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On Writing for Children
Writing for children is among the
hardest work for aspiring writers and, perhaps, the most rewarding.
There’s so much to “show” children (remember the show don’t
tell rule!) and so much to share with them that it’s difficult
to write in a way they will embrace. Fun, funny, entertaining,
touching, honest. These are just some of the qualities they
respond to. Does your work
succeed? They’ll let you know in a heartbeat. They’ll tell
you the good, the bad and the ugly about your work without
any preconceived expectations. These honest reviewers are
endearing, however, because they love new ideas and new possibilities
and are just as quick to share the joy they find in your writing.
How do you know what to write about?
You write about something that matters to you - something
serious, something heart-warming, something silly or maybe
impossible - whatever it is within you. The Agor series began
for me, I suppose, many years ago when, as a child, I’d lie
on my back and gaze up at the stars and fill with wonder.
I felt small lying there, gazing upon the infinite, fully
aware of what those heavenly bodies were. What, then, I questioned,
would early peoples without present-day scientific knowledge
think of stars, rainbows and other wonders? Years later,
when my own children arrived and we lay on lounge chairs pointing
out comets in the August night sky to them, those earlier
thoughts returned. It was thrilling to see our boys experience
the newness of each natural wonder. Their pleasure introduced
me to a fictional little boy named Agor.
In writing about Agor and his friends
Gonther and Maida, I’ve held the hope that somehow those
feelings of wonder could be regenerated, that the fictional
experiences of those characters would help make young readers
see our everyday world in a new light. Time will tell if
it’s really working.
There are a number of books that can
be used for resources in writing and I will list them a little
later. But whether you’re writing for children or adults,
the most rewarding source of learning, I believe, is writing
groups. The Society of Book Writers and Illustrators is,
in my opinion, a must for the aspiring and published children’s
writer. (More on that later. ) Writing is a solitary business
and it’s important to get out and talk to other people who
are knowledgeable about what you are doing. It’s a never-ending
learning process. Groups like this can help you hone your
writing skills as well as teach you the business of writing.
Writing for children is, in most aspects,
no different from writing for adults. Each story, even a
simple picture book, needs a beginning, a middle and an end.
And each story needs an enticing idea around which you can
wrap and weave words. But perhaps the most important ingredient
in writing for children is something that is very unique to
each of us - that is bringing out the essence of the child
within us. It is that ingredient alone that makes writing
for children the most fun – and the most difficult. The important
thing is to reach down within yourself and begin the adventure.
Good luck!
Books I’ve found to be wonderful
resources as one begins the journey:
- Children’s
Writers & Illustrator’s Market – updated each year
- Children’s
Writer’s Word Book – Alijandra Mogilner
- Writing
for Children & Teenagers – Lee Wyndham
- How to Write
and Sell Children’s Picture Books – Jean E. Karl
- The Children’s
Picture Book – How to Write it –How to Sell it – Ellen E.
M. Roberts
- Writing
Short Stories for Young People – George Edward Stanley
- Writers
Digest Books – Join their bookclub
Also:
- Newsletters – Children’s Writer
& SCBWI Newsletter
The Society of Children’s Book
Writers and Illustrators, formed in 1971 by a group of
Los Angeles based writers for children, is the only international
organization to offer a variety of services to people who
write, illustrate, or share a vital interest in children’s
literature. The SCBWI acts as a network for the exchange of
knowledge between writers, illustrators, editors, publishers,
agents, librarians, educators, booksellers and others involved
with literature for young people. There are currently more
than 19,000 members worldwide, in over 70 regions, making
it the largest children's writing organization in the world.
I belong to the Southern Breeze Chapter.
Members of the national SCBWI who live in Alabama, Georgia,
or Mississippi are automatically members of the Southern Breeze
region, which produces its own newsletter, holds two annual
conferences each year, and supports the work of published
and "pre-published" authors and illustrators of
books for children
For those of you who are interested in writing children’s
stories and those of you who already do – published and yet-to-be
published – becoming a member of SCBWI not only gives you
credibility in the industry, it is a means of becoming involved
in developing the craft and learning about the business of
publishing through association with the national organization
and its chapters. For information on joining, visit their
website – www.scbwi.com.
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