Writing for Children Quote from L'Engle

"You have to write whichever book it is that wants to be written. And then, if it's going to be too difficult for grown-ups, you write it for children."

- Madeleine L'Engle

This great quote came to my attention from Melissa Henderson, Head of Children's Services, The Glencoe Public Library, Glencoe, IL.

Writing Tip #8: Seeing Opportunities

On the final edit of a manuscript, my editor writes each question or request for a change on a post-it note and folds it over the page. Let's just say there's a post-it note on almost every page. This photo shows the final edit of Invisible Lines, a book I spent six years writing and rewriting. After having wrestled with this manuscript so much on my own, I could be overwhelmed to see so many comments at this last stage. Instead of getting depressed or defensive, I try to look at each suggestion as an opportunity to make the book better. It's the only way to survive.

Writing Tip #7: Entrances and Exits

Think of your book as a stage. The curtain opens. How does each character enter? If you have developed a dramatic character, make sure the entrance does your character justice. And pay attention to how your characters exit, too. Is each entrance and exit perfectly crafted to suit the character and the story?

Writing Tip #6: Listen to Fifth Graders

Here's just part of the two-page letter a fifth grader from Bordentown, NJ, wrote after reading my book, The Naked Mole-Rat Letters:

“I liked that you made the main character, Frankie, so bold and brave. If she was boring, it would make the book boring. By the way the character acts, it can make a story either really interesting or really boring. Since she was so bold, it gave the book action. I hate boring books.”

I think my reader hit on the reason why this book actually made it. Frankie's story begins with an autobiographical detail: she finds a love letter written to her father. The same thing happened to me when I was Frankie's age; however the autobiography ends there. I was timid and kept all my anxieties to myself--not such interesting material for a book. I deliberately gave Frankie the boldness that I didn't have.

Is your character passive or active? Ask yourself: what does the main character actually do in the story? It's an important question to ask.