The Kidlitter

On January 26 the American Library Association announced the awards for outstanding books for young readers. Here you'll find a great reading list and a glimpse at what the competition is for all of us. 2014 American Library Association Awards:  Newbery: FLORA AND ULYSSES by Kate Di Camillo Caldecott: LOCOMOTIVE by Brian Floca Siebert:  PARROTS OVER PUERTO RICO by Susan L. Roth and Cindy Trumbore Coretta Scott King: P.S. BE ELEVEN by Rita Williams-Garcia For the complete list of all the awards and honor books: http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/27/living/newbery-caldecott-awards-2014-kate-dicamillo-books/

This post will grow as more links are added. Wondering how many words a chapter book or novel should have? Use this link to enter a title of an already published book and find out how many words it has. This is a good guide to show you if your project is in the ballpark. http://www.arbookfind.com/default.aspx Find great articles and interviews on all aspects of writing for kids. From the home page click on RX for Writers, then click on Topical Index. At the Writer’s Store you can order copies of their market guides for book and magazine markets.   http://www.institutechildrenslit.com Want more info about writing for children’s magazines? Scroll down to the A to Z listings of magazines where you’ll find guidelines, sample copies and editor comments.   http://www.evelynchristensen.com/mags.html Interested in an online critique group? Check out this site: http://www.critiquecircle.com THE professional kid-lit organization: The Society o...

When someone tells me they want to write a children's book, they are usually thinking of a picture book. However, this is the most crowded, competitive genre for a beginner to break into. It’s one of the most difficult genres to master. It’s even harder to do well if you write in rhyme. Let's look at some of the types of picture books and some things to keep in mind if you still want to tackle one. Types of picture books: --traditional 32-page picture book:                          usually for the 4 to 8 year old reader or a read-to-me (lap) book                            Jump! by Guy Porfirio --picture story book --  can be longer, 48 pages, more text, targets readers 8 to 10 or older.          ...

Welcome to The Kidlitter! This blog is partnered with my Writing for Children workshop, but it's available to anyone who wants to check the posts. Hope you find some nuggets you can use here! Our young readers deserve the very best of our efforts. Writing for kids is not preparation for writing for adults. It’s a special skill with special needs. Many of the same techniques apply, but there are important differences. For one thing, you never have to ask, “How old is my reader?” when writing for adults. But reader age level is very important when writing for kids. Reader age will determine your subject matter, your word choice, your sentence length and overall word count. If you market your work to a book or magazine publisher, you’ll need to know who your target reader will be. The writer needs to meet the reader at the right level and not ‘talk down’ from an adult perspective. So, let’s look at the different kinds of children’s books which target variou...