Write a Children’s Book – Turn your Idea’s into Gold!
Wednesday, June 1, 2005
To write a children’s book and make any money from it can sound quite scary at first, but if you write, then a good idea may just be to have a go and write books for children. This is a really good niche for some very successful people. There are some really good resources online to help you get started, but it may be a really good idea to learn from people who have been doing this for awhile and have gained first- hand knowledge about the ins and outs of this field.
If you are interested in learning from a source like this, then here are some tips you can use to help you get the most out of your experiences. The first thing to be taken into consideration is your audience. There are many different age levels, and this is something you should be researching in detail. Smaller children won’t be able to understand the same events and situations that an older child will.
How you present the story is probably equally as important. Will you be speaking in first person terms, or in the third person? Sometimes you will find that speaking in third person descriptions is hard at first since you can’t use me or us. Switching back and forth is often confusing for the audience, especially when you write a children’s book.
What the subjects will be about is an important part of writing also. If they are too simple then older children will easily become disinterested, too complicated and smaller kids will have a hard time understanding and they will quickly become distracted. While a story that is descriptive will keep a child’s attention, too much detail about unimportant things has the opposite effect.
When writing children’s books, keep in mind your target audience and write books that they can relate too. For example, if your story is aimed at teenagers, there will be many social and physical obstacles to overcome on the way to adulthood. You could choose to write about peer pressure in schools and from influences around them, the risk of teen pregnancy and other experiences faced at this age group. You could write about how a young girl may have gotten pregnant, how she felt about things at that time, and what steps she will decide to take. You could write the same book from either a male’s or female’s point of view, as well.
You need to know how publishing works, especially publishers who publish books for kids, since this is a lot different from regular publishing houses. Make sure you find out about the many little details each company is looking for. You will need to know these things so your writings aren’t rejected. There are content questions, editing, paragraph placements as well as many others.
When coming accross programs and classes that you are interested online, or in local retailers, make sure you are getting the complete course. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. They should cover all the interests above as well as simple to follow instructions and examples of work. It should also cover all aspects of the publishing business, and what steps you should take to ensure your success. With guidance, practice, and perseverance, you will soon be on your way to starting your own career as a published author. Take the time to learn all that you can, and continue to update yourself as much as possible to ensure that you up to speed on all the latest interests.
Watch the video related to books for children
Help answer the question about books for children
How can I become a translator of children's books?I am fluent in both Greek and English, and I am interested in becoming a translator of children's literature. More often than not, I find that my daughter's books are not translated correctly and it frustrates me to see that words are being used incorrectly.
Does anyone have any experience in this field? How can one get a job? Where, would it be a publishing company? Any help/feedback would be greatly appreciated.
About Author
Take your writing to the next level. Get the help and support you need to achieve your goals at http://learntowritforchildren.com You will find the best resources and a great teaching system designed to help you write a children’s book with less stress!
June 1st, 2005 at 12:24 pm
it’s almost like a photo
great painting 
June 1st, 2005 at 12:34 pm
dude, you own! this looks identical to a photograph
June 1st, 2005 at 5:01 pm
awesome stuff man,….ama practice hard to get to yo level!
June 1st, 2005 at 6:34 pm
i use photoshop
June 1st, 2005 at 11:49 am
Hmm, I don't use Google books and don't know what it is. Try wikipedia to see if you can find the names of some children's books authors. The Brother's Grim wrote so-called children's stories, but you might want to read them to make sure they're appropriate for your children. Also, look up the author of Alice in Wonderland, which is in the public domain, and that's by Lewis Carrol (not 100% sure), I think the Carrol title is Through the Looking Glass. Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White, Cinderella, Hansel and Grettel. Whatever book or story you can remember from childhood might be in the public domain and I know these titles are. Look up some of these titles on Wikipedia and it might lead you to other childrens books and children's books authors.
http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page and http://www.classicbookshelf.com/ are two sites where you can read or download for free books that are in the public domain.
June 1st, 2005 at 12:07 pm
Sorry, no idea. Try reposting your question. You might get better luck next time.
June 1st, 2005 at 9:54 pm
Awesome work Williamsshamir
Great video.
Much love Kat
June 2nd, 2005 at 4:59 am
HOLY CRAP! Comparing this to the original picture, they’re identical!
June 2nd, 2005 at 10:45 pm
véiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii, que difuu
June 2nd, 2005 at 11:04 pm
I know of a book that is about sort of 'kidnapped' kids who get adopted.
It's called Found by Margaret Haddix.
June 3rd, 2005 at 10:44 am
I think there are lots of them, but it's a little hard to identify them because they don't always state that they're "gifted."
Here are some I can think of that may apply:
Roxaboxen / Alice McLerran: A hill covered with rocks and wooden boxes becomes an imaginary town for Marian, her sisters, and their friends. Marian called it Roxaboxen. (She always knew the name of everything.) There across the road, it looked like any rocky hill — nothing but sand and rocks, some old wooden boxes, cactus and greasewood and thorny ocotillo — but it was a special place: a sparkling world of jeweled homes, streets edged with the whitest stones, and two ice cream shops….
Christina Katerina and the Box / Patricia Lee Gauch: Christina finds many uses for the large box that housed the new refrigerator.
The Big orange splot / Daniel Manus Pinkwater: When a seagull drops a can of orange paint on his neat house, Mr. Plumbean gets an idea that affects his entire neighborhood.
Meggie Moon / Elizabeth Baguley: Normally, no one dares to play in the yard where Digger and Tiger spend all their time, but when a girl invades, they soon realize that she has some brilliant ideas for playing with the junk found there.
The legend of the Indian paintbrush / Tomie De Paola: Little Gopher follows his destiny, as revealed in a Dream-Vision, of becoming an artist for his people and eventually is able to bring the colors of the sunset down to the earth.
The fossil girl : Mary Anning's dinosaur discovery / Catherine Brighton: In simple cartoon style, tells the story of a twelve-year-old English girl's discovery in 1811 of an ichthyosaurus skeleton.
Emma's rug / Allen Say: A young artist finds that her creativity comes from within when the rug that she had always relied upon for inspiration is destroyed.
Benny : an adventure story / Bob Graham: When Benny the dog steals the show from Brillo the magician, he is forced to look for a new home where his rare talents such as juggling and tap dancing will be appreciated.
My family plays music / Judy Cox: A musical family with talents for playing a variety of instruments enjoys getting together to celebrate.
Granite baby / Lynne Bertrand: Five talented New Hampshire sisters try to care for a baby that one of them has carved out of granite.
Looking for Daniela : a romantic adventure / Steven Kroll: Antonio, a street performer who admires a rich merchant's daughter, must use his talents in juggling, tightrope walking, and guitar playing when he rescues her from bandits and tries to get her home again.
The seven Chinese sisters / Kathy Tucker: When a dragon snatches the youngest of seven talented Chinese sisters, the other six come to her rescue. (And of course the Five Chinese Brothers by Clare Huchet Bishop, or the Seven Chinese Brothers by Margaret Mahy)
213 valentines / Barbara Cohen: Wade has trouble adjusting when he is transferred to a special fourth grade class for the gifted and talented, so he plans to send himself 213 valentines signed by celebrities.
Amanda Bean's amazing dream : a mathematical story / Cindy Neuschwander: Amanda loves to count everything, but not until she has an amazing dream does she finally realize that being able to multiply will help her count things faster.
Frosted glass / Denys Cazet: Gregory the dog's vivid imagination gets him in trouble at school, leading him to draw cities and spaceships when he should be doing something else, but his artistic ability does not go unrecognized.
Painted dreams / Karen Lynn Williams: Because her Haitian family is too poor to be able to buy paints for her, eight-year-old Ti Marie finds her own way to create pictures that make the heart sing. Ti Marie dreams of being an artist. Whenever she gets some time away from watching her little sisters and helping Mama in their market stall, she finds a cement wall or a scrap of waste paper and lets her imagination soar….
Alistair and the alien invasion / Marilyn Sadler: When aliens invade from outer space, boy genius Alistair is the only person able to save the Earth.
This is the story of Archibald Frisby : who was as crazy for science as any kid could be / Michael Chesworth: Archibald Frisby, mad about science and wise beyond his years, is sent to camp to have fun and ends up broadening the horizons of his fellow campers.
Herbert Binns & the flying tricycle / Caroline Castle: Herbert Binns is such a clever mouse that some of the other animals are jealous of his talents and plot to sabotage his new invention, a flying tricycle.
Baby Brains superstar / Simon James: A musically gifted baby is invited to play the electric guitar at a star-studded rock concert.
Alphabet soup / Kate Banks: A boy's ability to spell words with his alphabet soup comes in handy during the magical journey he takes in his mind with a friendly bear.
Porkenstein / Kathryn Lasky: Lonely after his two brothers are eaten by the Big Bad Wolf, Dr. Smart Pig invents a wolf-proof friend to keep him company on Halloween.
M & M and the super child afternoon / Pat Ross: When best friends, Mimi and Mandy, turn out to be more talented at each other's special choice in a "Super Child" class, they decide to go their separate ways after school.
First graders from Mars. Episode 4, Tera, star student / Shana Corey: Although she is smart, Tera must learn the importance of working together on a group project. Tera is a star student. So when Pod 1 is assigned a group project to build the solar system, Tera is sure she has all the answers. But with her overzealous nature and her know-it-all ways, Tera ruffles a few tentacles. Why does being right sometimes feel so wrong?…
Regards to the man in the moon / Ezra Jack Keats: With the help of his imagination, his parents, and a few scraps of junk, Louie and his friends travel through space.
June 4th, 2005 at 2:14 am
The Curious George collection is good, Dr Suess of course, Where the Wild Things Are is classic, and don't be afraid to challenge them. Our eight year old read Harry Potter to our five year old. It was a wonderful experience for both.
June 4th, 2005 at 12:31 pm
wich program he is for doing this ? beside a tablet ofc
June 4th, 2005 at 10:00 am
There are two types of publishing, traditional and self-publishing. If you choose to go with self-pubbing, I would recommend http://www.lulu.com as a great site. They don't pretend to be anything they are not, and have excellent service. All the decisions will be in your hands. However, going with a company like this is a difficult road and it is not considered a publishing credential if you look to go traditional down the road. Here is some other information about the downside of self-publishers (also known as vanity presses):
http://www.sfwa.org/beware/vanitypublishers.html
As far as novels go, different publishers specialize in different things, and fiction is a broad world. You have to try and sell your material to companies that produce similar works (ie, don't try and sell a fantasy novel to a romance publisher). So do your homework. Take a look at the most recent "Writer's Market"… or even better, try the "Guide to Literary Agents".
I absolutely suggest getting an agent instead of approaching publishers directly. I'm assuming you are not a contract attorney, so you will need someone to look over any offers and to guide you through the publishing world.
No publisher or agent should charge you any money up front! That is the sign of a scam! They make money by selling your book. Agents work on a commission (generally 15% of the amount of money the publishers pay you).
Make sure that you follow their exact submission specifications. You can't send them your book, but you should be sending them a query letter (Nicholas Sparks has a good example on his website). Don't copyright your book first, it looks amatuer and would cause them trouble down the line when you do the revisions they ask for.
Publishers will choose their own illustrators, so don't bother trying to find someone yourself. The artwork, cover, and title are things that the author has very little control over (unless he or she is very famous, of course).
New writers will never have all the publicity taken care of. Publishers will do some, but you will have to have a web presence and do book signings, among other things. No one is going to push your book if you don't push it yourself!
Here are some websites that can help. Read them thoroughly and research, research, research! Pay special attention to Miss Snark, because her archives can answer any question you ever have about publishing:
http://www.nicholassparks.com/WritersCorner/Index.html
http://www.publishersmarketplace.com
http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/
http://www.agentquery.com
http://www.misssnark.blogspot.com
And be warned of the people on this list:
http://www.sfwa.org/beware/twentyworst.html
Good luck!
June 4th, 2005 at 7:14 pm
A-W-E-S-O-M-E your works is very awesome! cool!!!! very good
June 4th, 2005 at 1:58 pm
- A math or science book (not a workbook) geared for young preschool / Kindergarten aged girls or girls and boys. I'm looking for practical and simple, non-technical writing that my daughter could understand. She enjoys learning about volcanoes, plants and animals, the human body, physical science, basic math, word problems, etc. The books I find are usually too technical or geared for gradeschool or they seem geared for boys (i.e. getting dirty and gross with slime). I'm interested in finding something that is not so gender-specific either. For example, not looking for princess stuff. Just something that a preschooler/Kindergartener can grasp and remember. I think kids around this age ask a lot of "why" questions. My daughter can get pretty technical and can grasp things if I use simple language. Typical questions might be: "Why do hot things make steam?" and "Why are owls awake at night?" Today she told her grandma what nocturnal meant: Nocturnal means when animals are awake at night because that's when they hunt for their food and they sleep in the morning. Sorry if I'm going on and on, just trying to give you some ideas here.
I'd also like to see more Learn-To-Read series of books, something like the Biscuit dog series. I'd like to see basic sight words worked into an engaging story, more modern pictures. I don't mean abstract, I just mean something newer and more updated. The illustrations and basic story line play a big role in how much my daughter wants to read the series. The story line can be kept pretty simple with the holidays, basic play, manners, etc.
-Illustrations should have a simple, colorful but entertaining style. I see a lot of stuff that's either too stylized, too CG or animated looking, dated, or cluttered.
-Really enjoy books that have lift-up flaps and things to pull but they often get stuck or torn. Wish there was a way to make this work better and also that there were more books with these features that were not just meant for toddlers. One set of books that were terrific that were age appropriate were In The Country and At School by Francesco Pittau and Bernadette Gervais
You can actually see inside this book if you click on the picture of the cover here:
http://www.amazon.com/Country-Lift-Flap-Learning-Book/dp/2020694182/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241033751&sr=1-1#
Just some suggestions, hope this helps.
June 4th, 2005 at 2:09 pm
Doctor Dan the Bandage Man- sexist and stereotypical. In my opinion he behaves in a condescending manner while interacting with his female playmate and treats her like she is inferior just because she is a girl.
June 4th, 2005 at 7:45 pm
Try amazon they have some good ones:
http://www.amazon.com/tag/pagan%20childrens%20book