Writing for Children - Catherine Woolley

Writing For Children is a hopeful book, written from the standpoint that anyone can eventually get published. She exhorts aspiring writers to refine their craft and not to get discouraged. The first part of the book deals with creating character. The story should be told from the viewpoint of the main character that needs to be a child. This viewpoint should remain consistent never lapsing into an adult tone of voice. This character needs to be introduced right at the start. The action should take place within the immediate vicinity of the main character and not related to him through the report of another. She also stresses the importance of the author knowing the main character very well. After all, the story will be told through that character’s brain. Authors need to know from the beginning a character’s looks, likes and dislikes, family relationships, friends and enemies.

Most of the story needs to be told through dialogue and action and not in exposition. As with other types of writing, the first line and first paragraphs are crucial for pulling in the reader. The book should also appeal to all of the reader’s senses. She specifically emphasized smell and taste because all children love to eat.

Authors need to know about their settings- the floor plan of the main character’s house, what furniture is in each room, and other details. If it’s a ranch, where’s the barn. What does the inside of the barn look like? Details of setting and character need to be summarized so that the author will stay consistent even with the smallest points.

Much of her book stresses balancing dialogue, action, and description to maintain a reader’s attention. If there’s too much dialogue, the reader could loose the plot. If there’s too much description, the reader could loose interest. If there’s too much action, the reader could just get tired.

For general writing advice, Woolly emphasizes the importance of writing a text all the way through and then waiting weeks or even months till you re-read it. The lapse of time gives an author a more objective editorial frame of mind. In the final part of the book Woolly briefly tackles the business of writing. She writes about editors, agents, contacts, royalties etc.

Woolley’s book was easy to read and turned out to have useful writing tips for any fiction author.