Children's Writer's Coaching Club Releases February 2008 Weekly Teleclass Schedule

The Children's Writers' Coaching Club at the National Writing for Children Center has an exciting schedule of weekly teleclasses set for February. Just look at this lineup of topics:

Thursday, February 7, 2008, at 7:00 p.m. central time Author Lila Guzman will present a 55-minute teleclass about writing historical biographies for young readers

Wednesday, February 13, 2008, at 4:00 pacific time Author Margot Finke will present a 55-minute teleclass called Picture (Book) Perfect

Thursday, February 21, 2008, time TBA Author Simon Rose will present Part 1 of a 2 part teleclass about writing science fiction and fantasy for young readers

Thursday, February 28, 2008, at 2:00 p.m. Eastern time, Rita Milios will present a 55-minute teleclass called The Lucrative Educational Market: Where Do YOU fit In? (this is session 1 in the Writing for Children's Educational Markets Series)

Join the CWCC today and get ready for these informative, fun, LIVE teleclasses. As a club member you'll also receive the link to a recording of each session, so you can listen to it at your own convenience when you are unable to attend the live class.

As a coaching club member, you also receive short weekly writing lessons and assignments and weekly manuscript critique telesessions, where your manuscript is read by at least one (often more) published children's book author. All this for ONLY $27.00 per month. How could you go wrong?

Click Below to Join.



The Children's Writers
Coaching Club


Write it down,
Carma

Do You Write for Free or for Fun and Profit?

Who has not written for free, especially in the beginning of your career? My quandary is how long is beginning supposed to last?

Nonetheless, as I sat bemoaning the fact that I don’t have any “traditional publishing credits” and all I can do is write for free, Tiffany’s post, “The Controversial Writers Meme—at long last” at Rockstories popped up. Thank goodness I subscribe. I recommend you go over and check her out.

This is the headline that grabbed me.

Guidelines are critical; job requirements are not.

This is especially what I needed to hear today. In part, Tiffany wrote: As a writer, you're not selling your background or experience--you're selling your ability to write.

Where I come from, background and experience is all important (must be the civil servant in me) so that is why this post encouraged me. Go on over and read the rest of her post. I am taking this statement and posting it by my computer screen.

How does one write for Fun and Profit? It is easy for a new writer, like me or you, to become overwhelmed with all the tips and instructions that are out there because it is not easy to know which tip is reliable when you are new to this line of work.

I for one have jumped at too many “EBooks” on how to earn X amount of money by making purple widgets. It is painful at times to look at my PDF file in my computer to see all those un-read books taking up valuable bytes. Downloading Ebooks is akin to walking into a B & N where every new book on self improvement, writing or etc is begging me to take them home.

I know you all are book lovers like me so take this Ebook Writing for Fun and Profit by Brian Scott home with you and find out how it will help give your writing the confident jump it needs.

Write it down,

Carma

A Walk in the Rain with a Brain

Written by Edward M. Hallowell, M.D.
The age group is 4 – 8 years
Published by Harper Collins
Illustrated by Bill Mayer

Sadly, children do not receive enough encouragement to develop their own unique talents, skills and attitudes. Often some children get overlooked at school and at home if they don't measure up to the so called "norm". Dr. Hallowell’s book, A Walk in the Rain with a Brain reinforces the significant message that no brain is smarter than the other. The illustrations in the book are richly drawn in a cartoon manner that I think young children will be attracted too as well.

The story’s central character is a girl named Lucy who discovers a brain on the ground named Manfred (Fred for short) as she plays outside in the rain. Lucy asks Fred to make her smart. “Everyone’s smart,” Fred told her, “You just need to find out at what.”

As Lucy helps Fred to find his head, he tells her a story about how his other brain friends used to feel when they were told they weren’t smart, but you’ll have to read the story to find out what happened.

This imaginary tale is delightful and can be a helpful teaching guide for parents and teachers with its fact based discussion guide in the back of the book. Dr. Hallowell writes that with proper guidance every child can develop to the fullest of the talents that they are born with. Hallowell says “Not all kids know that brains run the show.”

Edward M. Hallowell, M.D. is a noted psychiatrist and an internationally acknowledged expert on ADD. Also Dr. Hallowell is director of the Hallowell Center for Cognitive and Emotional Health in Concord Mass. The center is an outpatient treatment center service for children and adults with a wide range of emotional and learning problems.

Write it down,

Carma

Learn to Write for Children!

If you'd like to become a published children's book author yourself, join the Children's Writers' Coaching Club like I did, at the National Writing for Children Center and get the help you need to succeed.

Just look at all you get for only $27.00 per month when you become a member of this fantastic club:

* Four 55-minute teleclasses EVERY month. Each teleclass is taught by a successful children's book author and/or illustrator who knows the "tricks of the trade" of children's writing, illustrating, and publishing.

* The opportunity to have one of your manuscripts professionally critiqued EVERY week during a LIVE manuscript critique telesession. This means you can have up to four manuscripts professionally critiqued each month. This alone is worth well over $27.00 per month. You also receive the link to a recording of each of these weekly sessions, so you can learn from these critiques whether or not you're able to attend the LIVE sessions.

* A short, short assignment EVERY Monday morning, via email, designed to help you improve your skills in some aspect of children's writing and/or publishing or promotion. You can submit your completed assignments for evaluation each week.

* The opportunity to network daily via an online discussion list with other members of the CWCC, as well as the instructors. Join the Children's Writers' Coaching Club today and you'll be on your way to creating your own part time or full time career as a published children's book author and/or illustrator.

Click here to find out how to join.

Write it down,

Carma

When Your Butt Hits the Chair

Your hands are poised over the keyboard, elbows are bent. You feel the raised hyphen on J and F as you position your fingers over the keys. The printer is full of paper, computer is on and cursor is blinking at the top of the page.


The second hand taunts with Tick... tock...... tick.... tock.....

Hands are poised over the keyboard, You double check your finger position as you feel the raised hyphens again over F and J. Your elbows are still bent, printer is still full of paper, Word doc is open and the cursor is beckoning like Ahab's finger... type... type... type... type...


AAArrghhhhh!


Does this happen more often than you would like? Me too.


When this happens to me I go looking for prompts and motivation either by reading one of my books or online. I ran across a few neat sites that may be able to do the trick for you if you haven't heard of them yet. Let me share them with you.


Creative Writing Prompts

As always the Writers Digest is always a great resource.


And The Teacher's Corner

Write it down,

Carma

Blogging Versus Writing

I was reading Dwaud Miracle’s post about “I’d like to blog but I can’t write” and was moved to put in my 2 cents on my blog instead of commenting on his. Besides maybe a new reader will stop by and check out his blog, therefore spreading the link love.

I agree that someone who maintains and develops a blog does not have to be a writer. The crème de la crème of writing a blog is the message. Communicate your message effectively and passionately and the mechanics of writing will develop naturally.

What we believe will determine our attitudes toward that one thing. Since whatever you believe about yourself will end up affecting what you do, you can be sure that if you believe you are not a writer, your belief will turn out to be correct, true or not.

Belief does not require that something be true, it only requires that YOU believe it to be true.

If you believe you are a writer, then by golly you ARE a writer. Just because you can’t spell good doesn’t mean you can’t write substance. After all that is why there are people in the business of editing.

What you believe can also work against you. Let’s say you believed you had trouble being accepted easily by others. As a result you found yourself standing back at parties and unsure of yourself. This can harm your self esteem. Most of the beliefs we have of ourselves are not true but our mind will believe if we let it.

Are our beliefs like birth marks? Do our beliefs one day spring out of no where? Our beliefs are not accidents of nature.

Write it down,

Carma