Writing for Children...............................

Info related to my attempts to write a children's story...........

<h1 style='margin-bottom: 0px;'><a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Children%27s-Story">How to Write a Children's Story</a></h1>
<b><i>from <a href='https://www.wikihow.com/Main-Page'>wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit</a></i></b><br/>
                        
Writing a children's story requires a vivid imagination, good speech, enthusiastic creativity and the ability to put yourself in the mind of a child. To write a children’s story, follow these guidelines.
<a name="Steps"></a><h2>  Steps </h2>
<ol><li> Brainstorm story ideas. The story is perhaps the most important aspect of a good book. Consult some of your favorite books (children's or otherwise) for inspiration, but do what is right for you. Choose a story that fits your interests and talents, such as action, fantasy, or mystery.
<ul><li> Part of the great fun of a children's story is that it doesn't need to be realistic! With fabulous exceptions like the Lord of The Rings, etc., this is the biggest difference between children's and adult books. Of course you can write about a talking mongoose! Sure you can write about a human with a dogs head and 3 legs! In fact, children will appreciate such absurdities.
</li></ul>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Develop-a-Character" class="mw-redirect" title="Develop a Character">Develop your characters</a>. In order to have a good story, you need some interesting <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Create-a-Convincing-Character-For-Your-Story" title="Create a Convincing Character For Your Story">characters.</a> Who is the main character of the story? Is there more than one? Are the characters human, animal or fantasy, or do they include elements of all three? Before you begin, it is best to make an outline of the characters and how they fit into the story.
</li><li> Make sure your writing is age-appropriate. For example, though smaller children enjoy stories with simple (or nonexistent) plots and plays on words (ex. a repeated phrase like, "No, no fat cat. Scat! Scat! Scat!"), older children will want a more intricate plot and a tone that treats them like adults. Since it’s harder to put oneself in the mind of a very young child, consider some of the guidelines and example story themes for very young readers below.
<ul><li> <b>Age 3-5 years</b>: Use sentences with a low level of complexity that explain the motivation behind actions shown on the page. Themes include: adventures; getting lost and finding your way home; fighting; being brave in spite of fear; telling the truth; thinking of others before yourself; explaining how you feel; learning to spell; learning to add; telling parents if someone hurts you or makes you feel bad; how to resolve arguments (though they still need a lot of help at this age, they can be introduced to healthy argument resolution, especially the idea of sharing and thinking how others feel); disappointment.
</li><li> <b>Age 5-7 years</b>: Use bigger words but be careful to explain them so as not to frustrate new readers. At this point, books can be long enough to read over two or three nights. Themes include: overcoming challenges; learning new skills; understanding good reasons to do something and bad reasons to do something; magic; confusion.
</li></ul>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-an-Outline" title="Write an Outline">Make a story outline</a> if necessary. Unless you’re writing for a very young age level where it’s appropriate not to have a traditional plot (ex. <i>Goodnight Moon</i>), it’s wise to carefully plan the story structure in advance. Use note cards, draw it in picture form, or write a standard outline. The important thing is to have a general understanding of the beginning, middle and end of the story, and of how the characters will interact and evolve. A good story usually has some sort of conflict or obstacle that the main character has to resolve, after which everyone lives "happily ever after." Here's the breakdown:<ul><li>Introduce your characters with descriptions of physical and personality traits, their surroundings, and those with whom they come in contact.<li>Create a problem/conflict. This could be between two people, an internal conflict, or one in which the main character overcomes an obstacle in the outside world.<li>Write the climax of the story, which will include the main character(s) coming face to face with the conflict.<li>Show how your character(s) resolves the problem and what happens next.</ul>
</li><li> Make sure your writing has flair. Use humor when possible. For young children, focus on the silly things that will have both the child and the adult reader laughing together; use made-up words and rhyme (Dr. Seuss knew that this made it much easier and more fun to read aloud). Whenever possible, show the character's personality through speech and actions, not bland statements like "Sally is selfish." Try to differentiate between different characters by having them react differently to the same situation, for example.
</li><li> Consider whether or not to add pictures. If you’re a professional illustrator, adding your own artwork can add to the interest level of the story and make it easier to follow. However, note that if you’re not a professional, publishers most likely won’t be interested in your design ideas and will replace them with images created by another illustrator.
</li></ol>
<a name="Tips"></a><h2>  Tips </h2>
<ul><li> For many writers, writing children's books successfully will require some effort to step back into the shoes of the very young and to see the world from a very fresh and curious perspective. For those who are always young-at-heart, writing children's stories can be a very satisfying craft. And if you are a child author reading this article – many child authors have published stories – these characteristics will be second nature to you, but you will still benefit from the steps on how to write a children's story well.
</li><li> Any young children's story must have a happy end; children don't like when their favorite characters end up badly. They usually feel sorry for them and are disappointed with the story as a whole. (Note, however, that the traditional happy ending can become more complicated as children turn to young adults.)
</li><li> The realm depicted in most children’s stories is bright, colorful and optimistic; the personality of the main character should have mostly positive traits, such as bravery, intelligence, humor, beauty and so on. However, note that classic children’s books like <i>Where the Wild Things Are</i>, the <i>Goosebumps</i> series, and most traditional fairytales have distinctly dark attributes. Decide whether or not you can pull this off at the age-level for which you are writing.
</li><li> Describe characters or places as well as you can so the young reader may picture it the way you want him/her to. However, do not lose yourself in complicate descriptions: it may confuse a child and distract him/her from the story itself.
</li></ul>
<a name="Warnings"></a><h2>  Warnings </h2>
<ul><li> Avoid using slang words or inappropriate language/situations for younger readers. The writing should be of the best quality, to encourage young readers to love their language and to want to read more.
</li><li> Try not to give the characters long names. Also, do not give them similar names or even names starting with the same letter. This may confuse the child and make the story harder to follow.
</li><li> Scary stories, even if they have a happy ending, are NOT good for very young children's books. Avoid even slightly scary overtones when writing for children 3-7.
</li><li> War may not be a good topic for a children's story. The readers may become worried that what happens in a war might happen to them.
</li></ul>
<a name="Related_wikiHows"></a><h2>  Related wikiHows </h2>
<ul><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Good-Story" title="Write a Good Story">How to Write a Good Story</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-an-Outline" title="Write an Outline">How to Write an Outline</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Become-a-Freelance-Writer" title="Become a Freelance Writer">How to Become a Freelance Writer</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Brainstorm-Children%27s-Picture-Book-Ideas" title="Brainstorm Children's Picture Book Ideas">How to Brainstorm Children's Picture Book Ideas</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Novel" title="Write a Novel">How to Write a Novel</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Avoid-Plagiarism" title="Avoid Plagiarism">How to Avoid Plagiarism</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Create-and-Publish-a-Novel-As-a-Teenager" class="mw-redirect" title="Create and Publish a Novel As a Teenager">How to Create and Publish a Novel As a Teenager</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Clean-a-Book" title="Clean a Book">How to Clean a Book</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Children%27s-Book" title="Write a Children's Book">How to Write a Children's Book</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-With-Creativity-and-Interest" title="Write With Creativity and Interest">How to Write With Creativity and Interest</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Fun-and-Exciting-Book" title="Write a Fun and Exciting Book">How to Write a Fun and Exciting Book</a>
</li><li> <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-Bible-Stories-for-Children-3-to-8" title="Write Bible Stories for Children 3 to 8">How to Write Bible Stories for Children 3 to 8</a>
</li></ul>
<p>
<i>Article provided by <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Main-Page">wikiHow</a>, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on <a href="https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Children%27s-Story">How to Write a Children's Story</a>.  All content on wikiHow can be shared under a <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/">Creative Commons license</a>.</i>
</p>