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tips
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WRITING FOR CHILDREN
- ILLUSTRATING FOR CHILDREN
Tips on
writing for children and young people
“As judges for the 2005/6 competition we were impressed by the variety and
quality of entries. A number of the stories had a magical element this
year and we felt that from time to time writers relied a little too much on
magic to drive the plot forward. We discussed the core story elements
- character and situation - and agreed that the most successful stories were
the ones where the characters themselves moved the narrative along in a
convincing way.”
"Some scripts we
discussed could perhaps be regarded as testimonies rather than works of
literature. We felt that despite some beautiful writing, these works
disempowered the reader from making a moral judgement, and were occasionally
rather negative for a young audience. As always, discussing and
choosing the eventual winners was a challenging and fascinating exercise."
Meshack Asare, Chair of
the judges 2005/6
The following tips may
be useful for those who are fairly new to writing for children.
Starting off
Your story will probably
start with an idea, but you need to develop that idea until your are
confident that it will stand up to the demands of your readers. Don't be
afraid to try out your work and to draft if necessary. |
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Choosing Words
Remember that every word is
precious; choose words carefully and be direct. Avoid lengthy
descriptions that slow a young reader down or complex constructions that
frustrate their reading enjoyment. Older readers will have a
bigger appetite for descriptive language, but they will still want the
story to move on. |
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Characters
Think about your characters
as real people, who often reveal things about themselves without meaning
to, perhaps by what they say, or how they speak or dress. Be a
good observer. Avoid a cast of very many characters - it's
confusing, especially for younger readers and will prevent you from
developing characters with depth and interest. |
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Shaping the plot
Every story needs shape and
variety. Perhaps one of your characters has a grand plan that goes
horribly wrong ... how can they put things right? Or you might
have a final surprise for your reader, so it's not quite what they were
expecting. Aim to create a story that is more than just a sequence
of 'and then ...' events. |
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Your readers
Younger readers enjoy a huge
range of stories, but they need to be able to identify with the story,
to enter into and enjoy the world you create. Don't talk down to
them, try to see things from their point of view and engage their
interest from page 1.
Older readers will have different interests which relate to their
experience of life as teenagers. They will be interested in what's
going on 'inside' a character, and in things that test their lives such
as friendship, loyalty, loss or self-discovery. |
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Message
Stories have the power to
change the way we think about ourselves and the world around us.
They help to increase our understanding. Stories with a deeper
message may be a challenge to write well and in a non-didactic way, but
they can become classics... |
Illustrating for children
The judges comments on the most successful 2006 entries
contained some useful tips for future entrants:
"It was enormously hard to pick a winner out of the
excellent finalists who displayed their own very individual styles, and
interpreted the three texts in a variety of ways."
"We were looking for good drawing, individually and
sparkle, and we felt the winning illustration was particularly deserving
because of its intimacy, sparing detail, and the ambitious use of
perspective, all of which draw the reader right into the moment of
surprise."
Three points to remember:
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Choose the topic that suits your own style, one that you
are comfortable with.
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Colours often dull or darken in the reproduction
process, and very thin lines will disappear if an illustration is reduced in
reproduction.
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Children look very closely at the characters in a story
illustration and will expect to see their understanding of moods or events
reflected in the expressions they see.
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