Ever Tried Writing for Children?

(NOTE:  I will be out of town Monday through Thursday next week, so no posts on those days) 

Today's poster has nothing to do with the topic, but is rather a farewell to July and a welcome to our next month, August. 

Have you ever tried writing a story for children? A poem for little tots? A non-fiction article for grade school kids? If not, give it a try. You may find you enjoy this kind of writing, or you could discover that it's hard work and maybe you'd not want to do it all the time. Many writers  Many writers concentrate on producing children's stories and nothing else. 

There are writers who think that writing for children is the same as the way we write for adults. Just shorter! That's not the case. Shorter alone won't do it. There are a number of things to keep in mind when you write for children such as:

Age Level:  The age level is important. There are toddler books, pre-school age, primary grades for kids 6-8, middle grade for 9-12 year olds, and YA (young adult) for the teen crowd. Settle on one. I chose middle grade since I had taught 3rd and 4th grade way back, and that age group still interests me.I admire those who can write for the very young children. It's not at all easy.

Content: The writer must keep in mind the age level. The younger the child, the simpler the content must be. For middle grade and YA, the content can be more involved the story can be. Children's writers have always been advised to steer away from controversial subjects, references to sex and gender situations, but today, that is not necessarily so. Still, I would hope that writers for kids would handle controversial subjects with care. Years ago, there would have been no swear words in a middle grade book. Today, it's alright with many editors. As I advised one writer, using cuss words throughout a book doesn't accomplish much, but use them in a very few places, and they will take on more strength and meaning. In other words, a little bit goes a long way. 

Fact or Fiction:  Children's writers need to be sure they are using correct facts in articles. They need to be sure the historical fiction stories represent the era in which they are set. Don't have a character ride a train out west long before railroad tracks had even been laid in that area of our country. Historical fiction for kids should show a true picture of the times. 

Vocabulary:  Again, age level matters here. It's alright to use a few words beyond the usual for whatever age group you are writing for. Children will often figure out the meaning of a word from the way it is used in a sentence. But you need to keep it to a minimum. Younger children's books use simple words while the older the child is, the more involved the vocabulary can be. 

Technique:  Children's writers use the same techniques in writing fiction that writers of adult fiction use. They must consider plot, theme, emotion, sensory details and more. One cardinal rule is that the child in the story must solve the problem, not an adult. 

Stories that appeal to kids:  They like humor, mysteries, and adventure. For YA, love stories are added and teenage problems addressed. 

Word Count:  Read guidelines for children's magazines and book publishers carefully. Highlights for Children is a longtime popular magazine for kids, but their word count for fiction is only 800 words. It's not easy to write a full story with so few words, but people do so as can be affirmed by the number of years Highlights has been publishing 800 word stories. The thing to remember here is to write tight! The extras have to go.

My main writing today is creative nonfiction, but I still enjoy writing for children now and then. Below is an award winning story I wrote after reading a newspaper article about a problem librarians had with children being sent to stay at the public library after school until Mom or Dad got home from work. My story is fiction based on that news article.

There’s A Dragon In The Library

Wilhemina Higgins’ long braids bounced as she ran down the narrow tunnel the bookshelves made in the Westlake Public Library. Her untied shoelaces slapped against well-worn sneakers. Past the Js, Ks, and Ls she flew, only slowing slightly as she rounded the corner. 

     

Wilhemina spied a dragon waiting at the end of the row of shelves.  She screeched to a sudden stop. Her heart thumped.

    

At first it was silent. Then the monster snorted, lifted its huge head, took in a gigantic breath inward and fell silent again.

    

Wilhemina swallowed and took one step back. Before she could turn and retrace her path, the enormous dragon reared back on its hind legs, threw back its massive head, and breathed out a whoosh! Smoke curled from its nostrils while flames burst forth from the great mouth. The dragon clawed the air and flapped magnificent wings. The green and purple scales that covered the beast from head to toe gleamed under the library lights. Its amber eyes glinted like cut crystal.

    

 “Wilhemina Higgins!” The dragon roared. “How many times have you been told? There is no running in the library.”

     

 “Do you mean today, Miss Philpot?” Wilhemina looked right into the dragon’s eyes. “Or did you mean all week?”

    

 “You know the rules,” the librarian said. “Why do you come here, if not to read?” Miss Philpot breathed heavily, and she opened and closed her claws.

      

Wilhemina feared the dragon might snort and spurt fire again at any minute.

      

“My mother doesn’t get home from work until 5 o’clock.” Wilhemina’s voice was as firm as Miss Philpot’s. “She says the library is a safe place for me to stay after school.”

    

 The dragon pulled her sweater close around her shoulders. “If you cannot follow the rules, you must go outside.”

    

 “It’s cold as a bowl of ice cream out there, and it’s going to rain, too.” Wilhemina answered.

     

 “Then go sit on the steps.”

    

 “The steps are hard as rocks.”

    

 “You could stay at school,” Miss Philpot answered, barely moving her lips as she spoke.

    

 “There’s no one there,” Wilhemina answered back in the same way, lips scarcely moving.

     

 “Then you must study while you’re here.”  Miss Philpot’s eyes flashed, and her hands turned claw-like once more.

“I’ve studied all day,” Wilhemina told her. She folded her arms and spread her feet apart, ready for battle.

     

The dragon hissed and narrowed its eyes. “Don’t be insolent.”

    

 “I don’t know what that means,” Wilhemina said.

    

 “Then go look it up!” Miss Philpot cried as she rushed to her desk.

     

Wilhemina felt a tug on her shirt tail and turned around. “What do you want?” 

     

Eyes wide, the tugger looked up at Wilhemina. “Is she mad at you?” 

     

Wilhemina sighed. “Every day. So, what’s your problem, Lucy Ann?”

    

 “I’m bored.”

    

 “Then go read a book.” Wilhemina thought her answer sounded a great deal like Miss Philpot.

    

 “Can’t read yet,” Lucy Ann replied. She pushed her bottom lip over the top one and stared at Wilhemina.

     

 “Oh go away and leave me alone,” Wilhemina said. She sprinted along the line of shelves ignoring the brightly colored book jackets. She stopped at the tall library windows where rain beat against the panes and thunder rattled them. She put her elbows on the windowsill, curled her hands around her cheeks, and watched the wind bend the tree branches outside.

    

There was another tug on her shirt. Without looking around, she said, “What do you want now, Lucy Ann?”

    

 “Read this to me.” Lucy Ann held up a large picture book.

 Wilhemina shrugged and took the book Lucy Ann held out. “Why not?” She sighed.

They marched past the dragon’s desk. Miss Philpot watched silently, but Wilhemina thought she could see tiny wisps of smoke curling from under her nose.

     

The two girls sat at a round table, and Wilhemina read aloud in a quiet voice, wriggling on her chair as she turned the pages.

    

 “You can do better than that, Wilhemina.” Lucy Ann scowled. “You sound dull.”

     

There was a moment of silence. Then Wilhemina said, “You’re right!” She sat up straighter, flipped back to page one, and read with more feeling. She used a different voice for each character in the story. Halfway through, she noticed three more listeners around the table.

     

“Keep going,” one of them said when she stopped reading.

    

Wilhemina laughed and continued reading the story and showing the pictures to the younger children.

    

From the corner of her eye, she spied a fluffy, long-haired cat dancing about on dainty paws. Its amber eyes surveyed the group at the table. Then, the cat purred deep in its throat.

     

When Wilhemina closed the book, the cat purred again and said, “Wilhemina Higgins, you read that book wonderfully well. Perhaps you could start an after-school story club. What do you think?”

     

“I think I would like that very much, Miss Philpot.” Wilhemina reached out to shake the paw the librarian offered her.

©

    

 

Writing for Kids and A Feast for Oscar

 

Yesterday's post covered writing for children. There is such a wide variety of avenues to travel when writing for children. Consider that the age range is from 0-18.

If you want to write books for children, take it slowly and work on stories for children's magazines or publications like the Weekly Reader that schools used up until 2012. The Scholastic News is still going and is weekly.  Build up your resume with short story publications. When you do start submitting a book to publishing houses, you can show that you have been successful in writing for children by listing those short pieces. 

Besides building a resume, you will learn a great deal from writing those shorter pieces. Doing the short ones will help ease your way into writing a full book. I've advised writers of memoir to try short memoir pieces before tackling a book-length memoir. 

Once again, use a search engine to find publications that will fit the age group you are writing for. The children's magazines are geared to age groups. I recently sold a story to Cadet Quest which is a Christian magazine for boys 9-14. Read the guidelines carefully to make sure it's a good fit for what you have written. Many of the children's magazines and ezines are geared to boys or girls, while others include both genders. 

Pay attention to the trends in children's publishing. There was a time when mood picture books were very popular, then they phased out. Publishers tend to follow the trends, so you may want to keep that in mind.

Since Thanksgiving is only two days away, I'm going to close today with my Thanksgiving story for kids that was published a few years ago in a magazine. The idea came from an experience I had at about age 10. When you read the story, you'll see the reason for the cereal box shown with today's post. 

A Feast For Oscar 

“Turkey!” shouted three boys in the back row of Miss Edwards’ fourth-grade class.

“What else?” our teacher asked.

Melissa Martin waved her hand. “How abour sweet potatoes and cranberries?” 

We were listing foods people usually eat for Thanksgiving. Thinking of all those good things made my mouth water and my stomach growl like a hungry lion. I raised my hand and waved it back and forth so Miss Edwards would call on me.

“Yes Tim,” she said.

I added my Thanksgiving favorite. “How about stuffing for the turkey?”

Nearly everyone in our class named something—everyone except for Oscar Livingood.

Miss Edwards strolled between the rows of desks. “Oscar, what will you have for this special dinner?” she asked.

Oscar ducked his head and mumbled words that sounded like, Cereal, I guess.”

The class roared with laughter. I laughed long and hard at what Oscar had said. Oscar was a real comic.

Miss Edwards held up her hand for quiet, then asked Oscar, “Are you sure?”

Oscar kept his eyes on the desktop. “Pretty sure. That’s what we have most nights.”

Miss Edwards patted Oscar on the head and returned to the front of the room.

We waited. What would she say now?

“Take out your English books and turn to page 67.” 

That was it. She never mentioned Oscar’s strange remark. Instead, she erased the long list of foods on the chalkboard and the subject of Thanksgiving dinner was dropped.

I walked home from school alone that day. I couldn’t stop thinking about Oscar. The guy had a funny name and it sounded life he ate funny, too. Maybe he wasn’t trying to amuse us, maybe he was serious.

I ran into the house letting the screen door slam behind me. I cringed and waited for Mom to yell “Don’t slam that door!” but she didn’t say a word. She was at the kitchen table writing.

I grabbed an apple from the bowl on the counter and peered over her shoulder. “Hey Mom, what are you doing?”

She smiled but kept on writing. “I’m making a grocery list for Thanksgiving. There are so many extra things to buy when you create a super-duper, fantastic feast like we’ll have next week. Your Gran is coming and so is Uncle Pete.”

I said, “Get lots of good stuff. I’m saving up to eat enough for two people.” Mom’s list included all my favorites—turkey, cranberries, pumpkin, potatoes and sweet potatoes. On and on it went. “Yum, I can’t wait for Thanksgiving.”

“We have a lot to be thankful for.” Mom said. “Not everyone can afford to buy all these extrea things for a holiday dinner.”

Her comment made me think of Oscar, and I didn’t like the picture forming in my mind. Would Oscar and his mom sit at their table with nothing but two bowls of cereal? I shook my head a little to clear the picture away and went upstairs to start on my homework.

The next day I watched Oscar Livingood. He needed a haircut, and his clothes looked pretty worn and raggedy. Most days, Oscar faded into the background because he didn’t have much to say. Maybe that’s why I never paid much attention to him before. Now, all I could think of was the bowl of cereal he’d eat for Thanksgiving dinner.

On Monday morning, Miss Edwards announced that the class would make up a basket of food for a needy family for a class project. By the day before Thanksgiving, cans and boxes rested in the basket our teacher had provided. Even Oscar slipped a can of soup in with the rest. Miss Edwards would add a turkey at the last minute.

We held a drawing to determine who would go with the teacher to deliver the basket. I drew one of the lucky tickets, and so did Oscar. After school, we climbed into Miss Edwards’ van.  She stopped at the market to pick up the turkey and we were off to visit the family whose name had been given to us. They knew we were coming, but even so, their faces lit up with happiness when they opened the door. The mother and father thanked us over and over, and three little kids fingered the overflowing basket.

On the way home, I said to Oscar, “It’s good to help people who really need help, isn’t it?

Oscar grinned and pushed his long hair off his forehead. “They’ll remember this Thanksgiving for a long time. They’ll know somebody cared.”

Suddenly, the bowl of cereal popped into my head again. “Oscar, who are you going to be with tomorrow?”

“Just my mom.”

That night I tossed and turned in my bed while I dreamed about giant boxes of cereal marching in a parade. When I woke up, I knew what my plan for the day would be. First, I’d talk to Mom and Dad and tell them about Oscar and his mother. Next, I would walk down to Oscar’s house and invite them to join us at our dinner table. I wanted him to know somebody cared about him, too. Oscar was not going to eat cereal on Thanksgiving Day.

(C)

Writing For Children and A Dragon Story

Kids at Play

Children are lively, filled with energy that we wish we could bottle and sell. Even so, they sometimes like to sit quietly with a book. Hopefully, parents start reading books to their offspring at a very early age. Once the kids are able to read on their own, parents should do all they can to encourage reading for pleasure as well as for school assignments.

When I first began writing, my goal was to write middle-grade fiction. I did that for a few years, sold several short stories to children's magazines, both online and print. I ended up branching into other types of writing, but I have continued to write stories for kids now and then. 

There are categories for children's books or stories going from simple board books to picture books, then on to chapter books for primary aged children, on to middle-grades, then YA (Young Adult). Most children's writers select one of those areas and stay with it. As I said, mine was middle-grade fiction mainly because that was the age level that I taught for five years. 

To write for children, one doesn't merely 'do it.' There are definite guidelines. Picture books have page definitions--this many and no more. The chapbooks have a number of pages suggestions and much more. Each category has its own set of rules if you want to name them that. You don't want to sit down and write a story for children before you do some reading about what is alright and what is not. There are many reference books about writing for children. If you have any desire to try this field, read a good number of these helpful books before you write and definitely prior to submitting. 

One of the first things I learned when starting to write for children was that picture book editors want to choose the illustrator. The author of the book has little to say about it. The person who writes the book has definite ideas for the illustrations. Hopefully, the editor who likes the book enough to buy it will also spend time getting the author's thoughts on illustrations. 

One of the big no-no items in writing for children is to not preach at them. The lesson learned (if there is one) should be subtle. Another is to keep the adults in the story to a minimum. Kids want to read about kids. Don't let the adults solve the problem. The child in the story should do that. There are other no-no items that you'll read about if you do as I suggest and read several books on the topic of writing for kids. 

It's not easy to write a full story in a small number of words. Most children's magazines have a word count that is scary. How can you tell a full story in 800 words? Or even 500? It can be done, but it takes practice. I often write the story the way I want to, then go back and cut, cut, cut until I am at the proper number of words. Not fun! 

Here is a story that I wrote after reading in the newspaper that parents who worked were using libraries as after-school places for their children to go. I started thinking about how it would be difficult doing so day after day for both the children and the librarians. My story came from my pondering. It was published in an online magazine called Knowonder! and received an award there plus many comments from readers. It was also fun to write which is what we always hope for, no matter what we are writing. 

There’s A Dragon In The Library

By Nancy Julien Kopp

Wilhemina Higgins’ long braids bounced as she ran down the narrow tunnel the bookshelves made in the Westlake Public Library. Her untied shoelaces slapped against well-worn sneakers. Past the Js, Ks, and Ls she flew, only slowing slightly as she rounded the corner.
   
Wilhemina spied a dragon waiting at the end of the row of shelves. She screeched to a sudden stop. Her heart thumped.
   
At first, it was silent. Then the monster snorted, lifted its huge head, took in a gigantic breath inward and fell silent again.
   
Wilhemina swallowed and took one step back. Before she could turn and retrace her path, the enormous dragon reared back on its hind legs, threw back its massive head, and breathed out a whoosh! Smoke curled from its nostrils while flames burst forth from the great mouth. The dragon clawed the air and flapped magnificent wings. The green and purple scales that covered the beast from head to toe gleamed under the library lights. Its amber eyes glinted like cut crystal.
   
 “Wilhemina Higgins!” The dragon roared. “How many times have you been told? There is no running in the library.”
   
 “Do you mean today, Miss Philpot?” Wilhemina looked right into the dragon’s eyes. “Or did you mean all week?”
   
 “You know the rules,” the librarian said. “Why do you come here, if not to read?” Miss Philpot breathed heavily, and she opened and closed her claws.
     
Wilhemina feared the dragon might snort and spurt fire again at any minute.
     
“My mother doesn’t get home from work until 5 o’clock.” Wilhemina’s voice was as firm as Miss Philpot’s. “She says a library is a safe place for me to stay after school.”
   
 The dragon pulled her sweater close around her shoulders. “If you cannot follow the rules, you must go outside.”
   
 “It’s cold as a bowl of ice cream out there, and it’s going to rain, too,” Wilhemina answered.
   
 “Then go sit on the steps.”
   
 “The steps are hard as rocks.”
   
 “You could stay at school,” Miss Philpot answered, barely moving her lips as she spoke.
   
 “There’s no one there,” Wilhemina answered back, in the same way, lips scarcely moving.
   
 “Then you must study while you’re here.”  Miss Philpot’s eyes flashed, and her hands turned claw-like once more.

“I’ve studied all day,” Wilhemina told her. She folded her arms and spread her feet apart, ready for battle.
   
The dragon hissed and narrowed its eyes. “Don’t be insolent.”
   
 “I don’t know what that means,” Wilhemina said.
   
 “Then go look it up!” Miss Philpot cried as she rushed to her desk.
   
Wilhemina felt a tug on her shirttail and turned around. “What do you want?”
   
Eyes wide, the tugger looked up at Wilhemina. “Is she mad at you?”
   
Wilhemina sighed. “Every day. So, what’s your problem, Lucy Ann?”
   
 “I’m bored.”
   
 “Then go read a book.” Wilhemina thought her answer sounded a great deal like Miss Philpot.
   
 “Can’t read yet,” Lucy Ann replied. She pushed her bottom lip over the top one and stared at Wilhemina.
   
 “Oh go away and leave me alone,” Wilhemina said. She sprinted along the line of shelves ignoring the brightly colored book jackets. She stopped at the tall library windows where rain beat against the panes and thunder rattled them. She put her elbows on the windowsill, curled her hands around her cheeks, and watched the wind bend the tree branches outside.
   
There was another tug on her shirt. Without looking around, she said, “What do you want now, Lucy Ann?”
   
 “Read this to me.” Lucy Ann held up a large picture book.

 Wilhemina shrugged and took the book Lucy Ann held out. “Why not?” She sighed.

They marched past the dragon’s desk. Miss Philpot watched silently, but Wilhemina thought she could see tiny wisps of smoke curling from under her nose.
   
The two girls sat at a round table, and Wilhemina read aloud in a quiet voice, wriggling on her chair as she turned the pages.
   
 “You can do better than that, Wilhemina.” Lucy Ann scowled. “You sound dull.”
   
There was a moment of silence. Then Wilhemina said, “You’re right!” She sat up straighter, flipped back to page one, and read with more feeling. She used a different voice for each character in the story. Halfway through, she noticed three more listeners around the table.
   
“Keep going,” one of them said when she stopped reading.
   
Wilhemina laughed and continued reading the story and showing the pictures to the younger children.
   
From the corner of her eye, she spied a fluffy, long-haired cat dancing about on dainty paws. Its amber eyes surveyed the group at the table. Then, the cat purred deep in its throat.
   
When Wilhemina closed the book, the cat purred again and said, “Wilhemina Higgins, you read that book wonderfully well. Perhaps you could start an after-school story club. What do you think?”
   
“I think I would like that very much, Miss Philpot.” Wilhemina reached out to shake the paw the librarian offered her.





   

Writing for Children and an Interview

Several months ago a woman with the Institute of Children's Literature contacted me and asked if I'd like to be in the Winner's Circle on their website. The ICL is where I started my writing journey. My desire at the time was to learn to write for children who were in the middle grades. I applied and took the course which consisted of ten lessons to be done through correspondence over 18 months to 2 years. 

The lessons were sent by snail mail, and I had to wait a few weeks to receive my personal instructor's comments, which she mailed to me via snail mail, as well. Now, I'm sure it is done through email and far speedier. 

If you would like to read the interview, you will find it here. The ICL likes to feature one of their graduates who has been published. I felt very honored to have been asked since I had graduated quite some time ago.

I took the course around twenty-five years ago and loved learning and doing the lessons. My earliest publications were stories for children. One of the magazine covers in which my stories have appeared are above. I've also had stories in several other children's' magazines and on ezines in the USA and Canada as well as a children's magazine titled Red Squirrel published in China. 

Is it worth taking a course from someplace like the ICL? I think it is, especially if you are at the beginning of your writing journey. The ICL has been in business since 1969. That's 50 years which should say something about the quality of the lessons they offer. I'm sure there are other places where you can take a course to learn to write for children and some that offer lessons for those interested in various kinds of writing for adults--fiction, memoir, essays, poetry etc. Have your old friend, Google, help you find them. The Institute for Writers is a partner of the ICL but geared to adult writing.

Do some checking as to the quality of the course, how satisfied the graduates are, length of time the courses have been offered and what kind of help they give in helping you to become a published writer. 

There are people in this world who think writing for children is easy. Believe me, it's not. You have a lot to cover in a minimum number of words. Adult fiction can be thousands of words, but most children's magazine publications max at 800-1000. Even so, you are to tell a story with a beginning, middle and ending and solve whatever problem your protagonist might have. Writing for very young children allows for an even smaller word count. Each word holds importance. Nothing wasted here.

Write for teens or YA as it is termed, and your word count will increase considerably. Plots must be more involved, and those who write for this age group must write with all the same requirements as those who write for adults but need to gear it to their age group. The cardinal rule is to not write 'down' to kids. They nab it every time and quickly move on. 

I am the perfect example of a writer who learned to write for children, then expanded her horizons to include essays, memoir, nonfiction articles, fiction for adults and poetry. And blogging! If you learn the basics for any kind of writing, you can move into other genres. 

I still enjoy writing for children on occasion, although it is not my main thrust now. I recently started a new story called Henry and Boomer. I managed to get Henry into a nasty situation but haven't figured out the ending of the story yet. A half-finished first draft is simmering in my files. One of these days, the end will come to me, and I'll pull out the draft and work on it again. 

Have you ever walked through the children's section in your library or local bookstore? You should take some time and browse the collection. It's a big part of the publishing world. Getting a children's book or story published is not easy. It is every bit as competitive as the adult writing world.

Again, I hope you'll take a couple of minutes and read my interview. 

I had a 

A Little List For Writers of Children's Stories

I've been sharing some lists for various types of writing this week. The checkpoints can help you assess your work. Most are things we already know but serve here as reminders.

Today, my list is for those who write for children. Anyone who has never attempted to write fiction or nonfiction for kids has no idea just how exacting and difficult it can be. But it's also a lot of fun to create something that a child will read and enjoy. And perhaps even learn from.

This list will remind you of some of the things important in a story for children.
Ask yourself Did I...

• preach too much?
• I talk down to kids?
• let an adult solve the problem in the story?
• let the child in the story figure it out?
• use tension to keep interest?
• use sensory details?
• make use of some humor?
• have a good opening hook?
• create a satisfying ending?
• use the proper vocabulary for the age group I aimed for?
• like the story when I finished it?

You don't want to answer yes to all these questions. You'll know which ones should have yes answers and which should not.

There's A Dragon In The Library

Happy Labor Day! A holiday for many and the day we usually consider a book-end to summer, with Memorial Day being the matching book-end to say summer is beginning.

Just a short post on this holiday. A children's story I wrote some time ago has been publsihed at Knowonder! ezine. I wrote about the assistant editor contacting me last week about the story, which I'd submitted to them over two years ago. The ezine/magazine--they had both an online and print edition--had gone out of business. Then, additional funding made it possible for them to get going again. The online ezine offers children a story per day.

Readers are invited to vote for the one they like best each month. The story receiving the most votes gets $100.It's the only monetary compensation. As much as I think all writing should be compensated, I make an exception for children's ezines like this one that encourages reading.

A comment left at the end of the story counts as a vote. So, if anyone would like to read "There's A Dragon In The LIbrary" at Knowonder! and leave a comment, I'd be most appreciative.

If you write children's stories, check out the submission process at www.knowonder.com and send your best story in. With a story per day, they are looking for stories. It's a great opportunity for those who write for kids.

Kid Lit

When I first started writing, I thought I wanted to write for children. It seemed the natural progression for someone who had a teaching background. I taught children in the 8-10 year age group, so I aimed for the middle grade area. Stories and books for 8-12 year olds could tell a real story, not the I see a dog. I see a cat. kind of primary stories that someone has to write.

I enrolled in a correspondence course that promised to teach me to write for children, and it did exactly that. I benefited from the one on one correspondence between me and my instructor. She encouraged me to submit my work to children's magazines, and so began my writing career.

I enjoyed writing those children's stories, but as time went on, I ventured into other types of writing. Nevertheless, I still like to write a children's story now and then. They're not easy to do. You must say a whole lot in very few words.

That means tight writing. No unnecessary words. Every single one must count. Like adult fiction, children's stories need a beginning, a middle, and an end. The protagonist has a problem and must solve it on his or her own. No adults giving them the way out. And they need to do it in a matter of a few hundred words.

Highlights For Children is one of the best-known magazines for kids. They cover a wide age range and offer stories for the primary child and the ones in the intermediate grades. But their top word count for the older kids is only 800 words. A children's writer learns to whittle away at a story until it reaches the maximum word count without losing the story line along the way.

Stories for kids often teach a lesson, but it needs to be subtle. Kids don't like to be preached to. Can't blame them, we don't like it either.

One of the most difficult things a writer for kids must do is to keep up with what kids like today. They aren't going to want to read the kind of stories we had in our childhood. I doubt if The BobbseyTwins wouldn make it in today's world. Even popular stories like Nancy Drew mysteries can survive only if updated so that today's kids can relate.

There are many facets to writing kid lit, and I've only listed a few in this posting. Anyone seriously considering writing for children needs to research that genre thoroughly. Contrary to what some think, writing for kids is a tough job.