What Is “A Story from a Drawing”? (And How to Make One with Your Child)
On the cover of several of my picture books you will see a small line under the title: a story from a drawing.
People ask what it means. The answer is simple. The picture came first. The story came after.
How it works
Most picture books are made the other way around. An author writes the words, and then an illustrator draws what the words describe.
A story from a drawing turns that upside down. It starts with one finished drawing and a question: What is happening here?
A drawing is full of clues. Who is this character? Why is the sky that colour? What is behind the tree? Where is the path going? Each answer becomes a piece of the story. By the time the questions run out, there is a beginning, a problem, and an ending.
That is how books like Pip of the Berry Woods, Flame and the Hibiscus, and Leo and the Colorful River were born. Little Four in Grandma Beltina’s Garden started with a drawing of the number 4 in bloom, like a flower. The whole story grew from that one picture.
Why I love working this way
A drawing does not argue with you. It just waits.
When you begin with words, it is easy to get stuck trying to be clever. When you begin with a picture, you only have to look and tell the truth about what you see. The picture has already done the hard part. It has made a world.
There is also something honest about it. A drawing holds the feeling of the moment it was made. A story that grows out of it keeps that feeling. Children can tell when a book has a real heart, and they hold it a little longer.
Why it is good for children
Teachers will recognise what is going on here. Making a story from a picture builds real skills:
Observation. Children learn to look closely before they speak.
Sequencing. They work out what happened first, next, and last.
Vocabulary. They reach for new words to describe colours, feelings, and places.
Confidence. Their own drawing becomes something worth writing a book about.
That last one matters most. Many children believe stories come from somewhere else, from adults or from screens. When a story comes out of their own picture, they learn that they are storytellers too.
Make your own in five steps
You do not need special supplies. A pencil and a sheet of paper will do.
Choose one drawing. Use one your child has already made. Do not ask for a new one. The best drawings are the ones made for no reason at all.
Ask three questions. Who is this? Where are they? What do they want? Write down the answers exactly as your child says them.
Find the problem. Every story needs something in the way. Ask: what is stopping them from getting what they want?
Find the helper. Ask: who or what helps? It could be a friend, an animal, a prayer, or a brave idea.
Write the last line together. Ask: how does it feel at the end? Let your child choose the final sentence.
Read the story back out loud while your child holds the drawing. Then put both on the fridge. You have just published your first book.
One more thing
Keep your children’s drawings. Date them on the back. A drawing that looks like scribbles today may be the first page of something years from now.
Some of the most loved characters in my books began as a few lines on a page. Someone looked at them twice and asked what was happening. That second look is where every story from a drawing begins.
The story from a drawing picture books are published by Uphill Teavalley Press.
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