I write and illustrate children’s picture books that are contemporary fairy tales. I remember listening to and reading the ancient stories when I was quite little and understood the various plots and sub-plots and believe today’s children can comprehend a layered tale also, after all they’re connoisseurs of movies, many of which are complicated artistic gems.
When I was young I didn’t know why I liked literature crafted with more than simple declarative sentences but I felt the author either didn’t think much of kids or he didn’t think much about his story. So I write plots, not just about what happened but why and I use words,”..yummy enough to lick from a stick..” as Iva Lou says. Then I add great pictures. Right now I’m experimenting with a story in four parts (a book for each) in which each book begins with a description written by the character Iva Lou. These book forwards have a running plot but are forgotten during the book. They resurface again at the beginning of the next story in the series. These descriptions remind us there’s more going on than we know and promise a follow-up book in the future.
I hope you’ll try them and give me any helpful comments you can.  My books are available on Amazon.com.   nancymauerman.com