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Easy! I would write books.
My mind churned. Stories tumbled over and around each other in an effort to be the first
to reach the page. Stories of humour and adventure, courage and sadness. I wrote,
printed and stacked my work neatly in a drawer.
As the drawer grew full, I decided that it was time to share my works of genius with the
children of the world. I fired off a story to a publisher and waited for a response. I'd heard
about rejection slips, but that wouldn't happen to me. My work was inspired.
After racing to mailbox each day for two weeks with no response, I sent another story out
to another publisher. Another fortnight went by, then another. I sent more and more of my
work away until …
my drawer was empty.
Still I waited.
And then they came.
Dear Author,
Thank you for considering us for your work. Unfortunately it does not meet our current
needs.
Sincerely,
Ima Publisher
I placed my rejections in my drawer. With each negative response, my daily race to the
mailbox grew slower. By the time my last rejection was due, I was crawling.
My drawer was, once again, full.
After a respectable episode of self-pity and deprecation, I decided that my aim was still
the same. It was just going to take a bit more work than I had first thought.
I enrolled in a writing course, completed it and took another and then a third. I pored over
Internet sites and enrolled in on-line critique groups and forums.
I wrote, I practiced, I read.
I learned.
There is a major fallacy associated with writing for kids:
Writing for children is easier than writing for adults.
It's not. Trust me.
There are two main reasons that this is untrue:
1. When writing for children, you must learn to convey the same emotion, setting and
action as you would when writing for an adult. The difference is that your vocabulary is
limited as well as your word count. You must find exactly the right words to express your
meaning.
2. The second reason makes writing for kids even tougher. Before you can reach the
children, you have to get through the adults. They're the people who will buy your books
and encourage their children/students to read them. You are basically writing with two
audiences in mind. This means that you need to write on two levels.
Not easy.
The desire to write for children poses a rewarding challenge. Once you decide to accept
it, you will have taken the first step in a journey of learning, imagination and fulfilment.
I hope these articles can help you. I have written them with the aspiring children's writer in
mind and have included everything I wish I had known in the infancy of my career.
I hope you find some of this information helpful. You can read them in sequence and build
your knowledge as you go, or choose whichever topic interests you.
My mind churned. Stories tumbled over and around each other in an effort to be the first
to reach the page. Stories of humour and adventure, courage and sadness. I wrote,
printed and stacked my work neatly in a drawer.
As the drawer grew full, I decided that it was time to share my works of genius with the
children of the world. I fired off a story to a publisher and waited for a response. I'd heard
about rejection slips, but that wouldn't happen to me. My work was inspired.
After racing to mailbox each day for two weeks with no response, I sent another story out
to another publisher. Another fortnight went by, then another. I sent more and more of my
work away until …
my drawer was empty.
Still I waited.
And then they came.
Dear Author,
Thank you for considering us for your work. Unfortunately it does not meet our current
needs.
Sincerely,
Ima Publisher
I placed my rejections in my drawer. With each negative response, my daily race to the
mailbox grew slower. By the time my last rejection was due, I was crawling.
My drawer was, once again, full.
After a respectable episode of self-pity and deprecation, I decided that my aim was still
the same. It was just going to take a bit more work than I had first thought.
I enrolled in a writing course, completed it and took another and then a third. I pored over
Internet sites and enrolled in on-line critique groups and forums.
I wrote, I practiced, I read.
I learned.
There is a major fallacy associated with writing for kids:
Writing for children is easier than writing for adults.
It's not. Trust me.
There are two main reasons that this is untrue:
1. When writing for children, you must learn to convey the same emotion, setting and
action as you would when writing for an adult. The difference is that your vocabulary is
limited as well as your word count. You must find exactly the right words to express your
meaning.
2. The second reason makes writing for kids even tougher. Before you can reach the
children, you have to get through the adults. They're the people who will buy your books
and encourage their children/students to read them. You are basically writing with two
audiences in mind. This means that you need to write on two levels.
Not easy.
The desire to write for children poses a rewarding challenge. Once you decide to accept
it, you will have taken the first step in a journey of learning, imagination and fulfilment.
I hope these articles can help you. I have written them with the aspiring children's writer in
mind and have included everything I wish I had known in the infancy of my career.
I hope you find some of this information helpful. You can read them in sequence and build
your knowledge as you go, or choose whichever topic interests you.
How would I reach children all over the world?
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| Tips and information |
Watch this space! More to come ...
