In this blog post, Annemarie Anang, shares her strategies for editing her fabulous new picture book, I am Nefertiti, illustrated by Natelle Quek.
As an actress, one of the most useful strategies I found when editing I AM NEFERTITI was to video record myself reading the story and to watch it back. Essentially, I read with the intention of ‘performing it’ aloud for imaginary children.
When watching it back, I listen to see and hear if any words stand out that shouldn’t; I look at my face to pick up on any visual cues that something doesn’t sound or feel right (usually a frown or squint of my eyes); and sometimes my tempo or rhythm slows down when something doesn’t feel right. I also listen to the general flow of the story to make sure it‘s smooth, with a clear beginning, end and an exciting climax.
As I perform my story out loud, I also try to mark ever so quickly, without breaking the flow of my storytelling, any problematic parts – by highlighting, underlining a word or phrase or sticking an asterisk beside it. It’s crucial not to stop the flow of your reading when doing this, but to try and keep going. I use this strategy quite late in my writing process, when I think I’ve written a good story and definitely after the final draft.
For I AM NEFERTITI, we wanted to create a diverse cast of characters, so deciding on just the right character names that had the assonance and alliteration to go along with our choice of instruments, and for everything to fit seamlessly together, took a many re-readings.
Choosing the sounds the instruments make when they are harmonious and discordant was another big challenge – this was about finding the beat, rhythm and read-aloud quality of the book. Recording myself was very useful for this process.
Here’s how it sounds in the final version:
“Kofi plays recorder. Kai plays kalimba. Pippa’s on piano. Priya plays marimba. Josh plays violin. Joy’s on ukulele. “I’m Miss Potts, the singer. And you are . . .?” “I’m Nefertiti,” said Nefertiti, proudly.” | and “Kofi’s recorder squeaked. Kai’s kalimba clanged. Pippa’s piano plonked. Priya’s marimba plinked. Josh’s violin screeched. Joy’s ukulele twanged. And Miss Potts howled, and oh, how she scowled.” |
This process of reading out loud and recording myself to watch it back allows me to hear my story from another perspective, as an audience member. It continually surprises me how different the story sounds when you are not just reading it in your head for yourself to hear, but actually performing it. Simply prop up your mobile phone on your desk, record your face and perform it out loud. No hand gestures or body movement needed, just read it out loud for those kids who will one day be listening to your story.
ANNEMARIE ANANG is an actress and former primary school teacher. She began writing for children after struggling to find books that reflected the diversity of the world. She was awarded the SCBWI IPOC Women’s Scholarship. A Londoner born to Ghanaian parents, Annemarie now lives in the Swedish forest with her husband and young daughter.
Follow her on Instagram @Annemarie_Anang
and on Twitter: @AnnemarieAnang
Follow Natelle Quek here on Twitter.