Monthly Meeting: August 2026 – Keiko Hayner

The coolest place to be this August was at our Monthly Meeting to take in Illustrator Keiko Hayner’s presentation entitled “Building Book Dummies: Lessons From the Maurice Sendak Fellowship.” 

Awarded the 2026 Maurice Sendak Fellowship at the SCBWI Winter Conference in New York City, Keiko spent four weeks in rural Connecticut attending the Fellowship program. She had many experiences to share, including how she enjoyed visiting Sendak’s house and archives, working on-site at the retreat, as well as meeting the other three 2026 fellows and interacting with affiliated professionals, such as Caldecott and Ezra Jack Keats award-winner Doug Salati.

In her presentation, SCBWI Austin member Keiko showcased books by Sendak and other influential authors, along with her own highly crafted miniature book dummies. She explained the process for developing strong book dummies, with practical insights on visual storytelling.

Keiko Hayner is a freelance illustrator originally from Osaka, Japan. In 2004, she moved to San Fransisco, CA as a student, and, after having a family, relocated to Austin. Her primary medium is watercolor, but her work has recently expanded to digital art and block printing. In Japan, she graduated from Osaka University of Arts and obtained an additional BA degree in graphic design. She is represented by Sophie Sheumaker of Bookends Literary Agency. 

Her debut picture books are forthcoming from publishers Random House, Little Brown Books, and Chronicle Books.

MEETING HIGHLIGHTS

CREATING A DUMMY BOOK IS USEFUL FOR:

• Determining pacing and rhythm 
• Exploring page turns
• Mapping text and art placement (consideration of gutters)
• Pitching to publishers
• Guiding revisions

DUMMY TIPS:

• Dummy books can be made digitally or physically  
• Making dummies can be useful for both illustrators and authors
• Draft dummies can be any size, but a final dummy for submission to a publisher is actual size
• Illustrators: include cover art with submissions
• Follow each publisher’s specific requirements for submissions (Note that publishers’ techniques for page counts vary, so be sure to inquire)

DUMMY CONS:

• Time consuming

DUMMY PROS:

• Makes it easier to see story structure and composition, as a whole
• Helps evaluate story flow and how well the book “works”
• You learn a lot by doing it
• It feels fabulous to hold your little book dummy!

RESOURCES:

• Pagination Templates by Kait Feldmann
• Sendak’s Nutshell Library (miniature-sized published books)

CAVEATS:

• Check out Maurice Sendak’s many interviews online
• Watch Higglety Pigglety Pop! with Meryl Streep, a short film adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s book
• Read Lois Ehlert’s SCRAPS: Notes from a Colorful Life (There is a book dummy in the book!)