Children’s Stories - Submitting Manuscripts to Publishers
By richpat1 | September 2, 2010
First you must enjoy writing ? you are doing it for your own satisfaction. I?m sorry to have to inform you that you won?t make a J.K. Rowlings fortune even if you do find a publisher - and you may not. The competition is fierce!
If you haven’t read many children’s books since you were a child yourself, spend some time in the local library or big bookshop looking at what is on offer, what is being published at the moment. And read read read in your chosen genre!
Picture books are a very specialized skill. You need to know how they are put together, the number of pages (32), the number of words (under 500 preferably), the relationship between the words and the pictures. You can do a course or workshop, but unfortunately many don’t give you these details. If you are working on shorter novels (easy chapter books with lots of pictures, for early readers) or longer novels, you need to know who your audience is. If fantasy, know the parameters of your invented world, and stick logically to its rules.
Once your masterpiece is completed, before you even send it to an assessor, let alone a publisher, have someone proofread it for you, for typos, grammar, punctuation and the most obvious plotting flaws. You will be too close to it to see flaws.
It is invaluable to find out how a professional considers your work, and the easiest way is to go to a reputable manuscript assessment agency. You should get a report of several pages length, and often marking on the hard copy manuscript as well. Don’t be too discouraged by this. There is something to suggest in even the best manuscripts, so if you feel upset, put it away for a week or a month and then come back to it and consider everything suggested. Of course opinions differ, but you’d be wise to think carefully about corrections, and decide whether to incorporate them or not. You can include an excellent assessment or a recommendatory letter to publishers with your submission. This may get your manuscript off the slush pile. In fact it may not even be considered “unsolicited”. Publishers appreciate knowing someone else has read it. Today they cannot afford to spend as much on editors as they once did, so there is less time for nurturing potential, and for correcting typos too.
In the best of all possible worlds, you will find a literary agent to handle your work for you. They find markets, negotiate contracts, help the whole thing along. The bad news is that they are more difficult for a new author to find than an actual publisher is. Once you?ve been published they are eager to take you onto their books, but most won?t consider unknown writers for children. The reason is that they are paid only by a cut from your royalties, and they know how tight the children?s market is. They only take on manuscripts that they are sure they can sell.
Research publishers. Use a big bookshop, or a children’s one. Most large cities have a bookshop specifically for children ? search out yours. Work out which publishers produce work that is similar to yours in some way. Study review journals also, and join SCBWI (The Society of Children?s Book Writers and Illustrator) and perhaps a writing group as well.
To submit, your manuscript must look as professional as possible. Double spaced, one sided, paragraphs indented, a running header with your name and the title on. If you are doing the illustrations as well, you will need to make a mock-up of the book, with sketches for each page, and two openings in colour, as you will do them for the book itself eventually. Include a stamped addressed envelope for return. You might like to also include a stamped postcard for the publishers to return acknowledging receipt.
Phone and ask first what they are accepting, and check their submission guidelines on their website. At the same time, see if you can find the name of the children’s editor for addressing your cover letter. Should you make one submission, or use the scattergun approach? The most usual today is sending to several publishers at once. Editors expect this, even if they would prefer that they were the only publisher targeted. As they can take up to six months to reply, it?s better for the author to send it to several at once. Keep careful records though ? you don?t want to send it back to someone who has already rejected it!
The cover letter: You will need a writing CV or r?sum?. Mention that you are including an assessment. It is good to mention if you’ve had anything at all published - poem, article - or been commended in a competition. This gives you some credibility, even if the publications are not relevant to children’s work. Also mention the relevant societies you have joined. Remember that the cover letter is the first piece of your writing that the editor will read. It needs to be perfectly presented, and if possible a pleasure to read as well, and certainly will prompt the reader to go on to the text itself. Sometimes using a hook ? a catchy sentence from your work for instance ? is a good opening. And all this should ideally fit on one page! The number of words is always vital too.
If it’s a novel, you need to include a synopsis (many people find this the most difficult part of the whole undertaking). It is a pr?cis of the whole story, if possible taking only one page. Don?t leave anything as a surprise. The reader wants to know exactly where it?s going. If it?s a picture book text, or a short chapter book, you can include the whole manuscript instead (with notes to illustrators, if needed - see my example Yabby on the website); or if picture book with pictures the mock-up.
Keep your reject letters - keeping track of who you’ve sent it to and where it still is, is essential. You should ideally have a couple of manuscripts out at once, or at least be working on the next one, so that you’re not waiting desperately by the letterbox. And remember that you?re not a real writer until you?ve had your quota of rejection letters!
If you want to have your work published as a “trade” picture book but feel discouraged by how few are accepted, try some school readers first. These are marginally easier to get into. Find the educational publishers and see what series they are currently working on. Remember, The Cat in the Hat began life as a school reader.
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? Virginia Lowe. Dr Virginia Lowe has a PhD on young children?s responses to books. Her thesis has recently been turned into a book Stories, Pictures and Reality: Two children tell (Routledge). It is based on a reading diary kept of her son and daughter with books, from birth to about eight. She has been a university lecturer, a judge for the Australian Children?s Book Council Book of the Year Awards, and children?s and school librarian. Her manuscript assessment agency, Create a Kids? Book, has operated for ten years. Details about the assessment services, and about her book, on http://createakidsbook.alphalink.com.au |
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Creating Ideas For Children’s Books
By richpat1 | August 30, 2010
Ideas are everywhere. All of the time. It’s our job, as writers, to find some ideas and turn them into entertaining stories.
The most common sources of inspiration include: our experiences and personalities, children, family, pets, friends, conversations, television, newspapers, books etc.
I’ve never had any trouble finding ideas for stories. My problem is finding time to write all the stories.
I believe that the reason I come up with so many ideas for children’s books is simple; I’m looking for them. I want them. I need them. I’m actively seeking them. I’m open to the possibilities. I’m thinking and behaving as a writer.
During conversations with friends, I sometimes find myself saying, “I like that. I might use it in a story one day.” When I see something that appeals to me I often wonder how I can turn it into a story.
I look at ordinary things and ask questions. Sometimes my questions become a little bizarre. I often look for the funny side of situations or objects.
There have been times when I’ve chosen a popular subject, such as dinosaurs, then asked myself for a story on that subject. And other occasions when I’ve taken an old idea and given it a new and different life.
The simplest way to explain what I mean by the above statements is to share my personal experience. The following are the ideas behind my stories:
But first?I’m sitting in my study, writing this article. I look around the room and see the fireplace. What if the fireplace was a door to another place or world? What if I heard noises coming from the fireplace? And, when I investigate, I find Santa Claus trapped in my chimney. There are ideas everywhere. Just look for them. Ask questions.
My easy reader Sam’s Dinosaur Bone originated from word association. I wanted to write a story about dinosaurs. My experience with dinosaurs was limited to museums. Mmmm?dinosaurs, museums, a child going on an excursion to a museum, being told that dinosaur fossils are found in the ground. Are there dinosaur fossils in his backyard?
I recently took an old idea, which I love, Henny Penny’s The Sky Is Falling, and made it my own in my easy reader Down the Well. The hen hears a noise coming from the well. She yells down the well and a voice yells back. Someone must have fallen down the well!
I remember times, as a child, when I wanted to play with someone but no one was available. My friends and family were doing chores, playing sport, visiting friends, on holidays etc. My easy reader Will You Play? was inspired by this memory. The farm animals are too busy to play with the dog. Will he find someone to play with?
Do you have fears? I do. My novel Backstage Betrayal deals with my fear of being locked in a public toilet. I won’t say any more as it’s rather embarrassing. 
I have a definite dislike of spiders. I don’t fear them. I don’t hate them. I just prefer to not be in the same vicinity as a spider. This preference inspired my easy reader Jo and the Spider. Jo sees a spider in her bedroom. When she returns with her dad, the spider is gone. Where is it?
One night I went to the cupboard for a snack and saw a jar of honey. I wondered what it would be like to be honey - sticky, moist, gooey, sloppy, warm, sweet etc. But there was one big problem: you’d get eaten. From those thoughts came my book Mrs Twitch and the Small Black Box. Jess uses Mrs Twitch’s invention, the small black box, to become honey. She’s in danger of being eaten by her father.
A publisher asked me to write a number of non-fiction books. I was sitting at the kitchen table, wondering what subjects I could tackle, when I thought about milk. Then I decided that milk was too boring, been done to death etc. Green milk would be interesting. But wouldn’t green milk be Martian milk? This idea was the beginning of my novel Martian Milk. Paul doesn’t want to try Martian Milk because he’s afraid it will turn him into a Martian.
The Mad Mower came from my desire to have a twin to do all the boring things in life like housework, paying bills and walking my dogs, while I did all the fun things like going out with friends, watching football and reading. Tony creates a computer double and asks him to do various chores. Ah, if only life was that easy?
Have you ever had trouble sleeping and wished that you had someone to pass the time with, but everyone is asleep? In my easy-reader Chick Catches Dinner, the little chick can’t sleep and goes searching for company. She finds Hoot, a little owl, and has a fun but tiring night.
I was reading a book one afternoon. The child in the story had a teddy bear. After reading the words teddy bear, I thought to myself that I’d like to write a story about a teddy bear. My next story was called Old Teddy and was followed by Teddy’s Sticky Mess.
I was watching the television news one evening and saw a story on a seagull problem in a nearby town. The greedy seagulls had become a nuisance to residents and tourists. My story The Greedy Seagulls is nearing completion.
So you see, ideas are all around us. It’s your job as a writer to interpret the information you see all around you and turn it into your own creation!
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Robyn Opie. |
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Creating Believable Characters for Children’s Books
By richpat1 | August 27, 2010
If you’ve read my previous articles you’ll be aware that I’ve defined children’s books as books that feature a child as the main character and the audience is children.
So, let’s take a look at children as characters.
In picture books, no description of the characters is necessary. Picture books are highly visual and therefore all characters are obvious from the illustrations. When writing picture books, you have a limited number of words to work with and you can’t afford to waste words on unnecessary description.
The same can be said of easy readers and chapter books. These books still contain a lot of illustrations and a limited word count. Description should be restricted to what is essential to the plot.
For example, if you’re writing about a child who is bothered by their appearance - wearing glasses or being too small - then a limited amount of description is necessary.
A general guideline when writing these shorter books for young children is to only include what is essential for the story to make sense.
To make your character seem real to the reader you must think of him or her as a real person. People are around us every day. It’s useful to take bits and pieces from the people we know to create our characters. Be careful to always mix and match. Never use an entire person in a novel. That person may not appreciate it.
Always avoid stereotypes. They are boring and unimaginative. They are an example of lazy writing. Be creative.
A character comes alive through their actions and dialogue. Actions, in particular, will show a character’s personality. What they do and how they react largely depends on their personality, background and experience.
For example, a child who has been bitten by a dog will react differently when confronted by a strange dog than a child who has never experienced this trauma.
Believable characters always act consistently.
For example, in my book Working Like a Dog, Lucia wants new rollerblades. Her parents won’t buy them for her. She must save the money herself or go without. So Lucia decides to start a dog-walking service to earn money for new rollerblades. Later in the story Lucia loses two of the dogs. She worries about the dogs and spends a lot of time searching for them.
The action in this story shows Lucia’s character. She’s a likeable responsible young lady. She is prepared to earn the money to buy new rollerblades. She could have stolen the money or rollerblades. She could have bullied other children for their lunch money. She could have nagged her grandmother into giving her money or rollerblades.
When she loses the dogs, she could have left them to find their own way home. She could have lied to the owners about losing them.
Lucia is responsible when she decides to earn money to buy her own rollerblades. When she loses the dogs she is responsible and searches for them until she finds them.
Lucia acts consistently and her behaviour is believable.
Imagine if Lucia decided to lie to the dog owners about knowing what happened to their precious pooches. She could say that the dogs were missing when she went to walk them. This element of the plot would probably be hard to swallow considering what we already know about Lucia. She would suddenly seem unbelievable.
It is essential to know what your character wants - their motivation. And why they want it. Your character’s goal must be something that readers can relate to and care about.
Your readers must care about your character and be interested in their plight. Otherwise there is a good chance they’ll put your book down and never return to it.
You, the writer, must care about your character. If you don’t care about him or her then you can’t expect your readers to care either. To care about your character you need to know him or her well.
Sometimes writers use a habit or habits in an attempt to make a character appear real. Habits can take the form of action and dialogue. Maybe a character chews their nails or adds the word “like” to the beginning of too many sentences or wears a particular type of clothing.
Be careful when giving your characters habits. Too many habits can distract the reader from your story and become an annoyance.
Characters should be kept to a minimum in children’s fiction. Too many characters can confuse our young readers.
As children’s books become longer and your audience older, there is more room for character development. But it is important to remember that every word in your book should be essential to the plot.
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Robyn Opie. Author of 61 published books. To subscribe to her free newsletter go here: http://www.robynopie.com |
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Teddy Bears Should Be Given To All Children
By richpat1 | August 25, 2010
All children should get a teddy bear when they are young. It is meaningful for children to have a bear they can sleep with or be with. Teddy bears should be given when kids are young enough to appreciate the bear.
Most children that are given a teddy bear when they are young keep them for many years. It means a lot to kids, when they are given something they can hold on to for years. Many times children have tattered bears on their bed and in their rooms. These are the bears that mean the most!
Some parents try to throw out the bears, but most children are upset by this. This stuffed animal means a lot to them and most if able will dig the teddy out of the trash. Tattered as they are and some with stuffing coming out, they still love them and sleep with them.
Some nameable teddy bears are Thatcher and Tennyson. These two bears are the perfect gift to give a small child. They are between fourteen and eighteen inches in length, a great size for them to hold and play with.
Thatcher is a smooth soft cuddly bear, while Tennyson has fur that looks to be curly. Tennyson is not quite as soft as Thatcher, but all in all they both are cuddly in their own way.
There is no greater joy than seeing a face of a child when they open a gift of a teddy bear. Teddy bears can be given any time. You do not need a reason to give a teddy bear. Giving a teddy bear as a ?just because? gift is the best, the surprise is greater on the face of a child.
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Author is Michele Rogers, owner of http://www.lilyputts.com Lilyputts Gift Baskets , an online gift basket retailer. Also hosted is a http://www.lilyputts.blogspot.com BLOG that reviews gifts and welcomes other comments as well. Please visit Lilyputts Gift Baskets for descriptions and product presentations. |
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Children’s Books - How to Add More Style to Your Writing - Part 2
By richpat1 | August 22, 2010
In part one of how to make your creative writing more stylish, I looked at a number of ways to a children?s author could make their writing fresher. In Part two I look at more ways to make your writing, especially for children?s books, more enjoyable to read.
Stuffy words create a resistance in the reader. Avoid the use of grandiose words in your creative writing - ?use? is preferable to ?utilize?. If you are writing a children?s book, you can be sure that if a child has to consult a dictionary too often, they will soon lose interest in your book.
Avoid using excessive words. After you?ve written a scene, go back over it and ruthlessly chop out words that do not add anything to the action. Think carefully if what you?ve written really enhances your story or detracts from it.
Know who your readers are and the words in everyday life. Be careful of using jargon not appropriate for your readers. When writing for children, know the language of your readers. Expressions can quickly lose fashion, and expressions that were in vogue when you were young are quite likely ‘out? now. Words can date your writing e.g. authoress, air hostess are now author and flight attendant. If you use cool words to be right up to date, you risk dating your work so that in ten years time it sounds old-fashioned. If we were to read the word groovy in a book today, we would know that it comes from the 1960s era.
On the other hand, children quickly spot a fraud. If you do not feel comfortable using the jargon of the day, then do not! It is no use throwing in the expression ‘fully sick’ if the rest of your writing does not have the same tone.
Beware of dangling clauses.
For example: After eating all over America, that restaurant is my favorite.
In this example it reads as if the restaurant has been eating all over America. In every scene there should only be one witness. Beware of head hopping. It makes for very untidy writing to have more than one person per scene giving their observations.
For example: James wondered if Martha would really eat the strange fruit. He watched as she picked it off the branch and as she studied it intently. She took a big bite. Purple juices ran down her chin. James was astonished to see that her face was changing shape.
In the above example we see the scene through the eyes of James.
The use of active voice makes your work more dramatic. Active voice has more authority than passive voice because the verb becomes stronger.
Example of Passive - I was hit on the head by a giant pod.
Example of Active - A giant pod hit me on the head.
The use of onomatopoeia in children?s books is always well received. Children love words like sizzle, boom, bang and splatter - hence the success of the cartoon series Batman and Robin.
The above ideas are just some of the ways you can spice up your creative writing. However remember, in children?s books less is always more.
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Roslyn J. Motter is a Sydney, Australia based author. She is also a registered acupuncturist and CPA (Certified Public Accountant). She commenced writing her Doofuzz Dudes series late in life at the age of fifty. Now, three years later, she has already written eighteen books. She has recently published the first three books, The Doofuzz Dudes Rescue Moondar; The Doofuzz Dudes and the Princess Detector; and the Doofuzz Dudes and the Babbling Bottles. The series are fantasy adventure stories and are most suitable for children aged 7 - 12 years. Woven into the adventures is a subtle theme of caring for the environment. The books can be purchased at http://www.doodlesbookshop.com.au and excerpts and illustrations from the books are available for viewing on http://www.childrens-books.com.au and children can play games and win prizes on http://www.doofuzzdudesclub.com |
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Girls and Their Dogs - A Children’s Book Pick From the Writing for Children Center
By richpat1 | August 19, 2010
Wow! This is the ultimate book for any young girl who loves dogs. In fact, if this book had been around when I was about 8 or 10 years old, I would probably have slept with it under my pillow. At that time, dogs were the most important creatures in my world - as they are today to many young girls the world over.
Girls will love the stories about real dogs (and the girls who own them) that are just part of the great dog-related information in this jazzy new book from American Girl and Pleasant Company Publications. The book also includes links to online resources about dogs and special programs that involve dogs.
And girls will really have fun trying some of the recipes to create yummy treats for both dogs and their owners. They can whip up a batch of “Woof Woof Waffles” for their favorite dog - OR - try some “Puppycakes” (cupcakes decorated to look like dogs - you have to see these darling creations to truly appreciate the concept of puppycakes) for themselves and their “human” friends.
The book includes suggested names for pooches, doggie trading cards and mini-posters, and even tips for doodling a dog - creating cute pen-and-pencil pooches. A dog dictionary lets dog owners know just what their dog is trying to say when he yelps, barks, whines, or squeals. And dogs will appreciate their owners reading the section called “12 Ways to Love Dogs,” then following up with what they’ve learned.
Colorful photographs and other illustrations help make this book simply irresistible to dog-loving girls everywhere.
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Title: Girls and their Dogs Suzanne Lieurance is a children’s author, freelance writer, and The Working Writer’s Coach. Visit the Writing for Children Center at http://www.writingforchildren.com for more information about children’s books and other works for young readers, and also find out how to join the Children’s Writers Coaching Club. Sign up for The Morning Nudge - daily words of inspiration and motivation for writers at http://www.workingwriterscoach.com |
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History Written for Children
By richpat1 | August 17, 2010
When is history fun? When it is told or written in story form. Children are more responsive to stories of true events than they are to reading a conventional history book. Shirley Nelson author of ?What Happened Here?? saw the need for a local history book and wrote it so that children and adults would enjoy learning from it.
Shirley Nelson, author of What Happened Here, took time out from her very busy schedule to give us at Far West Books and Gifts an interview.
What made Shirley want to write a book about the history of this area (Coos and Curry counties, Oregon)? Shirley taught school in Medford, Oregon for several years. The last couple of years she taught fourth grade. At that time, fourth grade children learned Oregon History. Shirley thought they would enjoy stories more and they could learn history that way. She read to them stories about true events written in a way that children could understand. Shirley found that the children responded better to the stories written about history better than reading history.
When Shirley retired and moved here to Port Orford, Oregon, she started to learn about all the rich history of this area. Her idea was to write a book about the stories of the local history, a book which children would like and was in a simple vocabulary that children could understand but adults would read also. Many adults buy the book not only for themselves but for their children also. It was the idea that these stories are interesting, they tell us about who we are and where we come from. Shirley wanted to do it in a form that people would enjoy. There are many excellent history books written on this area, but they are big and long and technical. Many people will not pick them off the shelves and read them. (Shirley included a bibliography of Oregon History books in What Happened Here?)
What Happened Here? is in it?s second printing and available at several local stores. Far West Books and Gifts now has it available at our on-line store at booksatfarwest.com. What Happened Here? has received very good reviews from Librarians, Historians and other authors.
When you are ready to learn more about the local history of Coos and Curry counties of Southern Oregon, this book should be on your list. It has fourteen short stories about local stories and legends based on the history of Coos and Curry counties, five maps, 22 pictures and a historical time line from 1848 to 1945. It is also very informative to new residents or visitors of the area.
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Catherine Dahrens is the owner of Far West Books and Gifts, an on-line book store located at http://www.booksatfarwest.com |
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Choosing The Right Children’s Gift And Toy
By richpat1 | August 14, 2010
Take advantage of shopping online to help you save time. Instead of trekking out into the shopping malls to stand in lines, you can elect to do some or all of your gift shopping online and save the gasoline and the frustration. There are plenty of children?s gifts and toys available online that you can use for:
? Birthdays
? Graduations
? Christmas presents
? Religious occasions such as christenings, baptisms, dedications, confirmations, communions, bah mitzvahs
? Other occasions.
The Internet opens a wealth of opportunities to shop online. Take advantage of online reviews to read about what children?s gifts and toys are popular to help you decide on what to buy. Children can even create their own gift registry so that you can find out exactly what they want and are in need of. Here are some popular children?s gift and toy options that are a hit with the kids and are also readily available online:
1) NFL lockers
2) Floam
3) TV dance mat
4) Pool shark
When shopping for children?s gifts and toys, look for something with a good return policy incase the child on your list receives a duplicate. NFL lockers are a great gift for any boy?s bedroom or playroom. They feature the logo of the favorite team and a nameplate in a locker that can be a great tool to help organize the football fan?s bedroom. He?s going to love being able to look at his name on the official looking locker name plate and have a place to hang his things, store his football and other items as well as put things away in the compartment. This is a great gift!
Floam is a fantastic item for a crafty kid. This stuff is made of small micro beads that you can shape and play with. You can wrap Floam over other things, create shapes and animals and easily express artistic talent. It is removable, colorful and best of all, non-toxic. This is great children?s gift and toy for girls, especially.
The TV Dance Mat is a hit for kids and adults. It connects to your television set and lets everyone play the popular dancing arcade game right in their living room or playroom. There are several games and songs and you can get really competitive while doing a great cardio workout! Many parents complain that video games keep their children sedentary but this game encourages calorie burning for anyone who plays it.
The Pool Shark is another popular children?s gift and toy that can create a laugh at the pool or beach when the shark chases all the swimmers out of the water.
Children?s Gifts and toys are everywhere. They?re not hard to find but you do want to find an age appropriate gift that that child on your list will like you can do a little bit of online research to find the perfect gift. If you are aiming to surprise someone with a gift and don?t know what to get, speak to other kids that age for some hints and tips.
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This article was written by Aiden Bigeon, to talk about how to choose the right gift or toy for a child. With this said, I would highly recommend visiting Taylor Gifts to find out more about a wide variety of toys and gifts for children. |
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Children’s Books - How to Add More Style to Your Writing - Part 1
By richpat1 | August 11, 2010
When writing your children?s book, your should try to pay as much attention to style as you do to the construction of the story. Style is the elegance of the story, and without due regard to style, your book will be awkward and tedious to read.
The following are suggestions of ways to make your work more stylish.
Try to cut out superfluous descriptions in your creative writing. It is boring to read a long list of adjectives. In writing, less can be more. In particular, children respond well to simplicity.
When writing children?s books, try to keep your sentences short and succinct. Long winded sentences are boring for parents to read to their children and boring for children to read. Short sentences keep your story suspenseful and dramatic.
Be careful of using the words, ?began to? and ?starts to?. It is much better to write, ?he walked towards the forest?, rather than, ?he started to walk towards the forest?. If you think about it, there?s no such action as starting to do something.
Take care that you do not overuse a word. In fact, you probably will not even realize that you are repetitively using a word in your writing. The reality is that once a word pops into your head it is liable to pop up twice more in the same paragraph. The best way to discover these errant words is by reading your work out loud. ?Frightening? written twice in the same sentence will then stick out like a flashing light.
If you?re writing about a ravine, try to think of other ways to say the same thing. This adds variety so that your writing is fresher. Instead of repeating ?ravine? in a paragraph, use ?chasm?, ?cliff? and ?gorge?. These words have similar meanings and you?ll expand your reader?s vocabulary.
The overuse of a word right through the manuscript is another problem. You?ll need to reread your work very carefully to locate your favorite words, but some are ?well?, ?then?, ?so? and ?however?. When you find your favorite overused word, ruthlessly remove it by using the search feature in Microsoft Word.
Make up your own expressions in creative writing. Clich?s such as ?as pure as the driven snow? and ?short and sweet? lose their impact over time and are mundane to read. Invent your own expressions for an exciting difference.
Be sure that there is absolute clarity in your writing. When you use ?he/she? and ?they?, make sure it is clear to whom they are referring.
For example: Martha met Hillary at the shopping mall. She looked completely exhausted. In this example it is unclear if the word ?she? refers to Martha or Hillary.
The above are just a few examples of how you can keep your writing fresh and clear. Part two will give further examples of how to make your writing more stylish.
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Roslyn J. Motter is a Sydney, Australia based author. She is also a registered acupuncturist and CPA (Certified Public Accountant). She commenced writing her Doofuzz Dudes series late in life at the age of fifty. Now, three years later, she has already written eighteen books. She has recently published the first three books, The Doofuzz Dudes Rescue Moondar; The Doofuzz Dudes and the Princess Detector; and the Doofuzz Dudes and the Babbling Bottles. The series are fantasy adventure stories and are most suitable for children aged 7 - 12 years. Woven into the adventures is a subtle theme of caring for the environment. The books can be purchased at http://www.doodlesbookshop.com.au and excerpts and illustrations from the books are available for viewing on http://www.childrens-books.com.au and children can play games and win prizes on http://www.doofuzzdudesclub.com |
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Teddy Bears Should Be Given To All Children
By richpat1 | August 9, 2010
All children should get a teddy bear when they are young. It is meaningful for children to have a bear they can sleep with or be with. Teddy bears should be given when kids are young enough to appreciate the bear.
Most children that are given a teddy bear when they are young keep them for many years. It means a lot to kids, when they are given something they can hold on to for years. Many times children have tattered bears on their bed and in their rooms. These are the bears that mean the most!
Some parents try to throw out the bears, but most children are upset by this. This stuffed animal means a lot to them and most if able will dig the teddy out of the trash. Tattered as they are and some with stuffing coming out, they still love them and sleep with them.
Some nameable teddy bears are Thatcher and Tennyson. These two bears are the perfect gift to give a small child. They are between fourteen and eighteen inches in length, a great size for them to hold and play with.
Thatcher is a smooth soft cuddly bear, while Tennyson has fur that looks to be curly. Tennyson is not quite as soft as Thatcher, but all in all they both are cuddly in their own way.
There is no greater joy than seeing a face of a child when they open a gift of a teddy bear. Teddy bears can be given any time. You do not need a reason to give a teddy bear. Giving a teddy bear as a ?just because? gift is the best, the surprise is greater on the face of a child.
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Author is Michele Rogers, owner of http://www.lilyputts.com Lilyputts Gift Baskets , an online gift basket retailer. Also hosted is a http://www.lilyputts.blogspot.com BLOG that reviews gifts and welcomes other comments as well. Please visit Lilyputts Gift Baskets for descriptions and product presentations. |
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