The Book Basics - Why early planning is SO important (and how it helps focus creativity)

After that fateful fever-dream night, I had been writing poems for months. I had a good collection going, and I started thinking about something bigger: compiling some of my favorites into a collection for a book called Moonbeams and Rhyme Dreams.

But as a neurodivergent with ADHD, writing a book seemed like an impossible task. Writing and illustrating one? I had no idea where to start. And what about self-publishing? There's no question - doing this requires a lot of research, planning, and patience.

ADHD paralysis is a real thing for me. With seemingly unlimited choices and decisions, the amount of information is so overwhelming that it's hard to pin down a place to start. I've learned that if I can give something enough structure that I can pick a place to start, and focus my attention, it's easier for me to refine, reshape, and polish later. The hardest part is starting.

So, I looked around and researched. I decided I wanted to self-publish. I'll save that story for a different post, but I realized that I needed to make some important decisions early on about the physical book, because those decisions would partially shape how the book was written and illustrated. Those decisions would help give me a starting place.

These were the basic book specs I landed on for Moonbeams and Rhyme Dreams:

1. 6"x9" size: I picked this because it was similar to Dr Seuss, and Shel Silverstein. it felt large enough for illustrations and poems, but still small enough for independent readers to carry around.

2. 64 pages: Again, this was chosen, in part, because it was similar to Dr Seuss in length, and I felt this was perfect for a book of poems. It was also chosen based on logistics: making the book longer meant more time until I could finish it.

3. 12 - Point font (and font style): knowing that I'd have limited physical space on each page meant I had to choose this early. Smaller is better, but too small and it becomes hard to read. Too big, and you risk words not fitting on the same line due to formatting (which is a problem for rhyming poetry)

I also had a personal checklist with my goals for the book. I didn't create this list right away; this list came together once I started thinking about what I'd be putting IN the book (I'll cover these in another post, too):

1. A poetic playground - include a variety of different rhyme styles and rhyme schemes

2. 50 poems with a Table of Contents

3. Full-color, interactive illustrations with every story

4. Every poem perfectly metered with perfect rhyming

5. Poems cannot be longer than 2 pages (1 spread)

6. No modern tech / pop culture references - nothing that would age after a few years

7. Timeless childhood themes - relatable to kids and adults

8. Clean humor - nothing too scary or controversial

Once I had the size, length, and number of pages, I created a template in MS word. I drafted and refined poems in Word and added illustration sketches to make sure everything aligned along the way.

These rules and limitations might seem overwhelming, but I discovered this framework helped me sharpen my focus. My brain loves puzzles. With the framework in place, writing poems also became a bit of a logic and optimization puzzle. I didn't get lost or paralyzed with choices. Instead, I was focused on how to make the story work under these parameters.

I started thinking bigger scale as I took ideas to drafts. What worked well together? Were there too many similar ideas? Where were the gaps? I thought about what I could do to make each story unique and stand out, while still belonging to the group. If it didn't bring something new, I'd save it for a future book.

I found when my brain was "boxed in", it couldn't wander. Setting up the framework and rules early on let me focus on my writing, and it fueled my creativity.