Many people dream of writing children’s books. Children’s books are often harder to write than other types of books. These books are much shorter, which gives the writer little room for word play. Also, successful children’s books must appeal to their desired age groups. However, if you want to write children’s books, following the tips below will help you get started.

Finding a Topic

Decide what you want your children’s book to be about. Take a look at your own interests. The book should be about something you enjoy or want to know more about. This will make the process more fun and the end result will be better than forcing yourself to write about boring topics.

Remember your own childhood. What did you enjoy? What were some of your favorite memories? This will help you get into the mindset of your audience.

Learning the Trade

Now that you have a topic, you must learn how to put into a book format. Visit your local library and read children’s books. If possible, narrow down the age group you want your book to appeal to. Take notes of how the books are written, such as the number of words and sentences per page. Look at how long each book is. Also, visit local bookstores to see which books are most popular. This may also help you if you’re having trouble with finding a topic.

Join a writing group. This can be online or in your community. Ask questions and take notes. This can help you learn how to write, where to submit manuscripts and give you the motivation you need to continue honing your skills.

Keeping Children Interested

Children aren’t much different than adults. They get bored easily. Action and humor help keep children interested. This type of writing helps get children interested in reading. Write about topics a child would understand. Serious, complicated topics that are appropriate for adults will only confuse or bore a child. Keep topics simple and concise.

Create a variety of characters in your story. This keeps children entertained. If you write a series, introducing new characters will prevent children from losing interest as the series continues.

Learn to imagine a story in pictures. Learn how to explain a picture in a few sentences or short paragraphs. This appeals to a child’s short attention span. Also, speak on a child’s level.

Other Tips

Be ready to accept rejection. Very, very rarely will your first manuscript be accepted on your first try. Don’t be discouraged. This is bad part of the job.

Proofread your manuscript carefully. Grammar is important. Friends, family and writing group members can also help with this process.

Spend time with children to understand how they think and speak. This will help you learn what children are interested in.

Unless you’re writing and illustrating, find an illustrator to illustrate your children’s book. Remember to work as a team. You can help each other to make your book even better.

Writing children’s books can be extremely fun and profitable. Learning how to write for children is only part of the process. If you believe in your book, continue submitting it to publishers until someone accepts it. If you do get discouraged, try another topic and repeat the process. Once you find a publisher, you’ll be able to get most of your ideas published.