How to Write a Rebus Story by Tina Cho

One way to break into writing for children’s magazines is to write puzzles, activities, and rebus stories. That’s how I started writing long ago for Stories for Children and Clubhouse Jr. In fact, my fourth rebus will be published this summer in Clubhouse Jr.

A rebus story is a very short story that uses words and pictures that stand for words. These stories are written for young children just learning to read. Often, the endings of these stories include a surprise, a twist, or some kind of humor. I like to think of the ending as a punch line. Since these stories are for beginning readers, simple vocabulary and lots of repetition is best.

I get my rebus story ideas from activities my children do. For example, one time we went miniature golfing. That led to a sale, "A Golf Ball Mystery," in which a groundhog had stolen the ball out of the hole. Another summer we bought the kids insect nets for the clouds of dragonflies that hover in late summer. I wrote a rebus about my kids trying to catch dragonflies and butterflies. In my story, they caught nothing. But in the end, as they sat under a tree, Daddy caught them and took them out for ice cream. So this coming summer, look for great opportunities to turn a family outing into a story!

Before you write a rebus, check the magazine you’re targeting because each magazine has specific guidelines regarding word count. Study 3-5 rebuses of the magazine you want to write for. How many pictures do they include in the rebus? If the magazine seems to use 7-10 picture words, then try to write your story so it will include the same amount.

Formatting a rebus is a little different in that you need to tell the illustrator which words will be pictures. I use brackets around each word that will be a picture. Others highlight or underline the word they think will make a good picture. For example, this is how I typed the beginning from my rebus “Catching On,” Clubhouse Jr, June 2013. 

[Daddy] bought [Anna] and [Isaac] [butterfly] [nets]. [Anna] got a [pink net], and [Isaac] got a [blue net]. [Anna] ran through the [park] chasing [butterflies]. [Isaac] ran through the [park] chasing [dragonflies]. 

And here's what the beginning looks like in published form with the illustrations.

Here are a list of magazines that I know of that accept rebuses. Feel free to let me know of others, and I'll add them to the list!

• Clubhouse Jr.
• Highlights
• Ladybug (Ladybug guidelines don't mention rebuses, but I know Ladybug has published rebuses.)
• Turtle (Turtle guidelines don't mention rebuses, but they also publish them.)

And here's a great resource, "The Nuts and Bolts of Rebus Writing," by Marianne Mitchell at ICL.