As a children’s author, ghostwriter, and coach, over the many years and many stories, I’ve only seen one story that couldn’t be tweaked, nudged, shaken, or even deconstructed and reconstructed into a publishable story. The concept and author of that one book were, well, not quite all there. Dealing with so many clients, I’m surprised…
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Hiring a Ghostwriter for Your Picture Book? Are Illustrations Included?
It seems lately, a lot of people who want to have a children’s picture book ghostwritten for them aren’t quite sure what they get for their money. I’m often surprised when a potential client asks if the price quoted includes illustrations. Another query I’m getting a number of lately is about writing and illustration packages….
Writing Plot Twists Into Your Story
Plot twists are an established tool for writing intriguing stories, whether for books, movies, TV, or other media. These helpful tools create a more engaging story for the reader. According to Wikipedia, “A plot twist is a literary technique that introduces a radical change in the direction or expected outcome of the plot in a…
The Cost of a Picture Book
Probably 75 percent of my clients want picture books. Of that 75 percent, about 25 percent go the traditional route. Yep, most don’t have the patience or grit to go the traditional route. But, with the retail price of a traditionally published picture book being on the high side, authors may wonder why they only…
Turn a Children’s Movie into a Children’s Book
While it’s usually the other way around, book to movie, if you’re a freelance writer or ghostwriter, you may get a request to turn a children’s movie into a children’s book. If this should arise, there’s a lot to consider, especially when most non-cartoon children’s movies have multiple POVs (point-of-perspectives). Another problem that may arise…
Children’s Books and Back Matter
Are you thinking of writing a children’s book? Or, maybe you’ve written one already. The majority of my clients hire me for picture books, although I’m getting more and more chapter and simple middle grade clients now. As authors having a book to be published, it’s important to know a bit about what should go…
The Secret of Getting Ahead
Probably everyone has heard one adage or another about the first step. Well, that first step certainly applies to your writing, too. Having a desire to write a novel or children’s story is one thing, but taking the first step to bring that desire to fruition is impressive. Having an idea for a story is…
Creating Story Characters? Avoid These Common Mistakes
Guest Post by Linda Wilson Many characters inhabited the early drafts of my WIP: a MG mystery. Like many of my characters’ counterparts—kids—I assigned each character a “friend,” following the example I’d seen so often of kids going around in “packs.” What fun I had! The snappy dialogue! The endless opportunities to showcase what was…
Is Your Busyness Productive?
We’ve all been there… being too busy. But, is your busyness constructive? Or is your busyness just busyness? If you’re trying to build a writing career, you’ve got to be busy with things that will move your career forward. Do you want to become an author? Well, you’ve got to decide which niche you’ll write…
How to Encourage Kids to Start Writing
Guest post by Fiona Ingram Getting kids enthusiastic about reading and even doing their own creative writing may seem like a monumental task when you see all the techno-competition around—video games, movies, computer games etc. They focus on the electronic stuff which, like an electronic babysitter, is doing all the thinking for them. Children…