Writing for children is fun, but it takes more work than you might think. You must...
Read a lot,
Write a lot,
Be able to listen to suggestions for improving your manuscript,
And not be afraid to submit your manuscripts. Publishers won't come looking for you. You have to go to them.
Some common myths:
| Myth: | Picture books are short, so they're easy to write. |
| Fact: | Because they're short, every word must be just right. You have to do a lot with few words. Not an easy thing to do. |
| Myth: | You need to find an illustrator for your picture book manuscript. |
| Fact: | The publisher will find the illustrator. You just write a good story. |
| Myth: | Selling a picture book is easy. |
| Fact: | Selling a picture book is very hard. The average national publisher receives 10-15,000 unsolicited manuscripts a year, and of those they publish 2-3. The rest of the books they publish come from agents, from authors they're already publishing, from other authors they meet. You can improve your chances by studying hard and working hard, but be persistent and patient. It might take years. |
| Myth: | Published authors are special people. |
| Fact: | Published authors are no more special than anyone else. So if your talents lie elsewhere, there is no shame, no loss, in never having your name on a bookcover. Go invent something. Cure a disease. Help someone in trouble. Provide a service to people who need it. Teach. There are many acts that are more worthy of praise than getting your name on a book. If you must write, write. But don't do it because you think it will validate your life. |
| Myth: | Writing a book and getting published is magical. |
| Fact: | Writing a book and getting it published is hard work. You can probably do it if you are willing to work long enough and hard enough. |
There. You have finished Writing for Children 101. Now, go on to Writing for Children 201.