Category: Child’s Craft

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Child's Craft

What IS a picture book?

We’re story-tellers! So, we often want to tell every scrumptious detail of our stories as we write.

But not so with picture books.

For me restraint is one of the hardest things to master in writing picture books.

A picture book isn’t simply a story with lots of big, colorful illustrations.

A picture book is a seamless weaving of text that tells a story and illustrations that simultaneously show the same story. The two elements must be woven together so that one depends greatly upon the other, so that neither can stand alone.

So, for word people like me it’s difficult to learn what NOT to say in the text of a picture book.

For instance:

  • Fine details like the color of clothes, skin, hair, eyes, size, age—unless that detail is critical to telling that story.
  • Descriptions of minor characters and scenery—again, unless that detail is critical.
  • Facial expressions. These should be implied in the text by dialogue and reactions so the illustrator can run with their interpretation.
  • Sometimes even the gender of the MC isn’t critical to the story. So, the author doesn’t need to mention it.
  • Specific brands, colors or types of houses, cars, toys, animals etc.—unless it is critical to that particular story.

So, what IS a picture book author supposed to put in the text?

  • Show actions and reactions
  • Dialogue
  • Conflicts, problems, difficulties
  • Solutions and resolutions
  • Relationships
  • Show changes or lessons learned
  • Show inner character traits through actions and speech

Isn’t it curious that the illustrator needs to tell the story with pictures, and the writer needs to show the story with words?

Writing and illustration might just be flip sides of the same artistic coin. You think?

Maybe that is one of the reasons picture books are forever popular among children and adults alike. They hit us with a double-whamie. They both tell us AND show us a memorable story.

I know when I’m typing words to a screen, I’m seeing characters and actions in my head. And, since I’m not an illustrator of any fashion I NEED others (illustrators) to make my picture book stories come alive for the children and adults for whom I write. I need illustrators to make my stories become amazing experiences shared between children and the adults who love them.

Note: I do NOT need illustrators to reproduce exactly what I see in my head. I need illustrators to flesh out my story and add new dimensions to it. I need them to make my story bigger and better!

And THAT is what makes for great picture book experiences!

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Your Fifteen Minutes

Whether you write for children or adults, or both, meeting with industry professionals at writers’ conferences is essential.

But what do you do with that fifteen-minutes slot?

I asked several editors that question a few months ago. Here are some of their suggestions. But don’t try to do ALL of these in one session. Focus on those that apply to you and your writing.

  • Most editors do not bite.
  • Come prepared with a few questions to ask the editor.
  • Familiarize yourself with that publisher or agency BEFORE the conference. Study their website.
  • Be truthful. If you don’t have a book published say so.
  • Be prepared to talk about yourself and your writing. Your passion should shine through.
  • Feel free to ask for general help in plotting your writing course.
  • Leave contact info with them such as a professional business card or a one-sheet.
  • Decide in advance on your reason for the appointment. Do you have a book idea to sell? Do you need advice? Do you want the editor/agent to glance at a proposal and give you tips on how to improve it? Do you want to brainstorm a story idea? Would you like recommendations for other publishers to submit to?
  • Pitch only one project unless the editor/agent asks for another one.
  • Ask him/her what they are looking for, or what literature they love and hate.
  • Pitch your story in less than five minutes Then stop talking and listen.
  • Know your genre, theme and target audience.
  • Watch the time—be courteous and don’t make others wait.
  • Ask, “If I incorporate your suggestions would you be willing to review my proposal/manuscript?”
  • Be grateful and gracious.
  • Be flexible. Sometimes things happen!
  • Follow up with a SHORT email thanking them for their time.
  • Anticipate some questions such as: How does your story end? What published author’s style would you compare yours to? Who are your favorite authors in your genre? Is this part of a series? What are the subsequent books about? Do you participate in a critique group? Have you pitched this to others? What response did you get?
  • Be yourself—your best self. Be open, humble and genuine.
  • If the editor/agent is reading your material be silent and let them read.
  • Answer their questions the best you can without defending your work.
  • Trust the Lord to open the right doors and forge the right relationships for you.

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Christmas Grief

Christmas is usually crammed full of jingle bells and jolly times. But not always, and not for everyone.

Just as Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year it can also be the most miserable time of the year.

As a child my Christmases were filled with anticipation and joy and iced cookies with lots of sprinkles. My parents loved hiding gifts and surprising my sisters and I with unexpected delights.

But when I grew up life didn’t center around Christmas surprises and goodies anymore. Life was hard at times—even at Christmas.

My husband suffered from depression. At times it was debilitating for him. And those times almost always included Christmas. His PTSD from serving in Vietnam made matters worse. December seemed to be the lowest time of the year for him.

Don’t get me wrong. Both my husband and I loved Christmas. He wasn’t usually a fan of shopping, but for Christmas he pulled out all the cash he could and bought all the gifts he could for those he loved. He was a very generous man. I’m thankful for many happy memories of him pulling off surprises and finding unique ways to gift every member of the family with cash.

But beyond the gift giving he struggled to have the “joy” that Christmas is supposed to bring. That meant our children and I faced some unique challenges trying to keep the season merry and bright.

Late into our marriage my husband got professional help with his depression and that made celebrating Christmas a little easier for him (and us) for about ten years.

In the midst of that time a tragedy happened in our lives. Our son died unexpectedly of a heart attack. He was thirty years old.

That drew a dark curtain over the next few Christmases at our house. How could we celebrate? How could we enjoy jolly times without Stephen?

How We Dealt With It

It took time. Nobody wants to hear that answer. But it is true. It takes time to heal from a grief so deep you can hardly breathe.

It took determination. We had to make up our minds that we were going to find something in Christmas that we could enjoy.

It took avoidance. Yes, we deliberately avoided certain aspects of Christmas that our family had traditionally enjoyed. Stephen loved pecan pie. I had made one for him every Christmas since he was four or five years old. But not the Christmas after his death. Nor the next, nor the next. It was probably ten years before I could make another pecan pie and enjoy it.

Our Christmas tree was decorated with little kid-made ornaments from our children’s youth. But not the Christmas after Stephen’s death. I packed those ornaments away and didn’t pull them out again for many years. I bought shiny new ornaments and decorated our tree in a totally different fashion. It was the only way I could bear to look at it.

Other things changed, too. The hole in our hearts was so deep that we had to find different ways to celebrate or be sucked down into that black hole of grief.

It took prayer. Not the “bless this food” or “lay me down to sleep” kind of prayer. It took submitting my heart to God’s perfect will. It took throwing myself into the arms of Jesus and crying on His shoulder. It took whining and pouting and beating my fists on God’s chest. It took prayer that leads to surrender to the greater will of my loving Father. It took learning to trust that He always knows best.

It took permission. We were counseled wisely to give ourselves permission to be sad. To let the sadness play its role in our Christmas. Over the years I would sit down before Christmas and stroll through old photo albums remembering the vacations, birthdays, Christmases and graduations. I would spend that day crying and letting the sadness cover me like a quilt. But I knew that the next day I would get up from that position and move forward with the things families do to build new memories of Christmas and other important events.

Time, determination, avoidance, prayer, permission.

They helped us to find a new way to celebrate and a way to find new joy at Christmas.

In my grief I learned to see Christmas through God’s eyes a little, I think. Was it a joyous event for the Father? Or did He grieve because His Son was far away in a strange place surrounded by sinful people? Did He weep because He knew what His Son was going to endure in the years after that Silent Night?

Maybe God’s full and complete joy came not at the manger, but at the empty tomb.

That’s where I find my Christmas joy—at the hope of the empty tomb.

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

What IS a Christmas Story?

Thanksgiving is tomorrow! Yay! It really is my favorite holiday. It’s all about gratitude, family, friends, food and for some people, football.

Some 20 years ago it meant that Christmas was lurking in the shadows ready to pounce on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

But that trend long ago melted away to Christmas making itself known more like the day after Halloween! Marketing.

I’ve been wracking my creative brain for several years for a great Christmas picture book idea. And every November I read every Christmas picture book I can get my hands on. I love them – well, most of them.

Lately my brain has been wrestling with the question of what really makes a story a Christmas story.

If I look at the shelves in B & N, Hallmark, Wal-mart, Target etc. I would conclude that any book that mentions a Christmas tree, snow, gifts, stars, angels, Santa, toys, polar bears, teddy bears, snowmen  . . . is classified for marketing purposes as a Christmas book.

In the adult book world it seems everyone writes a romance story that is set at Christmas time and gets it on the “Christmas book” list. Again, marketing.

But my question goes a little deeper. What ingredients go into a real Christmas story?

  • Definitely the retellings of Christ’s birth qualify as Christmas stories.
  • Stories centered around a Christmas tree, ornaments, gifts qualify.
  • Surely stories about Christmas family traditions and celebrations fall under “Christmas.”
  • How about stories around the theme of selfless acts and giving in December?
  • What about stories centered around angelic visitations or miracles that happen during the Christmas season?
  • I think of stories about Santa Claus, elves and reindeer. Are these important elements in creating a Christmas story?
  • And, of course, there are hundreds of stories about snow people.

Should Christmas stories be about selfless giving? About love? About joy? These are all part of what we call “the Christmas spirit,” aren’t they?

I think what I’m really wondering is does simply setting a story (for children or adults) during the Christmas season really make it a Christmas story?

Or should it have more than that? Should it reflect a deeper truth that is often associated with the Christmas season—even if it’s about snow people or reindeer?

What do YOU think?

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Is the Story Middle Grade or YA?

A Quick Look at the Two

Middle Grade:

Age of readers: 8 to 12 or 13

Length of books: 30,000 to 50,000 words

Content restrictions: No profanity, graphic violence or sex

Age of the Main Character: usually 12 or 13

Focus of the Main Character: friends, family, school, the immediate world and relationships.

Voice: usually third person

Young Adult:

Age of readers: usually 14 to 18

Length of books: 50,000 to 75,000 words

Content restrictions: Profanity, graphic violence, romance and sexuality are allowed if pertinent to the story.

Age of the Main Character: usually 14 or 15 for younger YA books, 17 or 18 (but still in High School) for older YA books.

Focus of the themes: YA MCs discover how they fit into the big world outside their family, friends and school.

Voice: usually first person

Ask Yourself The following Questions:

(Do this BEFORE you get into writing the manuscript.)

How old is the Main Character of the story?

9 to 12 years old means the story is for Middle Grade students. 14 to 18 means the story is for a YA audience. Avoid a 13 year-old Main Character.

What kind of strong language does the book contain?

Middle Grade books stay away from cursing. Some publishers allow peripheral characters like parents or coaches to do mild cursing a little. Words like “darn” are permitted.

If the Main Character and or their friends use profanity or sexually explicit words the book is for Young Adults. But publishers insist that the profanity serves a purpose, that it is critical to the character or to the voice. They don’t want profanity just for the sake of making a book edgy.

How graphic and how frequent is violence in the  book?

Often General Market publishers follow the same guidelines for violence as the ratings for movies and TV programming. Some Christian Market publishers allow more violence than others.

CHECK AND FOLLOW THE PUBLISHER’S GUIDELINES EXACTLY.

If you choose to add profanity or violence to the story remember that much less is allowed in Middle Grade books than in Young Adult books. That means much less violent, much less gory, much less frequently. Often the violence is reserved for the end, the last battle or the darkest moment in a Middle Grade book.

How much, and what kind of romance is in the story?

A crush, some hand-holding, a lot of blushing and embarrassment and maybe a peck on the cheek means the book is for Middle Grade.

If the Main Character (and others) are “in love,” have sexual contact or talk about sex, experience making out, real kissing or more, the book is for Young Adults. Even if these topics are not committed but are strongly hinted at, discussed or imagined, the book is for Young Adults.

How does the main character experience and interpret life and the world?

If the story centers around home, family, school, friends the Main Character probably experiences the story and their personal changes internally. That is typical of a Middle Grade book. The characters change but stay within the confines of their smaller world. They are just beginning a journey into seeing life a different way. They experience the events of the story, but aren’t especially aware of what they are feeling and why. They are not really analyzing life.

If the Main Character’s world expands during the story so that they start questioning and thinking about their place in the bigger world beyond home, family, school and friends the story is for Young Adults. The Main Character is experiencing the world externally and beginning a journey to find their place in the bigger world and see life differently. They tend to be introspective and analytical about their experience and how it affects their life.

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Nonfiction For Kids Is Big! – Part II

Last month we looked at an overview of writing nonfiction for kids. This month we focus in on writing nonfiction magazine articles for kids. Most children’s magazines buy MORE nonfiction articles than fiction.

Here are some helpful tidbits for crafting and selling your nonfiction to children’s magazines (online and print).

  • Research way more than you think you need. Use print sources and primary sources (interviews with people) primarily. For facts be sure you have three reliable, verifiable sources for each fact you include.
  • Keep track of your sources. A variety of website and software packages include bibliography builders. Pick one and use it to keep track of the following information:
    • Title and author (and illustrator) even on websites
    • Publishing company or magazine title
    • Publishing date or magazine date, volume and issue
    • City of publication for books
    • Page numbers for all printed material. Photocopy or download the actual pages you use.
    • For online sources the URL
    • For primary sources their names and date of the interview
  • Organize your research. If you can outline your article before you write it. If not, be sure you can outline it logically after it is written.
  • Be able to sum your article up in one sentence.
  • Remember the rule of threes.
  • Use great writing: strong verbs and nouns, clear sentences, keep words and sentence length age-appropriate, write tight, avoid passive voice.
  • Use visuals if you are a photographer or illustrator. If not, recommend the inclusion of visuals at specific places in your article.
  • Use humor when appropriate
  • Try to use a child-character in your article.
  • Research the publishers (books and magazines) well before submitting. Follow their guidelines exactly.

Magazines buy a variety of nonfiction articles. Here are a few ideas to get your brain tumbling.

  • Step-by-step How-to articles. Be sure the tools, materials and instructions are age-appropriate. Follow magazine guidelines exactly.
  • Sports articles. Interviews with sports figures, or profiles on them are always needed. Also informational articles should be about unusual sports. Introduce kids to sports they don’t commonly read about or participate in.
  • Articles about the arts. Focus, again, on famous people or people who have accomplished exciting or unusual things. If your subject is a kid that’s a big plus. Focus your articles on unusual productions, musical instruments, how-to articles for visual arts or literature.
  • How-to articles are great for sports, the arts, cooking, crafts, science experiments, gardening, pet care. The list is endless. Be sure to organize the article well with headings that clearly show the steps.
  • Facts or informational pieces. RESEARCH well. Write in a kid-friendly style. Engage and inspire your readers to dig deeper into the subject. Supply them with other sources (books, websites, magazines) they can check out for themselves.

Remember: nonfiction is BIG! It takes lots of research and plenty of patience to get the articles done right. But selling nonfiction magazine articles is a giant step toward publication and a readership of hundreds of thousands of kids. They’re eating this stuff up.

Go for it!

EXTRA: For more handy info about writing nonfiction for children read Cyle Young’s article here.

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Nonfiction for Kids Is BIG!

In the publishing world nonfiction is a hot item at this time. For both children’s magazines and books (especially picture books) nonfiction has more publishing options than fiction. So, if you love research, writing nonfiction might be the way to go.

Current children’s magazines are always looking for great nonfiction pieces. But they must be well researched, well documented and well written. If you are an illustrator or photographer offering visuals with your magazine articles is a huge plus.

Whether for books or magazines however, there is one critical rule to always obey: 

Present only verifiable facts. Do not add any made-up conversations or situations to your nonfiction manuscripts. Adding such imaginary bits transform your manuscript from nonfiction to informational writing, or to historical or bibliographic fiction.

nonfiction for kids

TIPS

Many of the techniques we use in great fiction also make for great nonfiction. Here are a few tips:

  • Start with a blast—jump into the article with a true anecdote, amazing facts or questions.
  • Add humor—even heavy topics can become appealing by adding a little humor.
  • Surprise!—adding elements of surprise will keep our readers tuned in until the finish.
  • Zero in on the unusual—especially with familiar topics we need to keep researching deeper and deeper until we find something unique, brand new, curious or little-known about the subject of our article or book.
  • Use dynamic language—strong verbs and nouns, and a strong voice can make nonfiction just as riveting as fiction.

REMEMBER

  • Document all sources you use with complete bibliographic information. Photocopy the actual pages you use from magazines and books. Print out information you get from websites.
  • Avoid online information and encyclopedias, if possible. Emphasize facts you get from books on your subject.
  • Use the most recent research available.
  • Stick to verifiable FACTS.
  • No anthropomorphism.
  • If your research is boring to you, your article or book is going to bore readers. Choose subjects you find interesting.

DIG DEEPER

For tons of great information about writing nonfiction for kids check out these sources.

The Institute of Children’s Literature Podcasts also available FREE on iTunes.

SCBWI The Book for members of SCBWI.

Mentors for Rent  (searchable)

Nancy I. Sanders (searchable)

Evelyn B. Christensen

Creative Nonfiction

Celebrate Science “Behind the Books: Finding Photos for Nonfiction Books”

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Childhood Memories Made New

Inspiration for the stories we write often comes from our own childhood experiences. But, times change; cultures change; technology changes. So, those stories from twenty, or forty, or sixty years ago must change if they are going to speak to the hearts of 21st Century children.

Try this exercise to help you make those funny, sad or frightening stories from your childhood come to life for today’s readers.

Pull out an old photo from a childhood event. If you don’t have a photo sketch the scene on plain paper. (No one’s judging your artistic abilities here.)

It’s usually easy to remember the who, the where, the when, even the what. But for this exercise we want to dig deeper.

Close your eyes and try to remember every detail of the event. Then, remember how you FELT when that photo was snapped.

Was it a special occasion? A surprise occasion, maybe? How did you feel while anticipating it?

How did you feel if the event didn’t turn out the way you had hoped? Or, was it such a terrific thing that it far exceeded your expectations?

What if this was a sad event? Just how sad did you feel? How did you act? Did you cry? Did you run and hide? Did you get angry?

How did the people around you react to you? And how did you react in turn?

The key to re-writing our childhood events as contemporary stories is to remember, capture and effectively SHOW our feelings from that past event.

It’s okay—even advisable—to change the details, even exaggerate them—but to keep the emotions you experienced.

It is the emotions in our stories that beckon to today’s children—not the exact details.

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Readability—a Key Element in Beginning Readers and Early Chapter Books

As I mentioned in my last post, Understanding Early Readers, there are several markets for books for emerging readers. Whether they are published in the trade book market (for bookstores), in the educational market (for schools and libraries), for magazines or other markets most publishers use their own reading levels to distinguish their books and guide parents and teachers.

However, if these books will be used in any way by students and teachers they must follow the guidelines of National and state-wide Standards, and Common Core State Standards.

Nancy I. Sanders’ book Yes! You Can Learn How to Write Beginning Readers and Chapter Books contains a lot of information on these standards. You can also research them at www.corestandards.org. Also, Google “National Standards for Education” and state standards by individual states. It will take quite a bit of time to become familiar with these sites. But, if you wish to write for these markets it’s time well spent.

Another book that is indispensable for writing on specific reading levels is Children’s Writer’s Word Book by Alijandra Mogilner and Tayopa Mogliner. The Introduction explains how to use the lists in the book to keep your writing on a specific reading level.

There are several nationally accepted methods of measuring readability. They are used for different purposes. They include:

  • Flesch Reading Ease
  • Flesch-Kincaid Grade Levels
  • Lexile Measure
  • Lexile Framework for Reading
  • Gunning Fog Index
  • Coleman-Liau Index
  • SMOG Index
  • Automated Readability Index
  • Spache Readability Formula
  • Dale-Chall Readability Formula

Whew! That’s enough to scare you off, isn’t it?

It is NOT necessary that you understand these measuring tools in order to use them. Having a tool that will give you the grade levels and reading levels is all you really need.

You can find a very basic and simple tool in Microsoft Word. Under the “Spelling & Grammar” tool. When the spelling check finishes it will show you the Flesch Reading Ease score and the Flesh-Kincaid Grade Level of your text.

However, if you want more information I highly recommend Readable.io.com. The free version gives you limited use of the tools on the website. For only $5/month you have access to all of their tools, however.

You can check the readability of any document or file on your computer, or on any website or blog. It’s easy to use, too. (No, I’m not a paid spokesperson, but I love this tool!)

Readable.io.com gives you:

  • All of the above mentioned reading scores and explains them
  • Rates the quality of the text by counting adverbs, adjectives, nouns, passive verbs, etc.
  • Gives you word count, syllable count, words per sentence, words per paragraph, etc.
  • Analyzes for Buzz words, Key words and other details especially useful for online text.
  • Analyzes other details useful for writing for international markets.

I can see all kinds of uses for it if you especially if you write for school-aged, or for school and library markets.

Try the free version and LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK, PLEASE!

Or, dive into Microsoft Word and measure the readability of your current manuscript. It’s easy! Then tell us what it is, please.

Thanks!

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Understanding Early Readers

A few weeks ago I started typing a new manuscript. I thought it was going to be a picture book. But, the story jumped off the screen and shouted, “I’m no picture book! I’m going to be an early reader, so get ready.”

Okay!

I’ve never written an early reader so I thought I should get some expert advice.

I first referred to my absolute favorite reference book—The Writer’s Guide to Crafting Stories for Children by Nancy Lamb. Chapter Three gave me brief definitions of various levels of early readers.

Then, I was off to meet another wizard of writing for children—Nancy I. Sanders. I ordered her book Yes! You Can Learn How to Write Beginning Readers and Chapter Books. I’m now reading, highlighting and digesting a bushel of useful information.

Today I’m sharing with you BRIEF definitions of various levels of beginning readers. Next month I’ll share information about a key element of beginning readers—reading levels and readability scores.

Sanders describes six levels of beginning readers including Hi-Lo Readers. We’ll talk about Hi-Los in another post.

All contain MUCH less art than picture books do. So the text carries the story alone.

With each level an increasing number of words are on each page, and in each book.

With each level print size decreases.

There are two different markets for early readers. Trade books sell at bookstores. School market books are sold to schools and libraries and must meet state or national standards.

Remember—every publisher has their own guidelines. Check with them for specifics BEFORE you write and submit your manuscript.

Now, on to descriptions of five levels of early readers.

  • Pre-emergent Readers have anywhere from 5 to 250 words and 8-32 pages. They use basic vocabulary and short, simple sentences. Scholastic and ABDO Publishing offer several series of these books.
  • Emergent Readers have about 250 words total and 16-32 print pages. Sentence length, sentence structure and vocabulary are on preschool to first grade level. Often each page introduces a new word. Scholastic’s Hello Reader! Series is an example of Emergent Readers.
  • Easy Readers contain 550-900 words and 32-48 print pages. These are sometimes called Level 2 or Level 3 Readers. Sentence length, sentence structure and vocabulary are for grades one through three. Random House’ Step Into Reading Step 2 books are examples of Easy Readers.
  • Advanced Readers are much longer. They usually have about 1500 words and 32-48 pages. Sentences are ten words or less in length. Various Level 4 readers are examples of Advanced Readers.
  • First Chapter Books contain 1500 to 10,000 words and 48-80 pages. They are written for grades one through three and contain separate chapters. On one level the chapters are separate stand-alone stories about the same characters. On the second level the chapters continue a running story and often end in cliff-hangers. Examples of First Chapter Books are Nate the Great, Junie B. Jones and Magic Tree House.

Other differences in the levels include the number of characters, the types of plots, the age-appropriate themes and the amount of dialogue.

Sander’s book Yes! You Can Learn How to Write Beginning Readers and Chapter Books is packed with every detail a writer will need to not only write these books, but to break into the markets.

I can hardly wait to pitch this series to my agent!

Next month I’ll share information about a key element of beginning readers—reading levels and readability scores. I’ll share a critical book for your personal library and an amazing website I discovered to help us succeed in writing early readers.

See you in June!

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

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Child's Craft

Revealing Your Character’s Character

In her book The Art of Characterization Fay Lamb proposes that writers “use the other elements of storytelling to cast your novel with unforgettable characters.” (page 5) She includes the following in her list of elements: deep point of view, actions, thoughts, experiences and dialogue.

How can I use these elements of storytelling to create complex characters as Lamb suggests?

I’ve been chewing on her suggestions and have customized them a bit for myself.

Lamb tells us to develop or reveal characters first of all by using what she calls Deep Point of View. I must admit I’m always intimidated by the many explanations of point of view. It’s like trying to remember the 50 states and their capital cities 50 years after high school!

Lamb says that Deep Point of View “immerses the reader into the head of the lead character through that character’s actions, reaction, thoughts, experiences and dialogue.” Okay.

Let’s take those elements one at a time.

I can reveal the body and mind, the heart and soul of a character through their ACTIONS. Makes sense. I must SHOW the reader what the character does, and how they do it sometimes, as a means of revealing a bit about that character with each scene.

This is especially true about their reactions, I think. How a character relates to other characters in the story can definitely reveal secrets or truths about them.

Revealing a character through THOUGHTS can be trickier. The most difficult thing for beginners is to resist the urge to have too much introspection or thought life. That slows the pace down and makes readers misinterpret that character’s psyche, I think. For the same reasons I also avoid characters talking aloud to themselves very much.

EXPERIENCES, on the other hand, are the stuff plots are made of. Action, reaction, escapades, accidents. The character going places, doing things, meeting people, learning, loving, hating, fearing and their reactions to these experiences show me bit-by-bit who my character really is, or who they are becoming.

Last on Lamb’s list is dialogue.

DIALOGUE is a fun puzzle to me as a writer. I’m still learning, but I love the game of creating realistic, effective dialogue. Accurate, effective dialogue reveals a character’s culture, era, education, place of origin or residence, profession, personality, age and more. Peppering dialogue with a few clues helps the reader figure out who this character is.

Lastly, in my opinion dialogue must always do double duty. It must move the plot along getting me from one scene to another, AND, it must reveal something about the people who are talking—something about them personally, or about their plans or problems or hopes.

Each conversation may show only tiny specks of these things, but, for me, if a piece of dialogue can’t do both of those things to some degree I eliminate that conversation from my manuscript.

I believe that character drives story. So, it’s only natural that I, as a writer, would follow Lamb’s method of using the elements of storytelling as a vehicle to parade my characters before the readers.

To me one of the clearest books about writing dialogue is Renni Browne’s and Dave King’s Self-Editing for Fiction Writers: How to Edit Yourself into Print. They devote a chapter to writing convincing dialogue and another to writing natural beats. I’ve read the book three times and refer to it often.

“That book’ll help you, I bet,” I said.

“Think so?”

“Yep. Bet you this 1939 genuine copper penny it will!” I flipped it over in my palm to show off the shine.

“Thanks! I’ll just mosey on over to Amazon and order one of those books for myself.”

I gave you a thumbs-up.

And you were gone.

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book series Four Seasons was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Facebook at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

Categories
Child's Craft

Crafting Characters Readers Will Love Part 1 by Jean Hall

According to Elaine Marie Alphin (Creating Characters Kids Will Love p. 2)

“Kids read because a magical closeness springs up between them and the characters in books and stories—the same magical closeness I felt as a child. They read because a writer has brought a character to life on the page for them.”

Every great children’s story pivots around a character who has a problem, a desire or a need. Through the events and conflicts of the story this character, by personal investment and volition, solves that problem, gains that desire (or loses it) or meets that need. In doing so, that character changes, grows or learns something.

Here we have the elements that define “story.”

A memorable character

A problem or need

Crises that compel the character to make choices and to act

Resolution of the problem or need

Change and growth in the character

Every element involves the main character. That’s why we must create characters that kids love and admire, or like and root for, or detest and enjoy their demise.

So, how do we do that?

Here’s my take.

For me, every story begins with the main character. I’ll be thinking “what ifs” and a character will parachute into my head. This usually gets me pretty excited! I get a rough idea of what’s going to happen to this character and how they are going to react.

Next, I get to know that character really well. Some people fill out complicated character charts or profiles, some sketch pictures of the character. Some writers find a magazine image that looks like their character and post it above their desk or on their desktop. I chat with my character in my head. I get an image of the character physically. Then I hear them talk. I imagine their home, their parents, their friends. I imagine what the kid likes and hates. What kind of personality do they have? I guess I’m creating my own character profile—just not in print. Each of us as writers has to get that character fully imagined in our own heads before we start putting them into a story. We have to get to know that character inside and out.

As I write the first few drafts of the story I fine-tune my character’s actions and reactions. I refer to experts for this like PscheWriter and The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Character Expression by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi.

I also try to keep the following in mind as I develop the characters. In Part 2 of this post I’ll expand on this list.

  • Is this really how a kid this age would think? Talk? Act? If not, fix it.
  • Is this really how a kid would react in this type of situation?
  • Does this character have flaws?
  • Does this bad guy have at least one redeeming trait? How else will we love to hate them?
  • Have I created enough CONFLICT in this kid’s life or situation?
  • Have I created a character readers can feel for? Connect with?
  • Is this character bigger-than-life? EXAGGERATION well done makes readers laugh, cry and shriek with your character.
  • Do I SHOW how the character thinks? Acts? Feels? Speaks?
  • Are each of my characters distinctive?
  • Does my main character have one primary trait that the story focuses on?
  • Have I built motivation into this character? Is their need, desire or problem big enough to push them through the story?

Then, I put my character to the test by getting feedback from other writers, and sometimes, readers. They always help me smooth out the wrinkles. Or, sometimes, create more!

Please join me next month for a lot more detail about these bullet points.

Just Wondering…

How do YOU create memorable characters?

Need a little free advice about one of your characters?

Just leave a comment and I’ll respond with great joy!

Scroll to the top of the page and click on CRAFT, then CHARACTER to find other helpful A3 blog posts about creating characters.

 

BIO

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book Four Seasons series was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Face Book at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

Categories
Child's Craft

Some DOs and DON’Ts of Writing for Children By Jean Matthew Hall

 

Great writing is great writing! Right? Yes, but writing for children does have challenges that are different from the challenges faced by other writers.

Here’s a quick list to help you as you shape your stories to appeal to children:

Continue reading “Some DOs and DON’Ts of Writing for Children By Jean Matthew Hall”
Categories
Child's Craft

Writing for Children – Helpful Books for the Serious Writer by Jean Hall

I write for young children – picture books and board books. One of my goals for 2018 is to learn how to write early readers.

One of the first things I learned about writing for children is that I have to use a leveled vocabulary that each age group is familiar with. Yes, I usually add a couple of longer or newer words for the adult who is reading the picture/board books aloud to explain to the child. After all, one of the purposes of picture books and board books is to create a shared experience between the adult and the child.

Sometimes my manuscripts are rhymed, sometimes not. But they are always filled with poetic devices such as internal rhyme, assonance, consonance and onomatopoeia.

As I choose individual words I also make sure that the meaning of those words will be clear to the young children. That is also a reason I use children’s editions of the reference books.

All of these aspects of word choices eventually weave together to make a satisfying story written in kid-friendly but evocative language.

EVERY WORD DOES COUNT.

Below you’ll find a list of reference books that will help you as you work on your writing for children. I refer to them dozens of times in the course of creating every story. Often several are spread out across my bed so I can hop back and forth between them.

Yes, you can find this information online. But I find it easier to work with all five elements simultaneously if the hard copies are spread out before me.

I hope you find these volumes useful as you write for children of any age.

Children’s Writer’s Word Book (2nd Edition) by Alijandra Mogilner & Tayopa Mogilner. ISBN 035313110313.

 

 

 

The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide To Character Expression by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi. ISBN 9781475004953.

 

 

Merriam-Webster’s Elementary Dictionary. ISBN 9780877796763.

 

 

Scholastic New Pocket Dictionary of Synonyms, Antonyms & Homonyms. ISBN 9780545426671.

 

 

Scholastic Rhyming Dictionary by Sue Young. ISBN 0-439796423.

 

 

BIO

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. She is represented by Cyle Young of Hartline Literary. Her premier picture book Four Seasons series was recently signed by Little Lamb Books. Jean is a member of the SCBWI, Word Weavers International, and the Kentucky Christian Writers. Visit Jean at www.jeanmatthewhall.com, on Face Book at Jean Matthew Hall, and on Twitter as @Jean_Hall.

Categories
Child's Craft

Celebrate! by Jean Hall

I’ve been baking for a couple of weeks now. The wonderful aromas of spices, sugar and chocolates fill my house. My kitchen is a big mess with flour & sugar everywhere. Chocolate chips & sprinkles decorate my countertop. My little freezer is bulging with the goodies I’m making to share with the people I love.

Continue reading “Celebrate! by Jean Hall”
Categories
Child's Craft Genre

Christmas Picture Books by Jean Matthew Hall

By Jean Matthew Hall

Before our grandchildren came along always read the Christmas story in Luke 2 around the Christmas tree before opening our gifts.

After our children grew up, married and brought little ones into the world I realized they couldn’t sit through that reading. So, I started the tradition of reading a carefully selected picture book with them. Those times soon became my favorite memories of Christmases together.

So, I’d like to share with you some of those titles. You should be able to find them at your local Christian book/gift store, possibly Barnes & Noble or Books A Million. If not, try ChristianBook.com or Amazon.com.

I hope you and your little ones enjoying reading and talking about these as much as we did.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Continue reading “Christmas Picture Books by Jean Matthew Hall”
Categories
Child's Craft

CATEGORIES OF CHILDREN’S BOOKS PART 1 By Jean Matthew Hall

The craft of writing for children

 

Book Genres specify the types of literature that share certain common aspects. Genres include mystery, romance, historical fiction, fantasy, dystopian, adventure, etc.

For detailed explanations read this excellent article at Writer’s Digest. http://resources.writersonlineworkshops.com/resources/definitions-of-fiction-categories-and-genres/

Book categories specify the age-appropriateness and expected reading levels for children’s books. Industry experts vary in their opinions on the various categories, but the information I’ve included below is, at this time, generally accepted as accurate.

Some writers like to focus on one or two genres until they become skilled in that area. Others like to experiment with numerous categories. As a writer that’s your choice. Almost everyone agrees that it is important to know your target category as you work on a manuscript. It is also important that you identify your target category when submitting your work to editors or agents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

First Books – Board Books – Concept Books

Come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Often use specialty materials/productions that children can feel, smell, touch, hear, etc. Are made to be durable. Are usually assigned by publishers to one of their cadre of authors/illustrators. Present concepts connected to the young child’s world.

Picture Books ages 3 – 6 and 4 – 8

Most have very limited word counts – 800 words or less to tell the entire story. Most are 24 or 36 pages (including beginning & ending pages).

Easy Readers ages 5 – 9  

Usually 1000 – 1500 words. 32 – 64 pages in print. Some have chapters which are actually individual stand-alone stories about the same characters, some don’t.

Chapter Books ages 7 – 10

Most are 1500 – 10,000 words. 40 – 80 pages in print. Usually divided into 8 – 10 chapters.

Middle-Grade Novels ages 9 – 12/13

Most are 10,000 -16,000 words.  64 – 150 pages in print.

 Young Adult Novels ages 12 and up:

This genre is subdivided into Young YAs and Older YAs by subject matter, themes and use of graphic or explicit language. Older YAs deal with almost any subject that adult novels deal with, and use just about any language and depict any scenes that adult novels use, but often to a lesser degree. In Young YAs authors and publishers are more careful to avoid mature subjects, language, and references to sex, drugs, alcohol and violence.

Please share this information with your writing friends using the share buttons below. Thanks! Next month I’ll give you a lot more details about each category. See you in October!

Categories
Child's Craft

31 UNIVERSAL THEMES IN CHILDREN’S LITERATURE- Jean Hall

The craft of writing for children

My daughter-in-law is a first-time mom to my newest grandchild. Dylan is four months old and, of course, absolutely beautiful in all 59 shades of pink that she wears. About a month ago her Mommy started reading to Dylan. Both of them enjoy the experience immensely. Dylan is rapt at the sound of Mommy’s voice. And Mommy is fascinated that little board books and picture books can carry so much truth and drive it straight into her own heart.

That’s why I write books for young children. When done well THEY ARE POWERFUL.

Author Nancy Lamb explains one of the reasons for this power in her masterful book The Writer’s Guide to Crafting Stories for Children. Page 19.

“Although first books are generally simple, there are several qualities that elevate the best of them to classics, including the fact that the most notable books deal with universal themes. Loss, fear, love, anxiety, anger, loneliness, joy, curiosity, greed, humor. All the things that make us laugh and cry—the things that mark us as human. The more of these attributes you use in one book, the more effective that book will be.”

[bctt tweet=”most notable books deal with universal themes. Loss, fear, love, anxiety, anger, loneliness, joy, curiosity, greed, humor” username=””]

Theme can be stated as one or two words that tell you what your book is about. What is the succinctly stated thing that your reader should take away from your book?

Another way to think of it is: what does your main character learn, or how does she change in the process of the story? In one or two words. That’s the theme.

The most memorable children’s (and YA) books revolve around one or more universal themes. That is, themes that are common to most readers in your target audience.

Try these 31 themes on for size

  • Family
  • School
  • Parents
  • Grandparents
  • Siblings
  • Friendship
  • Holidays
  • Imagination
  • Honesty
  • Faith
  • Generosity
  • Prejudice
  • Growing up
  • Compassion
  • Equality
  • Death
  • Fairness
  • Persistence
  • Loneliness
  • Bravery/Courage
  • Cooperation
  • Self-control
  • Kindness
  • Hope
  • Determination
  • Acceptance
  • Hard work
  • Peace
  • Differences
  • Loyalty
  • Taking a stand

Of course, there are more than 31 universal themes. This list is just to get you thinking

Now think about your own manuscripts: stories, nonfiction (Yep. Nonfiction can be about more than animals or electricity!), novels, picture books, mid-grades, chapter books. Don’t be in too much of a hurry. Think about your story and your characters. What happens to them? How do they change? Do one or two of these 31 words pop to the center of your brain?

Does that word or two (Maybe you can fudge and use three.) tell me what your story is REALLY about under the surface? A theme has to be there—swimming beneath the surface of your story—if you expect to make an impact on your readers.

And if you expect to see your book on shelves for a long time to come.

As a second exercise list some of your favorite children’s books. Now, as Pooh says, “Think. Think. Think.”

Are your favorite books possibly about any of the words listed above? When you remember your favorites do you automatically start thinking about anything on our List of 31?

You shouldn’t need (or want) to tell your reader anywhere in your story what the theme is. That doesn’t work. Nope. Kids will put that book down and search for another one. In great, lasting books most readers are able to figure out for themselves what the story is about; what the main character figured out as he or she experienced the events of that story. Why? Because you have skillfully told your tale and allowed the truth of your theme to rise to the surface all by itself.

Yes-doggies! Don’t we want our young readers to experience our stories and learn something from them right alongside our main characters?

Don’t we want our readers to LIVE that story with the protagonist? If your book does that then readers are going to dig through its pages again and again. And that book will be yet another tool to mold them into the people they are becoming.

And that’s why we write our stories in the first place. Isn’t it?

As a pre-teen, Jean Hall dreamed of being an architect or an interior decorator. As a high school student, she dreamed of being anything BUT a teacher. As a college student, she dreamed of being a vocalist. As an “over-fifty” woman she dreamed of writing stories for children. But, as life unfolded it seemed that none of those dreams would come true.

But,

Jean spent twenty-six years teaching children and teens–and loving it!.Then twenty more years teaching women’s Bible studies. She never designed a house, but she lived in, and decorated on a shoestring, more than a dozen houses. She never performed before thousands, nor recorded any music. But she sang hundreds of times leading people in praise to the LORD. Now, she is working hard and trusting God to lead her down the road to traditional publication.

Sometimes our dreams come true in ways we couldn’t imagine.

It is Jean’s daily prayer that The Christ within her shines through the cracks and broken places of her dreams and that Christ shines through the things she writes to uplift, encourage and inspire others.

Categories
Child's Craft

One Reason I Write for Children   by Jean Matthew Hall

Why do you write for Children?

  • To be famous?
  • To teach children the truth?
  • To evangelize children?
  • To fulfill my Daddy’s dream of being a writer?
  • To be affirmed?
  • To do something I love to do?
  • To get rich?

I have to admit that some of those reasons motivate me some of the time. Well, except for being famous and getting rich, of course. So why DO I write for children?

Once upon a time on a gorgeous spring morning, I was enjoying our backyard swing with one of my young grandsons.

“Higher, MeMe!” Mikey shouted. “Touch the clouds!”

“Can you? Can you touch that cloud right over there?” I asked him. I pointed to the sky and pumped harder.

One of Mikey’s little hands stretched upward while the other one held on tight to my arm.

As you’ve already figured out we never did touch any clouds that morning. But it sure was fun trying. It was exhilarating. The harder I pumped the higher we went and the more we enjoyed the cool morning breeze on our faces. The higher we went the more beautiful those clouds seemed to be. We threw our heads back and let the joy bubble out all over each other.

That joy was worth the extra effort I put into pumping that swing.

Later I realized that I do the same thing with writing.

I stretch myself and strain to become a better writer, and to attain publication. I can’t be satisfied with merely writing my thoughts in my private journal.

“Higher, God,” my heart shouts. “I want to go higher—to touch the clouds with you, Lord!”

Then I wonder why I want to touch the clouds.

Is it that seed of creativity God planted in my heart before I was born? Is it some innate unrest I have? Is it pride? Do I have a burning message to spread? Or, is it God’s Holy Spirit urging me upward?

I suspect it is a mixture of all these things. But mostly, it’s because I want my life to have a much wider circle of influence than just my dear family and friends. I want to impact as many people as I can for Christ in my lifetime and beyond.

Writing for children is one way I can do that. It is one way I can reach for the clouds.

And even if I don’t touch them it is fun trying. It is exhilarating to stretch myself and use the gifts that God has placed within me. It adds beauty and joy to my life and, hopefully, to the children who enjoy my stories and to the loving adults who share the stories with them.

And that makes writing and rewriting worth the extra effort.

 

BIO for Jean Matthew Hall

Jean Hall lives in Louisville, Kentucky. Her stories and poems appear in magazines for children and adults, and in inspirational anthologies. Jean is a member of the SCBWI and Word Weavers International. Read more from Jean at http://www.jeanmatthewhall.com/blog and Jean Matthew Hall Author.

 

 

Categories
Child's Craft

Tips for Getting Published

I’ve been asked multiple times by others hoping to get published what tips I had for getting published. Here they are:

  1. Get it written. Got an idea for a story? Write it! I know a guy who has told me multiple times that he’s got a great story to write but he was still researching how to write it. He bought several books on writing that he wanted to read first. That’s great, but he doesn’t have a story if he doesn’t write it. Write it first, then let the other half of the brain edit it, rewrite it and improve it. Read books but get your idea on paper.
  2. Have it critiqued. Ask others to read it and offer their opinion. And these others should be people besides your mother and your spouse. You may ask English majors or pastors to offer their opinions but I suggest getting involved in a critique group. Look for Word Weaver groups in your area. You can check if there is one on http://www.word-weavers.com/. This site will also lead you in finding an online critique group if you prefer. Or if you know other writers, begin a critique group in your area. Vow to be honest but encouraging in your critiquing as you want to help make each other’s work more publishable without slamming the manuscripts and dashing hopes.
  3. Attend a writers’ conference. There are many Christian Writers Conferences around the country. I found this list online offered by Westbowpress: http://www.westbowpress.com/authorhub/resources/events/default.aspx. If you write nonfiction, fiction, children’s books, devotions, Bible studies, etc., there are conferences and classes available. At these events, editors from publishing houses, agents looking for new clients, and authors who have lots of experience are there teaching classes on how to get published, how to hone your writing skills, how to write better, how to write proposals that sell, how to format your manuscript. Anything you need to know can be learned at these conferences. Not only do you gain a wealth of knowledge you meet these editors and agents who may be interested in your work. You meet other writers going through the same heartaches, jubilation, and confusion as you. It’s networking at its best. Attending a conference is a must for anyone hoping to get published.
  4. Get your work in the proper format. Children’s proposals are different from nonfiction proposals which are different from fiction proposals. Apply what you’ve learned at the conference to get your manuscript and proposal with the correct font, margins, and layout. You want it to look like you know what you’re doing (even if you don’t). Try to make it look professional. Read other posts in this Almostanauthor website to learn the best ways to format your projects.
  5. Get your hands on a Writers Market Guide appropriate for your genre. A Christian Market Guide (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N3VEC7Q/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1) includes all Christian publishers. There are Children’s Market Guides as well as others. Find one. Pick out publishers or agents that accept your genre and send them what is accepted according to the guide.
  6. Cover it in prayer and submit! This is where people get shy. Manuscripts don’t get published if they never leave your hands. You’ve worked hard, you’ve perfected your baby as best as you can, you’ve re-written it to perfection! Now send it out.
  7. Be patient. Responses don’t generally come quickly from publishing houses. Keep in mind they may be receiving hundreds of proposals each day from others, just like you, hoping to get contracts. Give it time. Don’t pester the publishing houses for responses. If they like your manuscript it will take longer to receive a response. Be patient. All good things are worth waiting for.
  8. Celebrate and give God the glory when you get your contract! Best wishes my friend and share your successes with us below! We can’t wait to hear!
Categories
Child's Craft

Get in Here!

My husband and I recently spent a few days in Napa Valley. We stayed in a quaint Bed and Breakfast on the edge of downtown Napa. I was excited to don my running attire and explore the town that morning and what a beautiful town it was!

The town was built along the river, so naturally restaurants, Inns and condos lined the River Brick walk. I loved the unique restaurants and shops beckoning one to enter. I loved the signs and the dance lessons on the sidewalk. That’s right. A permanent etching in stone demonstrated how to do the Cha-Cha. Loved that. It kind of made me want to do the Cha- Cha.

As I kept running, I noticed a sign pointing into an establishment that read, “Get in Here!” with an arrow pointing the way. By golly, I felt like I needed to get in there.  I believe it was a coffee shop. What was it about those words that summoned me in over all the other inviting signs and establishments? After all, those are the words that an angry parent uses to a child that has done something wrong. That instance may evoke terror. I didn’t feel that at all.

Those words seemed to signify more that something exciting was happening inside that I wouldn’t want to miss. That there was an occasion, an event and I had received an invitation. It seemed to demonstrate that my presence was requested. Whatever I was looking for could be found inside.

Do your books do that? If you write for children, is there something about your book that beckons a child to enter or beckons a parent to want their child to enter into the world your book creates? Is there anything about your book that would cause it to be picked up over another one? If a parent is browsing a book store, would your book stand out to them?

What about your proposals? Is there anything within your proposal that would jump out at an editor or editorial board? They look at gazillions of proposals. What is it about yours that says, “Get in here! You don’t want to miss this!”

Beyond your hook, the ‘specifics’ section of your proposal is where you mention this. Point out what makes your book different. Is there a character that children may relate to? Is there rhyme that catches a child’s ear? A pull-out that children may post on their walls? A lesson hidden within the text that parents may love? Does it evoke an emotion? Cause children to think of others in new lights? Does it highlight a holiday in a new way? Spark an interest in scripture? Does it conjure up parent and child interactions? Perhaps it may cause children to ask more questions?

If you don’t have a hook to draw people in, work on it a little bit more. Look through books that lure you in. What made you pick certain books for your children? What books do they already enjoy and why do you think that is so?

Once your proposal has piqued an editor’s interest, will the story hold her attention? Is your story written well? And by well, I mean perfectly. Editors don’t have time for multiple fixes and rewrites. Send them the already fixed and rewritten manuscript.

Does this manuscript elicit emotions, laughter, spark pleasant memories? Is it creative? Different from other stories out there? How so? This goes in the ‘comparison’ section of your proposal. Note what is already published and why yours still needs to be out there. Do your homework and discover what is already published similar to yours. What does yours offer that the others don’t?

Your proposal and manuscript should both work together to appeal to first the editors and publishing houses and then to the buyers and readers. Both should be written as if to say, “Get in here! You don’t want to miss this!”

Categories
Child's Craft

One Author’s Story

I frequently get asked the question of how I got published. Okay. I’ll tell.

God placed the notion on me to write a book but I had no idea what to write. When an idea of a Children’s devotional came to me I was excited but had no time to write. I worked and had 2 small children. I told the Lord if He wanted me to write, He’d have to help me find the time. I wondered what the Good Lord had in store for me.

He woke me up every morning on my days off before He woke the sun. I made myself a cup of coffee, sat on my couch and hand wrote the whole thing. This was such a precious time with the Lord. Took me 6 months. This was before I had a computer and knew how to use one. Yes, I’m that old.

I took a computer class and learned how to use a Word program since my husband refused to type it up for me. I typed the whole thing and realized I had no idea of how to get it published. I bought a book on how to get published, followed it step by step. It seriously took me two weeks to write my first query letter and longer to perfect my first proposal.

I bought the Children’s Writers Market guide and begin sending out my proposal to publishers and waiting. Back in the day, publishers used to send out rejection letters. When I’d receive one, I’d send my proposal to another publisher. During this waiting period I wrote a bunch of stories that came to mind. I had a whole year’s worth of rejection letters on this one proposal before I received a positive nibble and subsequent contract. I tweaked my final manuscript in the hospital between contractions when I was in labor with my third child. My son’s first outing was to the post office to send off my completed manuscript.

A few things have changed since then. That third child is now in college. We didn’t have the internet back then with all the info at our finger tips like we do today. Publishers have come and gone. Less children’s editors attend conferences than they used to. Independent book stores have practically disappeared and publishers are pursuing less books than previously. EBooks have appeared further dwindling the number of hard copy books. Online bookstores have escalated, self-publishing has skyrocketed, and the media outlets have multiplied. This has all worked together to change the publishing business significantly. But, publishers still need great new manuscripts and the Lord still calls people to write!

It’s our job as writers to supply publishers with great new manuscripts and to do what God has called us to do.

The number of Writers conferences have increased dramatically through the years. I didn’t even find out about Writers Conferences until after my first book was published. I’ve pretty much attended a conference or taught every year since then. The industry changes and attending conferences is one way to stay in the ‘know’. It’s a way to meet with editors and agents and hear what they are looking for. It’s a place to take classes and hone your writing skills. It’s a place to network with authors and learn from them, to meet other writers, and share your writing woes and joys. It’s a great place to offer encouragement to each other and be surrounded by so many others who feel called by the Lord to write. There’s truly nothing like it.

Getting published can be a long sometimes painful process. It’s not for the meek nor thin-skinned souls. But writing is rewarding, rejuvenating, fulfilling. It’s a whole new world, filled with great people, new experiences. If God has placed it on your heart to write, then do your best to be obedient. Vow to give Him your best by learning the craft, and submitting great manuscripts then see what God has in store for you.

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Child's Craft

Create like the Creator

As I was running trails with my dog one day, I was overcome with awe at the beauty, the intricacies, the details, and variety of all of God’s creations. What an incredible creator He is! And isn’t it amazing that since He made us in His image, He made us creators as well? Don’t you think He loves it when we create? When we use the talents He has given us to create something out of nothing?

Have you ever heard a song that completely touched your heart? That brought you to worship right where you were? Or how about a painting, a sculpture, a child’s finger painting, a brilliant innovative invention that revealed God’s hand at work?

I remember when I was in India, two of my team mates brought construction paper, stickers and gems for the children to create crowns. My team mates explained to the children that they were children of God, children of the King of Kings which made them princes and princesses. These crowns they created served to remind them of who they were in Christ. I loved watching these poorest of the poor Indian children create their beautiful sparkly crowns and wear them with pride.

As writers, we have this amazing privilege to create stories, images, blogs, articles, or whatever it is to highlight God’s majesty, showcase His love and illustrate His grace and mercy. What an honor that is. As children’s writers our books may be the ones that help form a child’s image of God and who He is. Our writing may help form their foundations of right and wrong, draw them to Jesus, possibly clarify Bible stories, demonstrate how to help others, how to tell the truth, to be kind to others, or whatever else God puts on your heart to write. These are the books and stories that children need today!

Don’t hold back my friends. Don’t resist writing your inspiration because it’s been done before, you think you won’t be able to write it as well as others, you feel like it will never be published. If God has placed something on your heart, then do your part and write it. Let God do with it what He will, but get it written.

And write it well. Get the idea on paper as it comes to you. But don’t submit the rough draft. We are to give our best to God, so make it beautiful! Make it strong! Make it touch the heart, move someone to tears, elicit a giggle. Make it flow, come full circle, teach without preaching, and make it enjoyable to read. Rewrite it then rewrite it again. Have it critiqued then rewrite from the critiques. Make it sing!

God gave us His best in all of His creations. Let’s give Him our best with the gifts and talents He has given to us.

Categories
Child's Craft

Changing your Course

Back in my carpool driving days, I discovered that if I arrived early for afternoon pickup, I’d get a close up spot in line, I’d go for a run, then the kids would pop out and we’d be off. I began running in the neighborhood behind the school for mere convenience. It appeared to be low income housing with broken down chain link fences in some front yards and lots of guard dogs chained to trees in the other yards. Scary dogs, I might add. I soon discovered that not all those dogs were chained. I ran past a house one day, with a pit bull-looking mutt lounging in the front yard that jumped up barking at me and ran towards me, chasing me down the street. I tore off at high speed, as if I thought I could outrun this four legged creature. After a couple houses, he turned around and ran home. Thankfully.

I ran in this neighborhood several more times. Thinking surely, this dog wasn’t out there every day. Well, he usually was and so were many of his friends at various houses. But, it just worked well for me to get my run in during carpool. One afternoon I heard barking from a yard as I passed by. That stinkin’ dog took off after me and actually nipped my heels. I yelled at the dog, and picked up my heels and swore I was done running in this ‘hood.

That weekend I attended a gathering with friends. One of my friends there happened to be the mayor of this town. I asked her as politely as I could if they had leash laws in that town and explained my terrifying dog chases and nipping. She told me if I thought that was bad I should hear her story. She lives further out of town and when she was running one day, she found herself face to face with a Billy goat charging towards her ready to gore her with his horns. She did the only logical thing she could think of and grabbed him by the horns. He did the only thing that Billy goats do when they are grabbed by the horns – He stood up and began projectile urinating as she dodged the stream coming towards her.

I laughed and agreed a few nipping dogs weren’t as bad. Then she suggested I run on the running trails at the park across the street from the school.  Umm. There’s a park there? I found it on my next carpool day and ran safely on the jogging trail without fear of nipping dogs or charging Billy goats.

All that to say, if you’ve hit a wall with writing, if things aren’t falling into place as they once were, maybe it’s time to change your course. Are you feeling the nipping at your heels to change direction? Are contracts not coming your way? Are you hitting a wall? There’s no leash law keeping you restrained to your genre. Is there a way you can change your course, even for a little while? If you write children’s books, maybe try an article and submit to children’s magazine publications, write devotionals, try your hand at writing that novel that’s been lurking in your mind. How about greeting cards, a blog, an article for your local newspaper. We writers tend to stick within our genre but it’s perfectly fine to explore other genres. Try different paths, look for new horizons, discover new worlds of writing. But if you come face to face with a charging Billy goat on your adventures maybe avoid grabbing him by the horns…

Categories
Child's Craft

Goals for the New Year from A to Z

So the new year has come! Did you make resolutions of things to do or not to do? Will you eat less? Eat better? Walk more, work out more, complain less, pray more? Try harder? Spend less?

In searching the internet for why resolutions fail, I found an article on http://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com/blog that states we would rather continue doing something that doesn’t work rather than try something new that COULD work — but also could fail. He goes on to say that “failing at our resolutions has implications…we start to distrust ourselves. If you’ve set the same resolutions for 5 years, and you never follow through, what makes you think you’ll be different this year?”

He encourages breaking down your goal into steps to improve chances of success. But all of that seems so secular, so ‘me’ oriented. It’s all about what I can do to try to achieve what I want to achieve. I don’t know about you, but I want to be less about me and more about Jesus. I know I can do nothing on my own. I don’t even want to set my own goals this year.  But what if we tried to be more the person God created us to be? To use our gifts wiser, better, to glorify Him? And what if we asked Him to help us achieve this? Maybe as writers, our goals for the year would look something like this: (I had to start with the letters of the alphabet because you know, I’m a writer and like the alphabet.)  Enjoy!

 Appreciate your writing gift.

Believe what God can do.

Count your blessings every day,

Draw closer to him too.

 

Enjoy the ride, the course, the view.

Find peaceful nooks to write,

Go freely where the Lord may lead.

Hold on to His hand tight.

 

Invest in workshops, conferences.

Join writers for critiques.

Keep focusing on Jesus Christ

Listen for when He speaks.

 

Make choices to be well and strong.

Nourish your soul and mind

Opt for healthy food to eat.

Pray for all mankind.

 

Quest for quite times with God.

Rest in His love each day.

Seek His perfect plan for you.

Trust His Perfect Way.

 

Use the gifts He given to you.

Volunteer and walk the walk.

Write what you’ve been inspired to write

X-out all harmful talk.

 

Yell words of kind encouragement.

Zone in with God’s name praised.

Let God direct your life this year.

Stand back and be amazed.

Have a great year! May God have His way with each of us this year and may He be glorified in all of our writing!