Children’s Writing and Information Dump

As a ghostwriter and editor, occasionally I get clients who give me a draft of a story that has information dump within the first few spreads of a picture book.

This is a no-no.

Information dump is when an author literally dumps a chunk of information for the reader to absorb.

Granted most new writers may not realize they’re hitting the reader with these big chunks of information. Or, the author may want to tell the reader what she thinks the reader should know, but doesn’t know how to weave the information into the story.

I think the problem is the ‘author’ wants to make sure the reader understands what’s going on. For example:

Billy and Joe had been best friends since Kindergarten. They played together every day and even had sleep overs. They were also on the same football team. Then Billy insulted Joe last year. After that, Joe didn’t want to be friends with Billy anymore. Now, it’s a new school year.

While this example isn’t too long, there are some info dumps that are paragraphs long, pages long, or in the case of picture books, spreads long.

Another possible reason for information dumping.

Another possibility is that the ‘author’ is writing the story for himself. He’s writing to see what he wants to see in the book. He’s not thinking about what a seven year old or a 10 year old will want . . . even expect in a book.

Whatever the reason, information dump at the beginning of a story leads to a very boring beginning. And, it delays the initial problem that the protagonist must overcome.

While this has touched on the beginning of a story so far, it’s not a good idea to dump clumps of information elsewhere within the story either.

Why information dumping isn’t a good idea.
Children, even adults, have short attention spans. Being told what went on is boring for the reader. She wants to see or hear what’s going on through action and dialogue. Information or backstory must be weaved into the story here and there.

For example, going back to Billy and Joe. Instead of telling the reader flat out in the beginning of the story why they’re not friends, bring it in through dialogue.

It was the first day of the new school year. Joe walked past Billy in the yard without looking at him or saying a word.

“Okay, enough already. I insulted you last year. Get over it already,” chided Billy.

This lets the reader know what’s happening without knocking him over the head or dumping clumps of information. It brings the reader into the action and conversation. It’s effective writing.

While you may not be able to get every bit of information into the story that you think should be there, it doesn’t matter. Your reader will read between the lines. .

So, think twice before dumping that information on your reader.

This article was originally published at:
http://karencioffiwritingforchildren.com/2017/04/30/childrens-writing-information-dump/

Karen Cioffi is an award-winning children’s author. She runs a successful children’s ghostwriting and rewriting business and welcomes working with new clients.

For tips on writing for children OR if you need help with your project, contact her at Writing for Children with Karen Cioffi.

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Writing - Are You an Outliner?

16 Reasons Why You Should Publish a Book

Deep Point of View

Are You Building Publishing Habits?

By W. Terry Whalin

If you are writing a novel or a nonfiction book or ???. What are you doing each day to succeed with this writing project? 

Yes, it is important to craft an excellent work with terrific storytelling and craft. We learn these skills through our own reading and continual practice. Writing should be a habit which you continually cultivate and practice on a regular basis.

Yet what about other areas of publishing where you need to develop habits?

Recently I heard from an unpublished author who was getting rejected or no response from literary agents. She was sending out a children's book and couldn't understand why she could not succeed. 

I wrote this author that she needed to do more to understand the marketplace. Only a few literary agents that I know represent children's books for several reasons. First, the advances are very low for children's books. 

Also it's hard to get a children's book published through a traditional publisher. It is not impossible but difficult and much of the writing work is Work Made for Hire or something an agent wouldn't be involved in. Finally agents are looking for writers who demonstrate that they have been published. You have to show this skill through writing for print magazines or other recognized forms. 

This unpublished author was floundering because she had not done the basics to understand the market. As a daily habit, she needed to be reading published authors and how-to books as well as connecting with someone to help her.

Reading in the field is another publishing habit that every author or would-be author should be developing. There are free newsletters and many ways to learn from others. Are you tapping into these resources? 

Another publishing habit is to constantly build your connections to others. It doesn't require tons of time but it does require consistent effort. For example, posting on twitter and Facebook in your area of expertise is a publishing habit. You can use tools like Hootsuite so it does not have to consume much time but the consistency will pay off.

I spend the majority of my days working with authors as an acquisitions editor at Morgan James. My personal goal is to help as many authors as I can to achieve their dreams of getting published. As a result of these goals, I'm on the phone with authors or literary agents. Or I'm answering emails or interacting with my Morgan James colleagues about book projects. I have a series of habits that I execute each day related to my work at Morgan James.

What goals do you have for your publishing life? Have you written them down and are you looking at them on a regular basis? What habits do you need to develop in order to achieve these goals? 

As you are consistent, it will pay off for you in the marketplace. I have a great deal of free information in my ebook, Platform-Building Ideas for Every Author. If you haven't read this Ebook, I suggest you get it and study it, then apply the lessons to your writing life.


What new publishing habits are you developing? Let me know in the comments below.

Tweetable:

Publishing habits are important for every writer. Get some ideas from this experienced editor.  (ClickToTweet)
----
W. Terry Whalin is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 books including his latest, Billy Graham, A Biography of America's Greatest Evangelist. Also Terry has written for more than 50 magazines and lives in Colorado. Follow him on Twitter where he has over 200,000 followers.
 

Happy New Year!

I am back with my regularly scheduled posts. Last month, I had a cold and forgot about my post for December. I tend to write my post the month that it’s due, as I try to talk about something that recently happened to me or that I recently discovered.

I am always on the lookout for websites about writing, publishing, social media, books, etc. Here are several sites I found in the last year.

The Rate Your Story contest for picture books, novels, novellas and other kinds of stories runs through February 3. Good luck if you decide to enter!

http://rateyourstory.blogspot.com/p/writing-contest.html

Do you suffer from writer’s block? We probably all do at some point. Can you get out of writer’s block by using this map?

http://nybookeditors.com/book-editing-copy-editing-proofreading-self-publishing-blog/2013/3/12/a-map-to-get-out-of-writers-block#sthash.WW86y3jg.ugP8U2U2.dpbs

If you write for children, this is a new website, full of lots of resources.

http://www.kidlit411.com/

This is a how-to article for authors on shopping at a bookstore.  A fun read!

http://blog.pshares.org/index.php/how-to-shop-at-a-bookstore-an-easy-20-step-guide-for-authors/

This one is also for fun! How well did you do?

http://noblemania.blogspot.com/2013/09/guess-picture-book.html

I hope you enjoy checking out these interesting and helpful websites. If you have any links you would like to share, please post them in the Comments section. Have a great 2014!

Debbie A. Byrne has a B.S. in Mass Communication with a minor in History. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and is working on her first children’s book.

Childhood Memories and Writing Books

Earlier this year, I wrote a post about a book club that I started with a few other people.  We read books on the craft of writing. The club has been beneficial so far.

The first book that the members of my book club decided to read was Creating Characters Kids Will Love by Elaine Marie Alphin.  It was published by Writer’s Digest Books in 2000. CCKWL is more for those who are writing books for middle grade, but I think that one will find some useful information on writing books for other age groups. Since CCKWL contains a lot of information, we divided the book into sections to read and discuss. I read Part 1. (In the future, I think all of us should read the entire book, regardless of the length or content.) This is not a full review of Elaine’s book, but I will share something that made an impact on me.

Elaine suggested recalling your own childhood and drawing from those experiences to create your characters and stories.  Diaries, journals, scrapbooks, and photos from your youth may help you remember your life and provide ideas. Talking to friends and family can also offer some insight into your early years.

Throughout the book, Elaine included exercises to help inspire the writer. One exercise in particular, really hit home for me. This exercise concerned emotions that a character might feel. The reader was asked to make a list of possible emotions, situations and sensations. An example that Elaine gave was the emotion of fear. A very common emotion of course, but it was her example of a situation that jumped right out at me. She mentioned an unleashed barking dog. Whoa!

When I was a child, I had a fear of dogs. Elaine’s exercise brought up some old memories. I don’t remember the initial incident, but I was told that a large, friendly neighborhood dog wanted to play. I was little and frightened by this animal. As a result, I grew up with a fear of dogs. Whenever I saw one, I tried my best to avoid it. I can remember screaming, I was so scared. I was never bitten or attacked, but the emotion that I felt was very real. I felt this way around most dogs. As for dogs I knew (ones owned by friends for example), usually I was fine and could even make friends with them. However, in most cases, the fear would overtake me and ultimately, I would have nothing to do with the dog.

Eventually I out grew most of my fear. However, I continue to avoid dogs. I make friends with very few of them. I do not like dogs jumping up on me or trying to sit in my lap. When encountering a dog I do not know, I freeze, and those old feelings come rushing back.

I wasn’t expecting all of this from reading a book on how to write a children’s book!

Writing can help one resolve old issues. My fellow club members suggested I use my childhood fear as a basis for a story. Perhaps then, I can better come to terms with these long ago experiences.

I recommend Elaine’s book. I borrowed a copy but will probably purchase one eventually. Even if the book you are writing is not for children, you may still find “CCKWL” helpful.

I wonder what the next book on the craft of writing will bring forth!

Debbie A. Byrne has a B.S. in Mass Communication with a minor in History. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and is working on her first children’s book.

Write a Children’s Book in 14 Days!

Is it possible? Can you do it?

This summer, I bought the software program, How to Write a Children’s Book in 14 Days (or Less!) by Mel McIntyre.  I imagine that many aspiring writers have done the same thing, but how many actually go through each lesson and complete them all -- in two weeks? It’s not easy! It’s very important to set aside time each day during those two weeks. Otherwise, you might not be able to complete the program in the allotted time.

I also am a member of the Working Writers Club and took this class with Suzanne Lieurance.  Suzanne was our coach during the 14 days.  After we registered, she sent us a syllabus and schedule. This was a serious undertaking!

Suzanne also instructed us to read the entire textbook prior to the start of the class. I read most of it. Hmmm . . . there’s that time thing again! However, I did get a good understanding of what to expect during the two weeks.

Suzanne recommended we do some additional reading before we began the class. In the text, Mel gave examples of children’s books. I went to the library and checked out several of the titles she mentioned and read them. I got a better idea of how children’s books are written.

Last year, I started an idea notebook and file for the books I want to write, so I already had something in mind before the class.  I thought it would make the project easier. (I did say this wasn’t easy, didn’t I?)

During the two weeks, Suzanne, my classmates and I, had daily conference calls to discuss assignments, problems, etc.  I was able to participate in most of those calls. There is that time thing again! While the calls were recorded and could be listened to at a more convenient hour, I felt it was important to be there “live.” Luckily, I did not have many appointments or meetings scheduled for those two weeks. On the days that I was not available, I listened to most of the recordings. I think I missed one or two.

I enjoyed using the software program, being part of a class, and Suzanne’s coaching. I got alot out of the experience. But I also hit writers block after one week! My brain did not want to cooperate anymore. I found it difficult to do the daily assignments, but I did what I could.

I’ve been giving my brain a rest and I plan to tackle the program on my own next month.  I will try to complete it in four weeks. This will allow me extra time for the other things that happen in my life, yet gives me a calendar goal to reach.  

I would like to fully utilize what I learned from Mel and Suzanne. Hopefully, a second go-around will improve my writing and my manuscript will be that much closer to being submitted and published.

Debbie A. Byrne has a B.S. in Mass Communication with a minor in History. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and is currently working on her first children’s book.

Teaching Through Books with Molly Nero

What captivates our young people these days?  Stories.  Yes, stories, but not the stories in books like we remember.  Kids today are enamored by the digital device that is held in their hands or sitting in front of them as they play games to a STORY!  Every video game made has some kind of plot, conflict, characters, and our kids are in charge of creating the outcome by the video “ability” they possess after hour upon hour of “gaming”.  Fight it if you want, but I think relating it to stories you read in books is much more productive.  You are creating a bridge between the “old school” reading and the “techno” gaming of today.  Teaching lessons through books helps validate their importance and value.

Books give us an amazing teaching tool, especially when dealing with social issues.  I’m a big advocate of creating purpose for skills being taught by relating them to real life experiences kids can connect to.  Books help you in this process.  When teaching the skill of cause and effect, the youngest learners can grasp this concept when reading a story about a boy who jumps on his bed.  You ask something as simple as what happened because he jumped on his bed?  The answer is he fell through the floor.  You have a story that kids are hooked into because what kid doesn’t jump on his bed?  But the follow through with the skill is taught through the story; therefore he fell through the floor.  Books offer such enrichment to a lesson with their pictures walking the children through a story depicting a needed skill.  Social issues, friend problems, acceptance, and rejection are all subjects easier for kids to learn and process with books, since you are reading about someone else and someone else’s problems, not theirs.  Teaching division?  Drawing cookies on the board is okay, but reading about a boy sharing the cookies on his tray as more and more friends come is relatable to your students.  Every kid has to share at some point and who doesn’t want to share with their friends?  Another great book helping you teach a difficult skill with a story.

Stories are a huge part of our kids’ lives though media and gaming.  Books need to be as predominate, so use them to teach with.  No matter what the skill; there is a book to help you teach it.

About the author: Molly Nero loves to sing, dance and read. She spent over 18 years teaching elementary school. Reading to her own children, she was inspired to write. The second book in the Smarty Pig book series Smarty Pig and the Test Taking Terror releases in Spring 2012.

Smarty Pig is the only one in the pig family who hasn’t given up on school and doing her homework. Although she is teased, her report card shows her hard work, while the others fail. The other pigs reach out to her and she becomes their tutor, by creating games in their home. They all realize learning can be fun and that it’s not just for school, it’s for life.

Get a sneak peek of the book at  http://youtu.be/E2L_NS2QqgM

You can find out more about Molly Nero’s World of Ink Author/Book Tour schedule at http://storiesforchildrenpublishing.com/MollyNero.aspx. There will be giveaways, reviews, interviews, guest posts and more. Make sure to stop by and interact with Nero and the hosts at the different stops by leaving comments and/or questions.

 

Writing for Children: Submissions to Contract to Book Promotion to Career Part 2

Welcome back! Yesterday was Part 1 of "Writing for Children: Submissions to Contract to Book Promotion to Career" and today we have the rest of the article, numbers two to four.

So, without further ado here are the next three tips.

*****

2. The Contract 

If you do your homework, your manuscript will eventually find a home. Don’t let initial rejections, if you receive them, deter you. A published writer may not be the best writer, but she is definitely a writer who perseveres.

Read your contract carefully, if you don’t understand something, ask for an explanation.

After you sign a contract, you’ll be ‘put in queue’ and at some point begin editing with the publisher’s editor. From start to actual release, the publishing process can take one to two years.

3. Book Promotion

A couple of months prior to your book’s release, you should begin promotion to help with book sales. This will involve creating an author website and platform - your will need to create visibility for you and your book.

After your book’s release, you will want to take part in virtual book tours, do blogtalk radio guest spots, school visits, and all the other standard book promotion strategies. You can take this on yourself, or you can hire a book promotion service or publicist.

You can check out these articles for book promotion tips:

Book Promotion: The Foundation

Book Promotion: Creating an Informational Funnel

Book Promotion: 20 Strategies that will Broaden Your Reach – Part 1

Book Promotion: 20 Strategies that will Broaden Your Reach – Part 2

4. A Writing Career

Now, you’ve got your book and you’re promoting it like crazy (this is an ongoing process). The next and final step is to repeat the process. You don’t want to be a one-hit wonder, so hopefully you’ve been writing other stories. If not, get started now. On average, an author writes a book every one to two years. 

Along with keeping up with writing your books, having published books opens other writing opportunities, such as speaking engagements, conducting workshops and/or teleseminars, and coaching. There are a number of marketers who say your ‘book’ is your business card or your calling card; it conveys what you’re capable of and establishes you as an expert in your field or niche. Take advantage of these additional avenues of visibility and income.

To read Part 1, go to:
Writing for Children: Submission to Contract to Book Promotion to Career Part 1

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Until next time,
Karen Cioffi
Author, Ghostwriter, Freelance writer, and
Editor for 4RV Publishing

Member of the Professional Writers Alliance, the International Association of Professional Ghostwriters, and the National Association of Independent Writers and Editors.

http://KarenCioffi.com
http://DKVWriting4U.com
Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing
Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/karencioffiventrice
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KarenCV
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http://www.facebook.com/pages/Karen-Cioffi-Ventrice/157731977630305?sk=wall

Walking Through Walls 

Writing for Children: Submissions to Contract to Book Promotion to Career Part 1

The foundation of writing for children, or any genre for that matter, is to learn the craft of writing. In regard to being a children’s author you will need to learn the specific rules and tricks to create appropriate stories with age-appropriate words and storylines.

Once you have taken the time to hone your craft and have critiqued, revised, and edited your manuscript to a polished state, it’s on to the next phases of the traditional children’s writing path: submissions, promotion, and a writing career.

1. Submissions

Before you think about submitting your work anywhere, be sure you’ve completed the necessary steps to learn the craft of writing. You’re manuscript needs to be as polished as you can possibly get it.

Submissions can fall into two categories: those to publishers and those to agents. In regard to submitting to agents, in a Spring 2011 webinar presented by Writer’s Digest, agent Mary Kole advised to “research agents.” This means to find out what type of agent they are in regard to the genre they work with and the agent platform they provide: do they coddle their authors, do they crack the whip, are they aggressive, passive, involved, or complacent. Know what you’re getting into before querying an agent, and especially before signing a contract.

Here are a couple of sites you can visit to learn about agents:

http://agentquery.com
http://www.guidetoliteraryagents.com/blog/

The same advice works for submitting to publishers also; research publishers before submitting to them. Know which genres of children’s books they handle and the type of storylines they’re looking for.

Whether submitting to a publisher or an agent, always follow the guidelines and always personalize the query. There may be times the guidelines do not provide the name of the editor to send the query to, but if you can find that information, use it.

According to Mary Kole, it’s also important to know how to pitch your story. This entails finding the story’s hook. Agents and publishers also want to know what the book’s selling points will be and what successful books it’s similar to. In addition, they will expect to be told what your marketing strategy will be. It’s a good idea to create an online presence and platform before you begin submissions; let the agents and publishers know you will actively market your book.

Along with the story’s hook, you need to convey: who your main character is and what he/she is about; the action that drives the story; the main character’s obstacle, and if the main character doesn’t overcome the obstacle, what’s at stake.

Ms. Kole recommends reading “the back of published books” to see how they briefly and effectively convey the essence of the story. This will give you an idea of how to create your own synopsis.

When querying, keep your pitch short and professional, and keep your bio brief and relevant. You will need to grab the editor or agent and make them want to read your manuscript.

Here are four tools you can use to help find a publisher or agent:

•    Writers Market: Where and How to Sell What You Write
•    Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market: Over 700 listings for book publisher’s, magazines, agents, art reps, and more
•    Guide to Literary Agents: Where and How to Find the Right Agents to Represent Your Work
•    WritersMarket.com: Online resource to help you sell what you write

Karen Cioffi is an award-winning children's author and children’s ghostwriter as well as the founder and editor-in-chief of Writers on the Move. You can find out more about writing for children and her services at: Karen Cioffi Writing for Children.

Check out the DIY Page and don’t forget to sign up for the Newsletter that has great monthly writing and book marketing tips.

And, get a copy of WALKING THROUGH WALLS (a middle-grade fantasy adventure set in 16th century China. Honored with the Children’s Literary Classics Silver Award.

Self-Editing: 10 Tips Checklist for Children’s Writers

You’ve been working on your story for a while now and you think it’s just about done. It’s been critiqued numerous times and you revised it numerous times. Now, it’s time to proofread and self-edit. You don’t want to short-change yourself on the last stretch, so get ready to put the final layers of polish on your manuscript.

Here are 10 tips to you can use to help fine-tune your children’s manuscript:

1. Check for clarity

Check each sentence for clarity. It’s important to remember that you may know what you intend to convey, but your readers may not. It’d be a good idea to have someone else read the manuscript for you. This is where a good critique group comes in handy.

2. Check for “telling” and lackluster sentences

Check each sentence for telling. While you will need some effective telling, you want to have more showing.

Example: Joe hit his head and was dazed.
Alternative: Joe banged his head against the tree. He wobbled a moment and fell to the ground.

Show, don’t tell. Use your imagination and picture your character going through motions—maybe he’s turning his lip up, or he’s cocking his head. Try to visualize it; this will help in showing rather than telling.

A good way to add more showing is to add more sensory details. Use the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste) to create a living character; this will help breathe life into your story.

Example: Joe felt cold.
Alternative: A chill ran through Joe’s body.

Example: Joe was frightened.
Alternative: Joe’s breath stopped. Goosebumps made the hair on his arms stand at attention.

3. Point of View: Watch for head hopping
Checking for head hopping is especially important for children’s writers since their stories should be told from the protagonist’s point of view or perspective.

If the story is being told from your main character’s point of view (POV) make sure it stays there.

If my POV character Joe is sad and wearing a frown, it wouldn’t be advisable to say: Noticing his sad face Fran immediately knew Joe was distraught. This is bringing Fran’s POV into the picture.

You might say: Joe knew Fran would immediately notice his despair; they were friends for so long.

 Or, you can just use dialogue: “Joe, what’s wrong?”

4. Watch for story consistency, conflict, clarity, and flow

Checking for consistency, conflict, clarity, and flow is another must for all writers of fiction. If you’re a children’s writer it’s even more important. Children need a structured story that’s consistent. The story also needs to provide conflict and action to keep the child engaged, along with clarity to help with comprehension. It should also flow smoothly with one paragraph, chapter moving seamlessly into the next.

5. Use spell-check

Make sure you write with spell-check on or use your word processor’s spell-check when you’re finished with your manuscript. I like writing with it on.

Just be careful here because while spell-check will catch misspelled words it won’t catch words that are spelled correct, but are the incorrect word in regard to meaning.

Example: He was to tired.
Correct: He was too tired.

These words are called homonyms and spell-check will not catch them.

A homonym is a word that sounds like another word, but is spelled different and has a different meaning. Examples of homonyms are: hare/here/hair; bare/bear/; stationary/stationery; peek/peak; principle/principal; capital/capitol; compliments/complements; cite/site/sight.

6. Use your Find function on your word processor

This is a great tool to check for “ly” words, “ing” words, weak verbs, and over used words such as “was.”

7. Watch for redundancy

Check the story for repeated phrasing and even paragraph beginnings. You don’t want several paragraphs in a row beginning with “the” or other repetitive wording. When editing your manuscript use the Find function in your word program and look for overused words.

Another aspect of redundancy is using unnecessary words.

Example: Sit down on the chair.
The word ‘down’ is redundant; ‘sit’ implies down.

Example: She whispered quietly.
The word ‘quiety’ is redundant.

8. Check for tight writing

In today’s market, tight writing is important—readers have a shorter attention span. So, get rid of unnecessary words and text.

Example: Joe had a really hard time lifting the very heavy and big trunk.
Alternative: Joe struggled to lift the huge trunk.

Also, watch for words such as “began” and “started.”

Example: He began to lift the trunk.
Alternative: He lifted the trunk.

9. Check for punctuation and grammar

There are a number of great books and even online articles that will help you learn proper punctuation and grammar. Two books that I use are: The Frugal Editor by Carolyn Howard Johnson and The Great Grammar Book by Marsha Sramek.

You can also do a Google search.

10. Children’s writers: Take illustrations into account

When writing a picture book you need to allow for illustrations. Picture books are a marriage between content and illustrations—a 50/50 deal. So, watch for text that an illustration can handle. With picture books your content doesn’t have to describe every little detail—the illustrations will embellish the story.

Well, this completes the 10 tips, but please know that self-editing is a tricky business and this is not an all inclusive list. Even knowing all the obstacles to watch out for, self-editing is still tricky. It's almost impossible for us writers to catch all our own errors; we're much too close to our work. We know every nook and cranny of the story and that makes it difficult to read it in a fresh manner. Even if we think we're reading every word, our mind is way ahead of us, that's why it's advisable to look into hiring an editor.

Karen Cioffi is a children's ghostwriter and rewriter. Have a children's book manuscript, outline, or idea? Check out: Writing for Children.







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