Get in Touch With Your Inner Child - How to Start a Children's Book

Some of your fondest childhood memories may centre on books - I know mine do; curled up in bed while mum or dad read you a story or holed up in a little corner with your favourite picture book, carefully poring over the familiar words and images. Maybe that's why children's books are still one of the most popular genres for writers today. However, just because they're shorter - and often with pictures - don't be fooled into thinking that writing children's books is easy! In fact, this genre is one of the most difficult to break into professionally and many writers find it an exceptionally challenging experience. If you're keen to write for kids, here are some helpful hints to get you going:

Read first - writers are readers first, and this is especially true with children's books. Children's books have a very different tone, style and technique to other works so make sure you're familiar with the genre.

Get with the times - while some childhood favourites are timeless - think Peter Rabbit - most children's books need to be current and relevant to kids' experiences today.

Think like a kid - the brilliance of children is their expansive and wild imaginations. They'll carry ideas to places you'd never even dreamed of. However, don't just assume that children will embrace any story you present them. You need to sell your story to your audience regardless of their age, education, experience - or height!

Read your work aloud- this is a great tip for writers as a whole, but again is especially applicable to children's stories. Children's books are specifically written to be shared aloud, so make sure you like the sound of your story.

Network and get advice - professional children's authors, such as Australia based Di Bates, will tell you that writing children's books is one of the most challenging genres to break into. Many publishers and agents actually don't accept unsolicited manuscripts of this type from unpublished writers. Take creative writing courses, get advice and build your network - you'll benefit from as much help and experience you can gain.