Apply for The Verge
Submit Your MAnuscript CRITIQUE for Industry Engagement Day by June 20!
Every memorable picture book has one thing in common: it knows how to make a scene.
Editors often pass on well-researched nonfiction picture book manuscripts for one surprising reason: not enough scenes. Facts inform, but scenes engage. They create suspense, spark emotion, build tension, and help readers connect with a story on a deeper level.
In this webinar, you'll learn how scenes become the engine that drives a story forward, and why mastering them can strengthen both nonfiction and fiction manuscripts. You'll discover the essential elements of an effective scene, how to uncover scene-worthy moments within your research, and how to craft them without inventing facts. You'll also explore techniques for structuring scenes for maximum emotional and dramatic impact within the unique constraints of the picture book format.
Who Should Take This Webinar:
Come have some fun—and make a scene!
- Nonfiction picture book writers who want to transform research into compelling, page-turning stories
- Fiction picture book writers looking to strengthen emotional impact, tension, and reader engagement
- Authors whose manuscripts feel informative or concept-driven but lack narrative momentum
- Writers revising a draft and searching for ways to deepen character, emotion, and dramatic effect
- Anyone who wants to better understand how scenes create connection and keep readers turning pages
Come have some fun—and make a scene!
About Writing Barn Craft Webinars:
Industry professionals: authors, agents, editors, etc. facilitate these events. Price points are low and attendance is high, anywhere from 50-200+ attendees. Writing craft and industry engagement are explored. *REPLAYS are made available for all registrants 2 business days after the event and are available for a limited time.*
Candace Fleming is the author of more than fifty books for children and young adults, from picture books to YA, nonfiction and fiction. Her body of work includes the Sibert Medal-winning Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera, the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award-winning The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh, and most recently the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award-winning Death in the Jungle which received eight starred reviews. A recipient of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, she is also a two-time winner of both the Boston Globe/Horn Book Award, and a three-time winner of the Sibert Honor. She writes storybooks that demand to be read aloud and riveting informational texts that challenge the reader. In addition to being named the 2026 Children’s Literature Legacy Award recipient Fleming is also the winner of the 2026 Margaret A. Edwards Award, honoring her significant and lasting contribution to writing for teens. She is just the third person to win both and is the only person to receive both in the same year.
About Candace Fleming
