Questions tagged [children]
This tag should be used for questions about writing intended for readers 0-7 years old. For readers between 12 and 18 years old use [young-adult]. For readers ages 8-12 use [middle-grade]. For questions about characters, use [child-characters]. For questions about children or teens who are writers, use [young-author].
64 questions
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Books for children: complexity
I am wondering how complex the story can be so that small children can understand it (younger than eight). Are there any rules of thumb of how many characters can be introduced before the child looses ...
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Is it acceptable practice to use contractions in a fictional first person narrative for children?
I am writing a children's story in first person, present tense. Aside from the quotes from characters, all of the text is meant to represent the narrator's own thoughts, and either describes what they ...
- 393
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How to tell or retell basic character and setting information in a series?
I am writing a short children's novel and I want to expand this into a series made of several short novels. I intend to write the whole series at once so that the internal universe is consistent and ...
- 393
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Good book on writing for children?
I've dabbled with the thought of writing a childrens book. It allows my mind to go all out weird, and I believe they are ususally short enough for me to see the project through.
But, as usual, I like ...
- 2,494
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How do I write a relevant CV for submitting a manuscript to a literary agent?
I am submitting a children's book to a potential agent whose submission process asks me to send this:
a covering letter in the body of the email, and a synopsis of the proposed book with the first ...
- 143
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How to find an agent for a children's picture book?
I have written (and self-edited) a book, and need to figure out how to expose it to the "right" agents. I'm a little overwhelmed (and I'm sure I'm not the first), but I do think it is a unique story ...
- 143
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First-time meeting with publisher & editors (What to expect)
My fiancée is a first-time children's book author. What should she expect from her first meeting with the publisher and editors? Any advice?
They've already seen some samples of her unpublished ...
- 191
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How to objectively judge the storytelling in a writing contest?
I am designing a fiction writing contest for 13 and 14-year old EFL students. The students have very limited experience writing English and writing fiction.
I am developing the scoring sheet, on ...
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What are some good methods for framing the theme of a writing contest?
I am designing a writing contest for 13 and 14-year old EFL students. The students have very limited experience with creative writing and I will not have any time to give them practice on ...
- 393
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How to write a book for a given reading level?
I have a son in kindergarten who is interested in reading. He also loves the stores that I tell him each night. These are usually just made up on the spot and are pretty silly.
If I wanted to write ...
- 123
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Sending a children's book manuscript to an agent or publisher with illustrations
I've written a children's story and had it illustrated. It's a picture book.
I've heard that publishers prefer to receive manuscript only — not illustrated, unless the author is the illustrator.
I ...
- 233
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Publishing a Children's Picture book -- Question about an App and a Printed version
I've written and had illustrated a children's picture book.
I'm thinking of making this into an App for download from the Apple Apps store.
I'm also considering looking for a publisher to publish a ...
- 233
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What's a normal word count for a children's novel or collection?
How many words are normal for a children's novel?
Say 5th - 8th grade, if that's the best way to measure it.
- 1,353
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What is the effect on the young reader when there is no "Happy Ending" in a story for children?
It is a common practice for a story for children to have a happy ending. Would it be considered inappropriate and disappointing for the young reader if his hero/heroine will suffer a horrible tragedy ...
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