Children’s picture books have 3 levels or purposes regarding the reader and the purchaser. Think of it as the structure of a house: there’s a basement, a first floor, and often an upper floor. Level 1: The basement, or Surface Level, is geared toward the youngest reader (or listener if too young to read). This…
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!
Freelance Writers and Ghostwriters: 3 Essential Warnings
This post is mainly for new freelance writers and ghostwriters, as experienced ones will likely know these two tips. I’m a working children’s ghostwriter, and I get a lot of queries about my writing service. Doing this for many years, I’ve come across different personalities, different requests, and a couple of ‘be careful’ moments. TIP…
The One Sentence Pitch for Your Manuscript
Your one-sentence pitch is a condensed, concise description of your story, specifically the plot. Think of it as a one-sentence calling card—your unique selling proposal or proposition. A beginning step on your book marketing journey. You might ask why it needs to be only one sentence. Well, it may happen that the time you have…
How Do You Build a Successful Writing Career? (3 Tips)
Writers need to be tough. It’s not an easy arena to be in. Did you know that writers get so many rejections that there have actually been studies done on it? According to a Huffington Post article, “96% of authors seeking agents are rejected.” (1) That’s pretty severe. Another article at Writer’s Digest says, “don’t…
Aim for Writing Success
Writing success can mean different things to different writers. Some writers may simply want to get a book or article published; others may want to be on the New York Times Best Sellers List; others may want to make a living writing; and others may be seeking wealth and fame. The key here is to…
Writing – Let Tom Swift Guide You
Guest Post by Carolyn Howard-Johnson Ever heard of Tom Swifties? Maybe you’re too young to be familiar with the classic Tom Swift adventures for boys. Or maybe you’re a girl who never read a Tom Swift book nor cares to. Tom Swifties are one-line jokes lampooning the style of Victor Appleton, the author of the…
Your Children’s Manuscript Is Done? Now What?
As a children’s ghostwriter, I am often asked what comes after the manuscript is written and edited. Well, this depends on which publishing road you’ll take: self-publishing or traditional publishing. Since most of my clients self-publish, I’ll start there. SELF-PUBLISHING Basic Pages and Copy (in addition to the story). 1. You’ll need back cover copy….
8 Top Fiction Writing Mistakes to Avoid
There’s an informative article in The Writer, April 2012 issue (1). If you’re able to get your hands on a copy or find it online, it’s worth the read. Digging deeper on this topic, I did some additional research and came up with eight elements that are probably the most common fiction writing mistakes. The…
Point of View and Children’s Storytelling
Point of view (POV) refers to the narrator’s perspective on what’s going on. The POV is who’s telling the story. This will determine what the reader ‘hears’ and ‘sees’ in regard to the story. And it determines the ‘personal pronouns’ that will be used. There are three main POVs in young children’s storytelling: first person,…
Storytelling – Do Not Let the Reader Become Disengaged
As an author, it’s your job to create an engaging, compelling, suspenseful, intriguing, romantic, or other type of story content that will lure readers in and keep them turning the pages. But the key word for a successful story is ‘engaging.’ Engagement, according to Merriam-Webster.com, means to have an emotional involvement or commitment. Based on…