Please welcome children's author, Jo Linsdell as she stops by for a visit today at Write What Inspires You during her virtual book tour of Out and About at the Zoo. Today Ms. Linsdell is sharing her writing tips for children's writers. Being a list person myself I always appreciate bullet proof tips for easy reference later on.
Tips for Children's Writers
By Jo Linsdell
Writing a
children's book may, at first, seem like an easy task but it's not. The skill
of being able to tell a captivating story in such a limited number of words,
the ability to combine the written story with the visual story, creating a
simple text that flows smoothly... There's a lot more to children's writing
than a lot of people think.
1. Book format. A standard children's book
is 32 pages long. As the actual text usually begins at around page 5 to 7
(after title page, copyright page, etc...) this leaves you 25 to 28 pages to
tell your story.
2. Balance. There needs to be a balance
between text and illustrations. The text needs to be divided up evenly with
fairly equal amounts of text on each page. The text must also match the
illustrations.
3. Planning. Draw up a plan of the 32
pages so you can see how the layout of your book will be. This will help you
divide the text and give you ideas the placing of illustrations.
4. Word choice. The text of a children's
book is limited so every word counts. There is little room for visual
description but most of that is done with the illustrations anyway.
5. Read it aloud. Children's books are
meant to be read aloud. Read to an audience or record yourself reading the text
so you can check for flow.
About the author: Jo Linsdell is the author and illustrator of the rhyming children's picture book OUT AND ABOUT AT THE ZOO. Find out more about her at www.JoLinsdell.com
Jo, it was a pleasure hosting you during your virtual book tour. Best wishes for your continued success!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Best wishes,
Award-winning Children's Author
The Golden Pathway ~ August 2010 ~ Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc.
~ Literary Classics Silver Award and Seal of Approval Recipient and Dan Poynter's Global e-Book Awards Finalist
