If you are trying to get published and are not receiving regular feedback on your writing, then you are making things harder for yourself than they need be. The best way, in my experience, to get such feedback is to join a critique group, or to start one of your own. Today’s hot writing link is to a short explanation by one writer, Kristin Wolden Nitz, of how her critique group works. Great advice and a good starting point if you are looking to join or start a critique group. You’ll find Kristin’s advice here.
Guest Article: How to Write Picture Books, by Robyn Opie
How to Write Picture Books
by Robyn Opie
Picture books look easy to write. They usually contain less than 1,000 words with stories that appear so simple that anyone can write one.
In fact, picture books are the hardest of all children’s books to write and do well.
That doesn’t mean you can’t write one. It means that you need to take time to produce your absolute best story and you need to know what you’re doing.
There are a lot of things to consider when writing picture books.
Picture books usually have 32 pages. This allows about 28 pages of text. Every page has a colour illustration, either on a single or double-page spread.
The majority of picture books are targeted at children aged between 3 and 8 years old. However, there are a number published for the older audience aged from 9 to 12. The latter stories are more complex, as are the illustrations.
Even though picture books are short they still need to contain all the usual elements of a good story – a main character that readers can identify with and care about and a conflict that needs to be resolved by the end of the story. All picture books have a happy, satisfying ending.
The conflict of a picture book must be something that children of the targeted age group have experience with and therefore understand. It should also be something that interests them.
A general rule is that whatever appears in the illustrations doesn’t need to be mentioned in the text. Firstly, you don’t have to describe your characters in a picture book. The reader can see what the characters look like from the illustrations. Secondly, you don’t need to describe your settings because they also appear in the illustrations.
It is helpful for you to imagine the illustrations as you are writing your story. Of course, the illustrator will probably do something entirely different to what you imagined. But imagining each page helps you see whether there is enough variety in the illustrations and to also decide what to exclude from your text.
Adults read picture books aloud to children. It is important that your story reads well aloud, that it has a lovely flow and rhythm. Hence, sentences should be short and easy to understand. Repetition of a sentence (or sentences) is popular in picture books as it adds to the rhythm and children enjoy joining in.
Picture book texts take a long time to get right. Published writers of picture books spend a lot of time writing their story then perfecting it.
As you are working with a limited number of words, every word is vital. You should consider every word and make sure that it is necessary. You should also ask yourself if the words you are using are the best choices. Consider things like sound, meaning, interest, tension, page-turning cliffhangers etc.
After you are satisfied that you’ve written the best possible picture book, put it away for a week or two, even a month. This distance will allow you to return to it with fresh eyes. Make sure you read it out loud. As I mentioned earlier, picture books are read out loud. Yours must sound great.
I’ve heard many publishers suggest that writers of picture books avoid writing in rhyme. They say that it is extremely difficult to do well. The majority of rhyme-texts they receive simply don’t work and thus are unpublishable.
Another point on publishers is that they prefer to receive the text-only for a picture book – unless you’re lucky enough to be an accomplished illustrator and can write/illustrate your own books. You don’t need to find an illustrator for your story or send illustrations to a publisher. Publishers have a stable of illustrators and they are experienced in deciding who would be best to illustrate your book.
As you are working with a limited number of words and aren’t including in the text what should appear in the illustrations, it is sometimes unclear from your words what should appear in the illustrations. This makes it necessary to include an illustration note next to the page number in your manuscript.
For example, I have a picture book text about a dog. Some of the pages end with – CRASH! SPLASH! OOPS! I don’t explain what happens because it is evident in the illustrations. But a publisher probably needs to know what I’m thinking to get the gist of the story, so I include a note on how I envisage the illustrations.
My advice is that you visit your local library and borrow a huge pile of recent picture books. Take them home and study them. Ask yourself what makes them work and why they are popular with children (and adults).
And take a long time to perfect your picture book. There are no shortcuts to success.
© Copyright Robyn Opie. All Rights Reserved.
Writing Quote for the Day
If you wish to be a writer; write!
Epictetus
Hot Writing Link; Writing Superheroes
Today’s link isn’t specifically for children’s writers, but kids like superhero stories, and Super Hero Nation focuses on writing such stories. You’ll find it here, filled with advice on all aspects of creating a superhero and writing his/her story. Enjoy!
Guest Article: Writing Easy Readers, by Robyn Opie
Writing Easy Readers
by Robyn Opie
Easy readers are children’s books that fall between picture books and early chapter books. They vary in length depending on the publisher but as a guide work on 1,000 to 2,500 words. This limited word length means these books have fewer pages than early chapter books. Easy readers are aimed at children who are beginning to read, aged from 6 to 8.
Easy readers are always soft cover and highly illustrated. The illustrations can be colour or black and white. These books have a grown-up look to them, making a child feel like they are reading books like their parents. They often have chapters.
A picture book story doesn’t work without the illustrations – the illustrations are as important as the words. The two work together to tell the story. What appears in the illustration is usually left out of the text.
Easy readers work without illustrations. The story stands alone. The illustrations are included because of the age of the reader, to make the book appear more attractive and less daunting to the emergent reader.
Due to the age of your reader, easy readers are grammatically simple. Sentences are short and the language is familiar to this age group. It is appropriate to use a few difficult, unfamiliar words to challenge your reader. But, for the most part, the words you use should be easy to read and understand for ages 6 to 8.
The characters, settings, themes and conflicts of easy readers must be relevant to your readers. Think of the experiences a child this age has and what they care about. Here are some ideas to consider: family, friends, pets, animals, school, holidays, sports, losing something, finding something, being left out, being different etc.
Easy readers have simple plots. It is best to stick to one idea or conflict. There is no room for subplots due to the word length and age of your audience.
There is also no room for unnecessary words, going off on tangents or waffling. Every word should be necessary to the plot. These books are fast-paced and action-packed. It is important that you hook your child reader or adult publisher in the first few lines. It is important that you keep them hooked with tight writing, fresh ideas and page-turning action.
Keep description to a minimum. Only include character or setting description if it is necessary to the plot. Otherwise you slow your story down and risk losing your reader. Remember your settings should be familiar to your reader. You don’t need to describe a house or school etc.
It is preferable to keep your characters and settings to a minimum or you risk confusing these very young readers. Avoid character names that are too similar. For example, Mick and Nick. It is also wise to avoid names that begin with the same letter. For example, John and Jim.
I’ve heard it said that easy readers should have predictable storylines, so that your reader feels a sense of importance and maturity by being able to anticipate what is coming next. Your story line should definitely be logical, so that what happens next seems like the only possible outcome.
I always write stories that the child in me would enjoy reading. I love humour and surprise endings. The most important thing to remember is that the surprise ending makes sense and seems totally plausible given all that has come before it.
Visiting a good book store or library is invaluable. You need to see what is being published and by whom. You need to familiarize yourself with the language and structure of easy readers. The more you learn, the more you write, the better you become as a writer and thereby improve your chances of being published.
Publishers are looking for original, fun stories that will appeal to this age group. I’m sure that’s what you want to write. So go for it!
© Copyright Robyn Opie. All Rights Reserved.
Hot Writing Link: Writing Nonfiction
If you want to make a career out of writing for children, you should certainly consider writing nonfiction. there are loads of magazines which publish nonfiction for children, as well as thousands of books published each year both by trade publishers and educational ones. Author Fiona Bayrock has a wonderful page of links directing you to loads of advice on all aspects of writing for children. You’ll find it here. Enjoy!
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