idea because it does create a much more open and inviting hand gesture as she is speaking to us.