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Learn To Write: Writing Logical Children’s Stories!

Learn To Write: Writing Logical Children’s Stories!

When we think about children’s books, many of us do not think of them as being “logical”. After all, talking animals, crazy happenings and strange events are often a part of children’s stories! However, no matter how strange the things that are happening in the book seem, an important part of how you learn to write is going to be focused on keeping your story logical. The thing to remember is that no matter how amazing or strange these books are, they still have rules and a good story will abide by these rules that it have been created. Logic is an important part of children’s books, and if that is where you want to be writing, there are a few things that you should keep in mind.

When you sit down to write a children’s book, remember that you should think about the world that you are interested in creating. Is it a world where mice live and act just like humans or is it a world that is essentially unrecognizable from the one that we know and live in? If you are concerned about moving forward and making sure that the world is a good one, you are going to need rules. You are setting up the logic for your story and your story must follow it. Even if the rules are different from the ones that we know are true, you must stick with them!

For instance, when you are creating a story, think about what needs to have happen. It is important that your character go through fascinating things or that they are able to complete interesting or daunting tasks. However, if they are able to finish the tasks to simply, no one is going to be interested in the story, and if they somehow magically finish the tasks for no good reason and without conflict, you are cheating your reader out of a satisfying story! Your character’s conquest needs to be a logical conclusion of the things that have come before it. Unless you can make the victory seem plausible, you are looking at a book that is not going to do well.

If you have a magical item in your story, remember that it should work under its own rules. In Snow White’s story, the poisoned apple would poison everyone who bit into it, and the queen’s magic mirror always tells her the truth. What a poorer story it would have been if the poisoned apple didn’t work or if the magic mirror could lie! Snow White might have been safer, but it would not have been much of a story would it. Learn to write great children’s stories by taking some time to think about the logic in your children’s books and how they work.

When you are interested in children’s books and want to learn to write them, logic is one of the best lessons that you can pick up. Take some time and consider what your options are going to be and how you can keep your logic consistent; this is an essential part of writing and moving forward.

7 Keys to Writing a Children’s Book that Sells Like Hotcakes

7 Keys to Writing a Children’s Book that Sells Like Hotcakes

There are seven fundamental reasons that some books succeed and
others collect dust on the author’s bookshelf. These seven keys
to success as an author are simple, obvious even, and yet in the
midst of our writing many of us forget them.

We get so focused on the idea of the book that we forget the
mechanics. Here is the strategy that award winning authors use:

1) Create a hero that your audience can relate to.

Examine your target market honestly. Who will be reading your
book? Just because you think that your main character is funny,
charming and brilliant doesn’t mean that they will or even that
that is what they care about.

2) Write for your audience, not your highschool English
professor. There has already been a Shakespeare. Most genres do
not require you to write like him. You will just turn your
audience off if you write at a level beyond their comprehension.

3) Give your reader a problem that he or she can empathize with.

Ex. Are you writing for teenage girls? Then something to do with
the pains of adolescent romance, or lack thereof, might be a
good start.

4) Provide a nemesis that makes sense. The antagonist in your
story should appear to be everything that your main character is
not. Then go back in and give him or her some good qualities as
well.

People are not good or evil. Your characters should have the
same character traits, as the rest of humanity.

Ex. A Thief with a Conscience or who hates everyone except his
little sister, who he has taken care of since their mom died.

Give all your characters depth.

5) Provide obstacles for your main characters. Both your hero
and antagonist need to have a few bumps in the road. Life isn’t
smooth. Let them both screw up and figure their way out of their
messes.

6) Your hero, at the very least, must learn a lesson about
himself or herself. Is he braver than he thought he was? Is her
nerdiness actually an asset?

Your characters should have some type of self-realization. It
can be subtle. You do not have to go into a five chapter
monologue on it, just give the readers some clues that he or she
has changed.

7) Begin and end your story with a bang. Grab your reader’s
attention in the beginning and have them hoping for a sequel in
the end. The rest, no matter how much work you put into it, will
probably be skimmed until they hit the next seat gripping scene.
Your job is to make that skim time as short as possible

Should You Break Into Writing Through Children’s Books?

Should You Break Into Writing Through Children’s Books?

Are you the next Lewis Carroll? Anna Sewell? R.L. Stein or L. Frank Baum? You may very well be. But do not plunge into the world of children’s books thinking that because books for children are shorter and simpler, that it is easy to make money with them. Just like most things, if it was easy everybody would be doing it.

Competition in the children’s book industry is as competitive and as fierce as any other market. An author with no previous publications is going to have just as challenging a time with this genre as with mysteries, thrillers or every other. And because children’s books are shorter and less complicated, it’s much more difficult to write something really unique, something that will stand out from the crowd. Does the world actually need another book about a duckling and a bunny?

Is it possible to make more money composing books for children than you can writing books for grown ups? Intuition tells us that since publications for youngsters are shorter they ought to be simpler to create and if they’re less difficult to write we ought to be able to write far more of them in the same amount of time it takes to write a novel. Assuming that’s true, you still need to bear in mind that you do not get paid until your book is actually published. And your second book will not be revealed if no one buys your first one.

Keep in mind, the market for these books includes everything from board books with few or no actual words in them to fiction and non-fiction for teens. This gives you a wonderful chance to find your voice and to write in an area about which you feel passionate. Write about what you know and really like and you will be significantly more able to capture your reader than if you might be writing only for a pay check. For many, that pay check never comes.

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Writing A Great Book For Children: A Little Imagination Goes A Long Way

Writing A Great Book For Children: A Little Imagination Goes A Long Way

Have you ever considered filling you time by writing? There may never be a better time.

I don’t need to tell you about the phenomenal success of J.K. Rowling (Joanne Murray) and her Harry Potter books. She ranks as the 12th person richest in Great Britain with her 400 million copies in print.

What an imagination! And there seemed to be no end to it.But is Ms. Rowling more imaginative than the rest of us? Probably not.

As children we possess an innate, vivid imagination. We had imaginary friends, we day-dreamed of imaginary places, we created our own secret worlds. But then we grew up and reality set in–the reality of school and careers; husbands or wives; children and eventually grandchildren.

So where did our dreams disappear to? Did they simply fade into oblivion? No … dear friend–I don’t believe they are gone at all. Our dreams live on in the electrical impulses of our inner brain–like electrons stored in a capacitor, waiting for a connection to allow their current to flow once again.

We don’t mean for it to happen–it just does over time. Our thoughts are redirected to everyday life: The mortgage is due, the automobile needs new tires, the furnace is worn out, the roof leaks and little Sandy needs braces. At the end of our day our minds are like a thick, overcooked vegetable soup–everything in it tastes the same!

What is your passion in life? I mean if you could change your situation, your lifestyle, the way you fill your days–what would you do? Are there moments during your day when you just want to plop down in a chair, take a long, deep breath and let out a sigh? Well take comfort then, because you are not alone.

In addition to my belief that imagination just doesn’t shrivel up and die, I also believe that every human being–with at least average intelligence–has a creative streak mixed in with those neurons drifiting aound inside our head.

Think about it! Creativity is given to each of us at birth, It’s the fuel that helps us to learn how to eat with a spoon and then a fork. Creativity helps us to tie our own shoes and to find our way to the playground.

Creativity strengthens our adulthood in more ways than I can list. So why don’t we use it? Some of us do. How are you putting your creativity to some good purpose? Without some sort of creative outlet, we become stale, bored, boring, uninterested and uninteresting. Do you paint with water colors or oils; do you knit or crochet; do you create beautiful flower arrangements from the garden you tend. Do you just vegetate?

Writing has long been my passion. But for most of my adult life I shoved this desire aside:Too busy with work, with family, with home projects, civic clubs, volunteer work–you name it. I had one excuse following another for not to unfetter my passion.

Back in 1986 I had a flash of imagination–a storyline crept into my consciousness. The idea of a spy thriller took shape and I began to scribble words onto the pages of a spiral notebook.

The following year I bought my first computer and pecked out several chapters. But I lost interest and only returned every so often to those fading pages. It took a divorce and a second marriage to revitalize my writing. With the help of a very patient wife I added more and more content to my novel. For nearly two years we tried to find a publisher. That failing we tried to interest literary agents. And finally we just gave up.

But in 2007 I stumbled across a book publisher–not a very well known one–but a real publisher none the less. My novel, “Surrogate Warrior,” is now available from most major booksellers.

My point here is that creativity needs to be exposed to the fresh air. Do you have a story, maybe even a novel, drifting around you gray matter? Or is the thought of writing a book too intimidating?

I wanted desperately to find a publisher. That quest clouded my judgement. My advice to you is to write for your own satisfaction. Write a story for you kids. Write a story for your family. To hell with the publishers–just get it written.

Ever heard of Robyn Opie. Robn is a bestselling author of 76 children’s books with six more due to be published this year. She has written two screenplays and is negotiating with two Australian producers for movie rights. What you may not know is that Robyn has written a comprehensive How-To-Guide for new authors. Her book, “How To Write a Great Children’s Book” is available for immediate download.


Learn how to illustrate for achildren’s book in this free how-to video on writing and publishing children’s literature. Expert: Angela Sage Larson Contact: www.petalwinkthefairy.com Bio: Angela Sage Larsen is a professional artist and published children’s book author. Filmmaker: Ross Safronoff

The Accidental Author: Lessons Learned from Writing a Children’s Book

The Accidental Author: Lessons Learned from Writing a Children’s Book

When I was recently asked to write an article on writing for children, I thought to myself, what do I know about writing for children? True, I just had a children’s book published, but I still thought of that as kind of an accident. Truth is, I have never been been singled out for my writing talent, I had never considered myself a writer, and I had never written a single story, until about three years ago.

What I had always been was a frustrated artist. As a child, I was never caught without my trusty sketchbook. In college, I studied architecture because it involved a lot of drawing. And when I became a mother, I painted goofy animals to entertain my daughter. It was when the goofy animals ate up much of the wall space in our home that my husband suggested that I try my hand at illustrating children’s books. An interesting idea, I thought. A bit pie in the sky, but I liked it. Illustrating children’s books, yes, that could be fun!

I soon realized that before I could illustrate anything, I needed a story. Not quite sure how to proceed, I took my computer, tucked myself into my favorite corner of the local Starbucks, and tried to conjure up a children’s story. Dr. Suess came to mind. Eric Carle came to mind. Goodnight Moon came to mind. Somewhat baffled by the process, I t tried to imagine a story that my daughter Zoe would like. At the time, Zoe was highly focused on caterpillars turning into butterflies. In fact, several times a day, she would reenact a metamorphosis by rolling herself in a blanket, counting to fourteen, and emerging with wildly flapping arms. Zoe’s metamorphosis was always a joyous event. I asked myself, what would Zoe think of a caterpillar that didn’t want to be a butterfly? Surely that idea would intrigue her. The story came quickly from that germ of an idea as I began to imagine a wonderfully whimsical caterpillar world that my main character would be loathe to leave.

Truth is, I absolutely loved writing that first children’s story. After doing a bit of research about children’s book publishing, I learned that publishers do not want illustrated manuscripts (unless you are Dr. Suess or Eric Carle). Publishers look for good stories, and then for illustrators. The writer and the illustrator are rarely the same person. I quickly abandoned the idea of illustrating my own story, and decided to send my story to publishers unillustrated. In my house, this was considered I-Love- Lucy-wacky. I had never aspired to be an author, and here I was sending manuscripts out to publishing houses. I guess I had some small hope that some one would like my story as much as I enjoyed writing it.

In the ensuing months, I got a steady flow of rejection letters. At around six months, the letters quit coming and, at about eight months, I forgot about about my story altogether. Then, a year later, I received a phone call while vacationing in Mexico. It was from New Horizon Press, and the woman on the line was telling me that she wanted to publish my story. You can imagine my total shock, surprise and delight!

That was a about a year and a half ago. I have since been through the editing process. A wonderful illustrator was chosen for my story, and it was published this June.

So, given my experience, what do I know about writing children’s books? I know that you picture your audience. You write something that you think will tickle them, but that also tickles you. You tune into how your main character feels, and you add a bit of magic to your story.

That’s about it. I am still learning myself, taking writing classes and honing my craft. While, at this point, I don’t have a lot of advice on writing, I do have some advice about finding your passion. It can come at any age (did I mention that I am 47?), and, if you allow for it, it just might turn out to be something completely unexpected.


Writing for Children- The Unique Language of Children’s Books! 5 Tips to Consider

You have decided to write a children’s book. That is great news! There is a need for well written and thought out children’s books. You’re in for a fun and exciting journey. When writing for children, there are a few things to consider concerning the language to use.

So you are defiantly heading down the right track. But what is the best language to use when writing for children? There is a particular way and style to writing children’s books just like there is for adults.

Here are 5 Tips you will find handy on the language used in children’s books.

- Use simple, easy to understand language. As the word limit for children’s books very, they are generally short, so the words you chose are important. You don’t have a lot of room for extra words that do not help the story, don’t forget the illustrations help tell the story also. Keep it short and sweet; children have short attention spans so you need to get the point across within the first few pages.

- Read picture books. Locate the books that have been reviewed or won awards and read them. Look at the books you like and dislike. What do you find about the book that captures your attention? What is it that puts you off reading the whole book? Use this research when compiling your book. Take note of how the author uses the words in the story.

- Read with and interact with children. Children are obviously the best critics when writing a children’s book. This is obvious as they are the target audience right, but if you have the opportunity to find out what children like and dislike in the books they read, take it. Grab the kids next door, grand children, your own children or any child that is willing to sit with you and read. Get a sense for the types of books children, or the audience you are writing for, like to read. What is it that they like and dislike? Ask the questions. You may only get minimal answers but simple is what we are aiming for.

- Join online/offline writers groups and forums. This will help your writing in a massive way. Try to find groups of writers that are also writing children’s books. You are all in the same situation so ask the questions and get the answers you need. The feedback will be so valuable to you. Find out from your local library for groups in your area or search the internet.

- Get help from experienced authors of children’s books. This is probably one the best ways to get knowledge on language in children’s books. They are the people who have been there and in the mist of it all. Some have in-depth teaching strategies and will give you the exact information you need to succeed.

Use these 5 Tips when you need help with the best language to use in children’s books. Try to think like a child and put yourself in their shoes. What’s the best language to use when writing for children? Simple and easy to understand. Get the assistance and support you need for your own writing achievement!


Why Writing for Children is Not Easy

Why Writing for Children is Not Easy

Could you write for children?

It is possible to become a children’s book author but writing for children is not as easy as many believe.

At first blush, children’s stories seem simple enough and many writers create a story and send it out, hoping for publication.

In actuality, your story has to appeal to a triple audience:

To the publisher who will evaluate it for critical and necessary elements.
To children–is your main character someone children can relate to? (What child behaves all the time? What child doesn’t enjoy a good laugh? What child isn’t curious?)
To parents–you likely remember the stories you had to read to your kids repeatedly. Some you enjoyed; others you did your best to avoid.

Why Writing For Children is Not Easy

Many factors contribute to a solid manuscript, such as creating an effective picture book title, writing a compelling opening, and planning your verses for page turns.

Many seasoned children’s book authors, in fact, create book dummies for each of their stories to help them to spot weaknesses and improve on them. Making a book dummy can help you to see how your verses should fall on the pages.

A good children’s story has to have a clear direction, action scenes, a memorable character and a story arc.

As can be seen, much has to be considered when writing stories for children.

Learning How to Write for Children

Prolific Australian author Robyn Opie relates that she wasted valuable time trying to get her kids’ books published. As she gained experience, she discovered that publishers want certain elements in children’s stories and she wrote her stories accordingly.

Robyn has achieved incredible success using this knowledge and has carved a career writing for children.
She has 76 published books under her belt and more in the works.
Her site has won the designation of “101 Best Websites for Writers” from Writer’s Digest.
Robyn is considered one of the best sources, for information about how to get a children’s book published.

Robyn offers free tips and insider knowledge to those who want to build a career writing for children.

Recap: writing for children and getting your stories published can prove difficult if you do not have a clear understanding of what makes a solid children’s story.

 

Bestselling crime author Jo Nesbo talks about his brand new children’s book, Dr Proctors’ Fart Powder, and how it differs writing for children. Dr Proctor’s Fart Powder publishes 4th March 2010. £5.99 PB SIMON AND SCHUSTER UK www.simonandschuster.co.uk
Video Rating: 4 / 5

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Writing Children’s Books: How to Write Bestselling Books for Kids of Any Age

Writing Children’s Books: How to Write Bestselling Books for Kids of Any Age

Get excited about writing children’s books! Write bestselling books for kids of all ages! Writing for kids can be rewarding: discover how to write bestselling kids’ books by knowing what your target readers want. 

 
<b>Writing Children’s Books for a Target Audience</b>
First, choose your target readers: babies, toddlers, preschoolers, beginners or preteens. A story that’s a potential bestseller with one age group may fall flat with another.

It’s important to decide on the age level before you start writing: this will determine the kind of book you write, the length and complexity of your story, and the number, ages and treatment of your characters.

Studies in childhood development show that as kids grow from babyhood to the preteen years, they look for different kinds of books.

<b>Writing Children’s Books for the Earliest Years: Toddler and Baby Books</b>
Babies and toddlers love to listen to simple tales revolving round the familiar world of home, family and friends. Also popular are adventures of mischievous children, talking animals or toys that come alive.

<b>Babies</b> love to hear about the doings of other babies (especially naughty ones) and baby animals. Learn from bestselling baby books like <i>Welcome, Little Baby</i> by Aliki and <i>Spot the Puppy</i> by Eric Hill.

<b>Toddlers</b> enjoy stories with lots of repetition, catchy words and rhymes. Take a cue from favorite children’s books like <i>Goodnight Moon</i> by Margaret Wise Brown and <i>Jamberry</i> by Bruce Degen. Toddlers also love to hear about the escapades of other kids and talking animals, as in the Alfie stories by Shirley Hughes and the Little Crittur series by Mercer Mayer.

<b>Writing Children’s Books for Preschoolers</b>
Although some preschoolers may have started to read by themselves, most will still have adults reading to them. How your story sounds is therefore very important; read it aloud — does it flow smoothly? Does the story hold your attention?

Books about family and school life are popular with preschoolers, especially if they’re funny stories with children or animals as the principal characters. Get a taste of kid humor from bestselling children’s books like <i>Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day</i> by Judith Viorst, and <i>If You Give a Mouse a Cookie</i> by Laura Numeroff.

<b>Writing Children’s Books for Grade School Kids: Beginner Readers and Chapter Books</b>
<b>Beginner books</b> — also called easy-to-reads — are for kids just starting to read by themselves. The writer’s aim is to make the reading experience a pleasurable one for the child, who can then claim to have read the book “all by myself”. This happy result comes about when the vocabulary and sentences are kept simple and concrete. Most beginner books run to only about 1,000 to 1,500 words, or between 40 and 64 pages.

<b>Chapter books</b> are for more advanced readers, and may range from 1,500 words to 10,000 words, or between 40 and 80 pages. They are usually divided into chapters of 3 to 4 pages each.

Grade school kids enjoy funny stories, and fast-paced adventure and fantasy stories revolving round family, school and friends. To understand what appeals to kids, look at popular children’s books like <i>Kids of the Polk Street School</i> series by Patricia Reilly Giff, the <i>Babysitters Club</i> series by Ann M Martin, and <i>Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing</i> and sequels by Judy Blume.

<b>Writing for Preteens</b>
Preteens want their stories to zip along at a fast pace, with plenty of action, adventure and humor. They prefer protagonists who are their own age or slightly older: active, intelligent, resourceful characters capable of solving problems by themselves.

Preteens look for stories that address relationship and growing-up issues in a way they can identify with: books such as <i>The Divorce Express</i> and <i>Can You Sue Your Parents for Malpractice?</i>, both by Paula Danziger and <i>Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret</i> by Judy Blume.   

For more tips and ideas on writing children’s books, visit http://www.creativejuicesbooks.com/creative-writing-ideas-kids.html to help you write the best books for kids.

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Learn To Write For Children: Should You Do A Writing Course?

Learn To Write For Children: Should You Do A Writing Course?

You have never needed a writing course to pen intelligent, interesting stories that capture the imagination with bold creativity and unexpected twists. You know the difference between “there” and “their,” and understand that “they’re” is something else entirely. Your grammar is impeccable, and you know enough about the rules to know when to break them. That is, you have all these things on your side until you attempt writing children’s books. The best thing you can do for your children’s writing career is learn to write for this specific genre of writing!

There are many very successful authors who have written lots of books for adults in a variety of genres who find themselves stumbling when it comes to writing children’s books. They have well honed writing skills that they never needed a writing course to gain and they sit down to apply those skills to writing books children will love. Yet, the story never seems quite right. Or, they send it out repeatedly and get nothing more than immediate rejection. Some editors ignore them altogether, not even humoring them with a reply.

What is happening here? How is it possible to be successful when writing for adults without any need for a writing course, but fall flat on your face when trying to write children’s books? It’s not OKay to water down an adult novel and produce a story for children.

Writing for children is a lot different than writing for adults. There is no such thing as just sitting down and writing a children’s book without first learning a whole new set of skills. The rules are very different and if you do not understand them you will never get beyond the slush pile or will continue to collect those form letter, heartless rejection notes. But don’t worry, you can learn to write for children.

What pleases an editor looking for adult fiction is not going to be the same thing that an editor looking for children’s fiction wants. It’s much easier to write for adults because you understand the adult mindset. You are writing for people who have wit and wisdom well beyond what the children you are now writing for may possess. In order to craft wonderful children’s books, you need to tap into the mind of a child within the age group your story is intended for.

That means children’s books are not all the same! There are many different sets of rules depending on the age group being dealt with.

Further, there is a lot of insider knowledge that you need to take your children’s stories from the slush pile to the “published” pile. The industry is just not the same as the adult industry, even if you are dealing with the same publishing house you have been submitting to for years.

A great way to learn to write for children and find all of this insider information that you need and hone your skills so they are more suitable to a younger audience is to take a writing course aimed exclusively at writing children’s books. Before you start to think a writing course would be a waste of your time, consider how much time you are willing to waste submitting children’s books that completely miss the mark and never have a chance of being published from the moment you toss them out there.

You don’t have to do a long course. There are plenty of short courses around that concentrate on writing for children. Finding one can be easily found through your local library or online. Take some time to find one that suits your needs and teaching you what you don’t already know! Taking up a writing course will contribute to your success as a children’s author.

If you want the highest chance possible of writing successfully for children you will take the writing skills that you already possess and apply them to the new rules of the children’s book industry. You succeed with children’s books by combining your current skill set with an entirely new skill set. Learn to write for children by attending a professional writing course.

Writing For Children: Turn Your Ideas Into A Book

Writing For Children: Turn Your Ideas Into A Book

Turn Your Idea Into a Book

Maybe you’re one of those lucky writers whose head is bursting with ideas. Or perhaps you have one idea that’s been nagging you for weeks, always at the edge of your thoughts. Either way, you’re itching to begin writing. That’s good. But before you rush headlong into your story, stop and ask yourself one question: Is this just an idea, or is it a book?

Ideas, of course, are the seeds of any work of fiction or nonfiction. But until an idea is fully developed, until you can envision its beginning, middle and end, that one idea might not be enough. The experience of writing for pages about an idea and ultimately getting nowhere (or getting a pile of rejections) has taught many writers to outline their books before they begin. But if the thought of an outline sends shivers up your spine, at least thinking your idea through and making sure it merits months of writing can save you future frustration.

Ideas for Fiction

A lot of writers, especially when they’re beginners, get ideas for fiction from their own lives. This can be useful for several reasons: you’re emotionally invested in the topic, you can relate directly to the main character, and if the situation actually happened to you, you’re less likely to be unconsciously basing the story on a book you’ve read. But remember, just because you find this thing that happened to you or your child fascinating, it doesn’t mean it will be fascinating to thousands of potential readers. Very often, a real-life event is just that–an event. It’s a vivid scene you recall with pleasure, or a family joke that’s repeated over and over. It evokes strong emotions when you remember it, perhaps you even look back on an event as a turning point in your life. But only rarely does reality provide a plot.

When writers stick too closely to what really happened they fail to develop the elements necessary for a good story: a believable main character who is faced with a problem or conflict, mounting tension as that character tries to solve her problem and experiences setbacks, and a tension- filled climax followed by a resolution that’s satisfying to the character and the reader. If your main character is really your son, you might not want to get him in trouble or throw rocks in his path. But you have to. It’s the only way you’ll create a story that will keep readers hooked and wondering how it will end.

Speaking of endings, if the resolution of your story comes too easily, it’s probably obvious and predictable. Try mixing up real life and have the situation evolve in a different direction. Surprise yourself, and you’ll surprise an editor.

However you get your idea, focus first on whether it’s a plot or a theme. Many times, an initial idea is really the underlying meaning of the story, what the author wants to convey to the reader. Themes should be universal in their appeal– such as friendship, appreciating one’s own strengths, not judging others too quickly. Then play around with the sequence of events until you develop a plot (what actually happens in the book) that makes this theme clear to the reader. And remember; if you’re using a childhood incident as the foundation of your story, tell it from your childhood viewpoint, not how it feels to you now as an adult.

Ideas for Nonfiction

Your nonfiction book should be based on something you’re truly interested in and passionate about. After all, you’ll be living with this idea for many months. The key to successful nonfiction is to take your idea and approach it in a way that no one else has ever done before. This means doing most of your research before you begin to write. Don’t settle for the most easily-found information on your topic–your readers have probably read the same information. Keep digging until you find an aspect to your subject that strikes you as unique. Then search through the library and book stores to make sure no one else has already beat you to it.

For a nonfiction idea to become a book, you need enough information to fill the number of pages necessary, depending on the age group for which you plan to write. Younger children need a foundation of basic facts, but you can also get fairly detailed within the scope of the approach you’ve chosen as long as you explain concepts in a simple and straightforward manner (how animals hibernate, why insects are different colors). Older readers can draw on a broader foundation of knowledge, and infer connections between your topic and related subjects. A detailed outline of any nonfiction book is essential to help you see if your idea has enough substance and originality, or if you need further research before you begin writing.

Whether it’s fiction or nonfiction, your idea should mean something to you, but also have the potential to mean a lot to your readers. Think it through, add to it, take the nonessential elements away, and make sure it has a beginning, middle and end. Only then will your “idea” turn into “an idea for a book.”

From cbiclubhouse.com, the place to turn for children’s book writing information. There are four things that many successful children’s book authors have in common. In this video, you’ll learn them, and discover if you’re ready for your shot at the big time!

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