Heather Preusser "Beats Out" Revisions -- a Guest Post

Welcome back from your summer adventures!                                     

Today, GROG is thrilled to host guest blogger Heather Preusser for a second post about using Blake Snyder's Beat Sheet as a tool to enhance the drama of her writing -- this time for her chapter book series, Hedgehog Whodunit. Take it away, Heather!

😎

Using Blake Snyder’s “Beat Sheet” as a Revision Tool

by Heather Preusser

Writers often beat themselves up when a manuscript isn’t working (at least I know I do), but have you ever “beat out” a manuscript when you’re stuck?

Back in 2017, I wrote a GROG guest blog post where I applied Blake Synder’s “Beat Sheet” from SAVE THE CAT to one of my favorite picture books, SNAPPSY THE ALLIGATOR (DID NOT ASK TO BE IN THIS BOOK), by Julie Falatko and Tim Miller. I wanted to see if I could take a screenwriting tool, the “BS2,” and apply it to picture-book writing. Turns out I could! 

Now I’m back to explain how I used the “BS2” while revising the first book in my chapter book series HEDGEHOG WHODUNIT, which came out in October 2024 from Andrews McMeel Kids. 

I often create multiple iterations of the “BS2” as I progress through the writing process. Sometimes I use it as a brainstorming tool when I’m stuck drafting, and sometimes I use it as a reverse outline when I’m working through revisions. For the purposes of this post, I’ll focus on the latter and how, after receiving The Editorial Letter, I went back to my last version of the “BS2” to try and figure out how I was going to hammer out a solution (not that any hammers were involved). 

1. Opening Image: In this before-the-adventure-begins snapshot, we read about Hitch hanging around his Hedgehog Hut. He is just about to take his mid-evening nap. This represents the struggle and tone of the story: Hitch is a reluctant sleuth; all he wants to do is be left alone to snooze.

2. Set-Up: This expands on the “before” snapshot. It introduces the reader to Hitch, the hardboiled hedgehog detective who claims to run the joint—the City Zoo—as well as his sidekick Vinnie, a rat and his informer.

Hitch always naps while Vinnie always snacks or rattles on about food. Hitch is observant and quick-witted but slow-moving; he keeps Vinnie on the straight and narrow. Vinnie, on the other hand, moves quickly; he has a predilection for puns, and he helps Hitch get things done. Their personalities complement one another, and they work together to solve crimes. 

3. Theme Stated: Snyder describes the theme as what the story is about; it’s the message or truth. Here’s my truth: I didn’t set out to write a chapter book with a message. In fact, I wasn’t sure I could identify the message even after the book was acquired! I set out to create a rollicking romp of a read. And that’s the thing about chapter books. They’re meant to engage emergent readers, to compel them to turn the page again and again and again. Not once did the acquiring editor ask me about the story’s takeaway, which I found refreshing, especially since I was coming from writing picture books where takeaways are often paramount. So I didn’t worry about theme. This doesn’t mean readers can’t extract a theme (one takeaway could be that there’s a time to follow the rules, and a time not to follow the rules); it just wasn’t central.   

4. Catalyst: This is the moment when the main character’s life changes. Vinnie informs Hitch someone has altered the sign in the panda pen from “Please don’t feed the panda” to “Please free the panda.” Not only is the giant bear missing, but it’s also creating chaos around the zoo. 

5. Debate: This is a brief moment of doubt when the main character—and thus the reader—questions whether or not Hitch will take on the case. 

6. Break into Two: At the end of Chapter One, Hitch agrees to help find the perpetrator and locate the missing bamboo-loving bear. He makes a choice to leave act one, the “thesis” world where he’s in charge, and step into act two, the upside-down world where Vinnie becomes his de facto zoo tour guide. After getting a whiff of fish, Vinnie follows the scent to the penguins’ pen, and Hitch follows Vinnie.

7. B Story: Although it’s not a traditional love story, Vinnie’s love of food is the B Story. Ultimately, his fondness for food leads Hitch to the last clue that allows them to crack the case.  

8. Fun and Games: We see the penguins chillin’, enjoying the vast amounts of sardines, as well as the hippos, who have a predilection for selfies, and the lions, who appear to be just lying around. After visiting the suspects, Hitch and Vinnie arrange a stakeout. From their high vantage point, Hitch spots two lemurs carrying a bucket of red paint. They’ve caught the culprits red-handed, but the lemurs make a clean sneak!

9. Midpoint: Hitch leaves his post and follows Vinnie through the Woodland Garden and around the Snack Shack, where they encounter a slippery situation—literally. Vinnie and Hitch both slip in pigeon poop. This is a false defeat, a “down” beat. 

10. Bad Guys Close In: It would appear things can’t get any worse than falling in pigeon poop, but then Bad Guys Close In in the form of a squadron of pooping pigeons. The pigeons chase the detective duo, and one even poops on Hitch’s head! Exhausted, Hitch rests on the ground in false defeat. He thinks he sees stars, but—thanks to his lazy ways—it turns out he’s uncovered another clue: fresh, red paint drops, which lead them around the Snack Shack and into Lemur Lounge. 

11. All Is Lost: Initially, Hitch and Vinnie came across the missing giant panda at a disco party at Lemur Lounge, but—with no foolproof evidence—they simply let the panda go. After reading The Editorial Letter, I realized this beat was too easy, too convenient. There was no confrontation, so of course I needed to expand and adjust the scene. It’s the crux of the story, the moment when the main character realizes they’ve lost everything they’ve gained (all those clues that had Hitch thinking he was close to solving the case and taking a nap!), or everything they’ve gained now has no meaning. So I moved things around in act two and inserted more tension. I added a panda in a lemur costume at an A Capel-LEMURS concert as well as a game of hide and seek. This had me laughing out loud while I wrote it at my local coffee shop, and I chuckled again when I saw Gal Weizman’s hilarious illustrations of a ridiculously adorable giant panda trying to hide behind a bush (almost), under a table (kind of), and behind a flamingo (sort of). Since the panda is so bad at hiding, this beat is a false victory, an “up” beat that contrasts with the midpoint.  

12. Dark Night of the Soul: During this beat, the main character hits rock bottom and wallows in hopelessness. Initially, Hitch did wallow. In anything. After some rejiggering, I made him wallow in stink—literally—after engaging in a stink fight with the lemurs. Then someone in the zoo turns the lights down low, puts on a slow song, and it seems like Hitch will rock himself right to sleep. But Vinnie misconstrues Hitch’s dozing for dancing, which results in the prime suspects pointing and laughing at the detective’s dancing skills (or lack thereof).

13. Break into Three: In chapter seven, it turns out Hitch and Vinnie have their culprits right where they want them. The lemurs are red-handed. Literally. They’re hands are covered in red paint! The lemurs plead not guilty, but when Vinnie and the troop leader trade secret family recipes, Hitch starts to put all the clues together. After all, this is the world of synthesis. He notices the index card for “Grandma Gansu’s Famous Soup Dumplings” and realizes the only secret to this secret recipe is it’s not the lemurs’. Hitch suspects they’re in cahoots with the footloose and fancy-free panda. 

14. Finale: Hitch reads the culprits their rights and brings them to the big house. Vinnie tells a half-truth, explaining how he and Hitch saw the lemurs in the act. Hitch also points out the lemur has been avoiding eye contact during the entire investigation, further proof she’s guilty. When Vinnie attempts to write this on his notepad, the lemur fixes his spelling mistake and lets it slip that she is, in fact, guilty. 

15. Final Image: Hitch hangs around his Hedgehog Hut again with his feet up when Vinnie barges through the door out of breath, announcing the wooden cheetah on the zoo’s carousel has disappeared. This image echoes the opening image and hints at the animal antics in book two. 

So the next time you feel like beating yourself up about a manuscript you can’t seem to get right, try channeling your inner Blake Snyder and “beating it out” instead. Perhaps it will help you re-envision your writing and ultimately hit the nail on the head (not that any nails are involved). 

More about Heather Preusser

Growing up in Maine, Heather Preusser read all the Nancy Drew mysteries. Every. Single. One. Now she writes her own mysteries featuring a hardboiled hedgehog detective and his tireless rodent sidekick solving animal antics at City Zoo. 

HEDGEHOG WHODUNIT, the first book in her chapter book series, released in October 2024 from Andrews McMeel. The second book, THE CAROUSEL CAPER, came out in July 2025, and the third book, THE PROTECTIVE ORDER OF PEANUTS (P.O.O.P.) will be available in 2026. She is also the author of the picture book A SYMPHONY OF COWBELLS (Sleeping Bear Press, 2017). When she’s not writing or teaching, Heather plays with her five-year-old, a budding boxitect. She and her family live in Colorado. To learn more, please visit her website (www.heatherpreusser.com) and Instagram.

Big thanks to Heather! GROGgers, if you try the Beat Sheets approach to your work, let us know how it goes in the comments. And a big welcome back as a new school year begins. 

Snappsy the Alligator (Did Not Ask to Be in This Blog Post) by Heather Preusser

 I "met" Heather through a 12 X 12 fabulous webinar on using beats in your picture books. I tried it on a few of  my favorite books to see how it worked, and found it fascinating. I need to use it on my own manuscripts, but I have a fear that they will come up short. That being said, I know when I do apply it, I will see some holes that I need to fill in. Heather was gracious enough to write about how she uses the book. So, Heather, take it away!

Blake Snyder's Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting

You'll Ever Need

is a must read for all writers. Whenever I'm stuck on a manuscript, I turn to the official "Blake Snyder Beat Sheet" (a.k.a. the BS2). According to Snyder, this is the "measure-twice/cut-once calculation that will save you time" and build the foundation for your story.

Janice Hardy has a concise explanation of each beat as well as how they align to the three-act structure and the hero's journey.

To demonstrate, I put one of my favorite picture books, SNAPPSY THE ALLIGATOR (DID NOT ASK TO BE IN THIS BOOK) by Julie Falatko and Tim Miller (Viking, February, 2016), through the "BS2" test:

Opening image: One of my favorite parts of this book is the hidden opening image. When you take off the dust jacket, Snappsy is lying in bed in his pajamas with his bunny slippers nestled nearby. He's reading what William Shakespeare considers to be 

"[t]he best book ever"; this book, the one we're reading now. Stuffed animal versions of bunny, duck, and pig, animals that appear later in the story, enjoy the book as well. "Hey! Do you mind?" Snappsy says in a speech bubble, demonstrating his contempt for us not only interrupting his bedtime routine, but also for being featured in a book that he clearly does not want to be in.

Theme stated: On the flap inside the jacket, the narrator and Snappsy have a conversation, suggesting that one shouldn't judge a book--or, in this case, a humble alligator--by outward appearances. Then, again, the reader should judge this book by its cover, as it brilliantly established the story's tone, type, and style.

Set-up: In the first few pages, we've been introduced to Snappsy, a humble, minds-his-own-business character. He's the everyman character we can all relate to. We've also been introduced to the unreliable narrator who exaggerates the truth.

Catalyst: In a Stranger-than-Fiction moment, Snappsy finds he has been cast as the main character in a children's picture book.

Debate:  Will the annoying narrator go away if Snappsy breaks the fourth wall and addresses the narrator's rude behavior directly?

Break into Two: We only have to jump over the gutter to answer this question: no, that pesky narrator is not going away anytime soon. Because of this, Snappsy doesn't march deliberately into act two; instead he's unwillingly propelled. He is forced to leave the old world, the thesis statement, behind and enters the antithetical world, the one where he is no longer solitary and in control.

B Story: In the B story, we're introduced to new characters, such as the pig selling jungle scooters and innocent soft bunny slippers. Additional characters like the yellow rubber duck , duck, and mouse are introduced later.

Fun and Games:  After renting a jungle scooter and shimmying through the forest, Snappsy addresses the invisible narrator again, calling attention to the cardinal picture-book rule that the text shouldn't merely reiterate what's already in the illustrations. On the next page, he continues to search for food, first in a "forest" and then in a grocery store. As the fun and games continue, the discrepancy between the text and the illustrations creates tension and heightens the mood. Of all the books I analyzed, this one took the reader on the longest fun-and-games romp.

Midpoint: Fourteen pages in, Snappsy opens the door to his "surprisingly lopsided shack" and hangs a sign on the door handle that says "No Narrators Allowed." (Ironically, he hangs it over the welcome mat as the duck and mouse look on in the foreground) On the next page, he slams the door, sending the rubber duck in the wading pool flying. This is a false victory for our hero: He gets the peace and quite he's been so desperately seeking; however, he still has a ways to go before he learns the lessons he really needs. Things are worse off now than they were at the story's start because now not only do we have a ticked off protagonist, but we also have a boring story line, as demonstrated by the purposeful repetition at the bottom of the page: "He was still inside. Still inside." The rubber ducky lying upside down in a puddle next to the wading pool also symbolizes the current upside down situation.

Bad Guys Close In:  The "camera" zooms in closer; and we see a film-noir-esque silhoutte of Snappsy, emphasizing his sharp, menacing teeth, as he supposedly makes "craft plans" to "[roast] innocent forest creatures."

All Is Lost: After turning the page, we zoom in closer. Now we're inside Snappy's spacious and well-decorated home (he and Snoopy must have the same interior decorator), and it's clear that Snappsy's "crafty plans" involve eating a peanut butter sandwich and reading a book. That he refuses to subject himself to the story's narration represents another false victory for our protagonist.

Dark Night of the Soul: After giving in and trying to appease the narrator by throwing a party to make things interesting, Snappsy loses it on the next page, a spread that emphasizes his exasperation. He goes on a long rant, the longest in the book, about how he didn't ask to be in the book. Now, he simply wants the narrator to "buzz off"!

 This is a "whiff of death" moment that is also hinted at two page turns later when we spot the narrator through the window, imploringly looking inside at the festivities.




Break Into Three: Snappsy reaches way, deep down and pulls out that last, best idea that will save himself and everyone around him. He opens the door and welcomes the narrator inside! The word "Welcome" scrolled across the doormat in the foreground emphasizes that this is the world of synthesis. Even the critters we saw earlier--the bunny, duck, pig, and mouse--are all here for the party.

Finale:  The party guests enjoy pudding and dancing. Both Snappsy and the narrator have learned to accommodate each other--somewhat. They've learned how mutually beneficial their relationship can be. After all, a party is never complete without a celebratory Chicken Dance.
                               

Final Image:  Under the dust jacket on the back cover, we see an image of the narrator hard at work. He sits at his desk, typing the story we've just finished. Motivational sayings like "Born to write" and "Note to self! Narrators rule!!" are pinned prominently on his wall as well as a fashionable portrait of him in a smoking jacket with a pipe, the ultimate status symbol. The number of crumbled pages in the nearby trash can all allude to the number of drafts the chicken had to write to get the story just right,while the empty pages on this desk hint that there's still more of Snappsy's story to come (the sequel, SNAPPSY THE ALLIGATOR AND HIS BEST FRIEND FOREVER(PROBABLY) was released October, 2017)

Heather Preusser earned a BA in English and art history from Williams College, an MA in education from the University of Colorado, and an MFA in creative writing from the University of Southern Maine. In her debut picture book, A SYMPHONY OF COWBELLS, a Swiss dairy cow loses her bell and disrupts the harmony of the herd When not writing, Heather teaches high school English, bikes the European countryside, and attempts to learn ridiculously long German words. She and her husband reside in Colorado.