Writing for children

Merely curious about how the writers here will approach writing for children. Under the age of 10, let's assume.

Here are a few ideas and notions that i have about the topic ..........

Use simple straight language
Bright, happy, vivid and colorful language and imagery [Cliche or do children actually like this?]
Positivity and stories that teach good positive lessons
short length
Lots of animals [Cliche]
Fantasy and magic?

So how would you write [stories, tutorials or whatever] for children. What would be your approach like?

 

Could you be a little bit more specific? I understand not wanting to give away exact details of your project, but "under 10" is a broader age group than you might think! By the time a kid is ten he/she is usually reading chapter books, while a toddler does better with stories that are very short and have lots of pictures and, of course, all of the different reading levels in between!

While I can't answer all of your questions, I can tell you that all kids, even the ones you think might be "too little" know when they are being talked down to. They know what is true and they get very frustrated with people who treat them as if they aren't smart enough to understand something. This makes writing books for kids of all age groups challenging. Many authors think they need to simplify things when they don't. Instead of working on simplifying something, figure out how to make it more accessible. When you put things in contexts that kids understand--characters who are the same age, who do the same things each day (school, chores, playing), situations that kids encounter regularly--you can tell stories that are pretty complex.

I'd better quit before I start rambling. Children's Lit is one of my very favorite subjects and I love talking about it I studied Children's Lit in college and then spent six years managing the Kids sections of bookstores, so you could say I have some experience in both developing and selling kids books!

 

I took a course in college on writing for children, and loved it. It's one of those "someday I'll get around to it again" things with me - jealous that snarke here has so much more experience with it actually. Means I'll have to pick her brain in the future.

Anyway, she's right - you'd be surprised at what kids can pick up on. Oversimplify, and you may lose their interest. Heck, when I was ten, my favorite things to read were horror and murder mysteries - nothing bright and happy (although I'll give you sometimes "vivid" lol).

Like with any kind of writing, you have to know precisely who you're writing for. A narrower age group would be a good start. Your motivation is something else to look at - do you want to put a "lesson" out there, or are you writing to educate them about a simple concept, or maybe just to entertain? We have different genres for a reason; children's books are no exception.

 

I should say it isn't for anything current, merely brainstorming for potential projects, opportunities and ideas. Or for ideas to use in writing articles with a W I D E audience.

Let's say children of 3-7 years. Not too discerning, but discerning enough.

 

This is probably too wide an audience. A three-year-old is a totally different child than a seven-year-old. As a librarian certified in K-12 with a three-year-old of my own, I'd suggest reading before writing. If you don't know where to start, head to the public library to ask about some of the more popular books with children. You'll get a huge range - from trucks and mermaids to Harry Potter and Eragon (yes, some 7-year-olds can read them.)

Check out a variety of books that have a history of being checked out (if you can find any on the shelves.) Ask the children's librarian for recommendations popular with children - not their parents. Also don't be fooled by "award winning books." These are beautiful, but are chosen by adults - not children. In fact, in many libraries the "award winning books" such as Newberys sit on the shelves...

Once you've read at least 100 children's books of all kinds (not very hard to do, really), you'll have a great idea of what kids are looking for.

Rebecca

 

I also took a course on writing for children in college. Forgot much of the lessons save for making sentences short and simple, and the fact that I sucked at it big time. Sure, it's supposed to be simple, but sometimes, the simplest things are also the most difficult things to do.

 

When writing article / story for children, it should always have a lesson to learn; it should be written in short and simple words. Put pictures to help them encourage to read. Bright color pictures is good.

 

I've been a professional journalist for over 11 years, and this is the best advice I can give you:

1. Browse sites/forums related to your audience & product niche
2. Analyze and collect data on character, phrasing, angles, and so forth
3. Have an angle. What makes you unique? Controversy always worked for me, or any opposing viewpoint that sparks debate.
4. Overall, become "one of them." The readers should not be able to tell that you (or your ghost writer) isn't of their ilk. Your interests, writing slant, verbiage, knowledge, demo/psychographic print should be a match.

I'm not sure what type of product(s) or services you are offering, but if the actual readers/visitors are going to be kids, then diversity with loads of simplicity:

Video, animation, audio, etc. should accompany your material to keep their already minute attention span--if this serves your product/service, of course.

Bottom line, I don't care how much professional training or education one has for writing: it's real world experience that's what gets you published. Give it a try.

Good Luck,
SCA

 

You might also talk to some kids to find out which stories they like to read. Do you have any kids of your own or nieces or nephews that you can ask?

Rebecca is right, a three year old is a completely different reader/listener than a seven year old. It can get confusing, especially as there are plenty of materials out there that are marketed as appropriate for the exact age range you mentioned, but when it comes to books/media, you want to market more for attention span and emotional maturity than you do a simple number. A three year old tends to respond better to stories that are shorter and more literal. They tend to like stories they can identify with--stories about other kids who are around their age and doing the same things they do--playing with siblings, going to preschool or daycare, learning to share, etc. This is because younger kids are still learning about the world that surrounds them. A seven year old, on the other hand, has started long been questioning things and has more patience for metaphor and make believe. They can also listen and read longer stories than the younger kids in your age range. Obviously there are exceptions to this as all kids are different

If you have the time, you might go visit your local library during their story time. Pay attention to the kids reactions to the different stories and how the story time is structured. It can also be really fun. Who doesn't like to listen to stories? Though you might want to let the librarian know who you are and why you're there. Otherwise you run the risk of being the creepy grown up staring at a group of kids

 

I don't have no kids nor wife. But here are a few of my observations for children under 5 ......

Slapstick seems to be really popular with children under 5 as far as i have seen. They also tend to be "interested" in scary creatures and stories. But also seem to develop phobias as well, such as fear of the dark if you regularly tell them stories of monsters in the darkness, so such devices should be sparingly used. They also seem to like Musical and rhythmic stories, ones with rhymes and tunes and funny sounds.

 

I never really considered it. Although I work from home... which I started TO stay home with my first. I think it's a great challenge when you've never tried it. I answered an ad months and months ago, with what I must say was a pretty darn good pitch... But, I think there are many trying to take advantage of this market.

I was told they "LOVED" what I did. Then, I never heard back. It's ok. I got it on my PC and dated. Let them try to publish it

 

Writing for children is not easy task.kids live in a fantasy world ,dreaming of things they love to do .Its far from reality and therefore to recah them one must also fantasise and get down to their wave length in order to make the story both interesting and delightful.These days with so much of distraction around kids hardly read ,but still there are kids who take to reading .Taking care to educate them through stories using all imagination and fantasy is wahst needed.Bold letters, short sentences, Lots of pictures all add up to get kids hooked on to books.

 

My brother is an elementary school teacher, once he told me that "child psychology" is one of his most important books. So I highly agree with what Snarke said.
You need to know exactly what children are thinking of, not just suppose. It might be quite harmful if you really implement like that.

 

Thanks Myst I. LOVED. my Child Psych class in college--it came in very handy during my years in children's book retail.

Lightless--perhaps you can check out a couple of child psych books at your local library. They'd probably help you quite a bit!

 

Hello -

The approach for something as broad as this is to physically visit a library, a bookstore and a daycare. Speak with the librarian, store manager (they usually assist in buying) and the daycare owner/manager and look for immediate trends.

Staples:

Potty Training
What is A Boy/Girl?
Cars
Dolls

Kids publishing relies not only on the words; a competent illustrator is also required. And typically the royalties are evenly split (that's in 'conventional publishing'). In the world of self-publishing, you can get a designer to work for a set fee (of course if you can do this yourself)...

PM me if you have any questions/concerns.

 

okay, I have to ask. Who is Rob Jones?