Your story has a great beginning—a great hook that will capture the reader instantly. You have an interesting, funny, or mischievous protagonist who will keep the reader engaged. But will it be enough to keep the reader turning the pages to the end? Is there something missing? Children’s stories aren’t what they use to be….
Author: Karen Cioffi
Karen Cioffi is an award-winning author and children's ghostwriter. She loves to help those who want to be the author of a children's book fulfill their dream. Contact Karen today to get your story started!
Character Sheets – Adding Dimension to Your Protagonist
Connecting with a reader entails a couple of things, one of which is to have a fully developed protagonist. A crucial aspect of creating a real character is his/her interactions with the other characters in the story and his/her reactions to external influences. These reactions to external surroundings or occurrences add layers to your protagonist….
Is Your Manuscript Ready for Submission?
Writing is a personal experience. Each writer faces his or her own obstacles and processes. But, one common aspect of writing is it always starts with an idea. You may take that idea and turn it into an outline. You then take your outline and sprinkle it with letters and words and watch it grow….
Imagery and Your Story
Probably one of the most difficult aspects of writing is providing content that your reader can turn into pictures or imagery. You may know exactly what you’re trying to convey, the image you want your reader to see, but does your content translate into effective imagery for your reader? Stephen King discusses this topic in…
Theme and Your Story
Your story is like a puzzle. It takes a number of elements working together to make a memorable story. One of those elements is the ‘theme.’ Theme can be a frightening topic. Do you have a theme in mind before striking the first key? Do you write your first draft and then decide what the…
10 Rules for Writing Children’s Stories
Before I became a children’s writer, I wrote marketing and health articles. Writing in multiple genres, I can tell you that writing for children can be much more challenging. When writing for children, there are guidelines to keep in mind to help your story avoid the editor’s trash pile. And if you’re self-publishing, the children’s…
Know Your Reader – Writing for Children
Guest post by Charles Suddeth I am primarily a children’s writer. I belong to SCBWI (Society for Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators). The rule of thumb is that children like to read books with the main character their age or slightly older. Recommended ages for readers and main characters vary from publisher to publisher, so…
Tips for Marketing Your Children’s Book
Guest post by Fiona Ingram When marketing your children’s book, a better result comes from a finely-tuned approach. Simply honing in on your target market the right way will reap great benefits. Here are my tips. 1. Have a top quality product. Your book must be entertaining or educational, well written with age appropriate language,…
Learning to Write for Children – It’s More Than Just A,B,C
I’ve written poems, short stories, and even songs from childhood through my twenties. Although, I had never thought of publishing my work or making it a career until around 2007. Not knowing any better, I thought it would be a breeze – easy peasy. How difficult could it be to write simple children’s stories? Since…
Writing a Fiction Story – Walking Through Walls Backstory
By Karen Cioffi It’s always interesting how writers find ideas when writing a fiction story. Some may simply come up with an idea, others may see something that triggers a story, and sometimes a story is handed to a writer. I had never thought of rewriting a folktale until being given a rough outline of…