An Adult’s Guide to Writing for Kids

WRITING The world of children’s literature is a deep, diverse place with so much creative potential that it’s no wonder so many adults aspire to write kids’ books. Picture books with lushly illustrated spreads are sprinkled with words that might be poetic, silly, or both at once. Chapter books welcome young readers into the wonderful world of books with colorful young characters and exciting stories told with age-appropriate language. Middle grade books begin to introduce harder language and harder issues, acknowledging young people’s great capacity for understanding life’s complexity. Young adult novels have an irresistible pull for many adult readers, but most importantly, they speak to tumultuous adolescent years with care and sensitivity. But if you’re an author who wants to try writing for kids, there’s more to it than writing shorter sentences with smaller words. Age Groups What kind of kids do you want to write for? Sure, there’s an obvious difference between writing for toddlers and writing for teenagers. But when you’re a kid, even a year or two of growing can change the kinds of books that will serve you developmentally. And don’t forget, writing for kids is all about serving them in whatever stage of development they’re in. Different grades have different level markers for reading, and you don’t want to go above those levels, but you also want to make sure you’re challenging those kids appropriately. If the prose is too complex, sure, that’s obviously a barrier to enjoyment, but if it’s too easy? That’s boring . Beyond grammar and vocabulary, what kinds of issues are your young characters facing? How do they see the world around them, with its inevitable problems and stresses? Even young kids need sensitively written books about tough issues, which is why many children’s librarians and teachers have picture books on topics such as divorce and death—to serve little ones who would benefit from a book that can help them make sense of difficult topics and feelings. The best children’s authors have a solid understanding of how their age group functions psychologically and know how to write for kids […]

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