A number of articles about writing for children, and other genres suggest knowing your characters inside and out before beginning the story. In fact, information suggests that the author builds the story around the characters once they are fully developed. While this is good advice, and many experienced authors recommend this technique, there are some…
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How Do You Make a Good Story Worthy of Getting Past the Gatekeeper?
Just about every author knows about the “gatekeeper.” The dreaded acquisitions editor who decides if your manuscript is worthy of her attention and the publishing house’s backing. In other words, the editor who decides if your manuscript is worthy of a publishing contract. To make sure your ‘good’ story becomes a ‘worthy’ story, the Writer’s…
Are You Showing or Telling?
I’ve written about showing and telling before, but it’s such an important topic that I think more information is always helpful. Writing is an ongoing adventure…always something to learn and tweak and hone. A long while ago I wrote a children’s story and found I still had a bit of showing in it, noted by…
Creating and Beefing Up the Conflict in Your Story
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….
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…