Why Writing For Children Can Be the Perfect Job for You

Read on to find out what the Perfect Job for Stay-at-home moms could be.

If you're a stay-at-home mom with small children, writing for kids can be the perfect part-time job for you. Here's why:

1) You're in contact with kids 24/7, so you know what kids think about and how they talk. This can be very helpful when trying to develop story lines that kids would enjoy reading. It will also help you write dialogue that sounds like things kids would actually say these days.

As a mom, you probably also read many picture books to your own child or children. And, as every writer knows, one of the best ways to learn to write picture books and other stories for children, is to READ these types of materials. So just think - each time you read to your child, you'll also be doing something to develop your own career as a writer.

2) Since your full time job is taking care of your family, you'll probably only have short snatches of time during the day and evening to write. But this is perfect for writing short works for kids - things like picture books, easy readers, and even magazine articles and short-stories.

And, if you carry a pocket-size notebook with you during the day, while you're watching the kids play at the park, or supervising them as they go about their daily chores, you can take notes for story or articles ideas. And, please note, it IS important to jot down a few notes about your ideas. Otherwise, by the end of the day you will have forgotten them.

3) In addition to writing stories and articles FOR kids, you will also develop a wealth of topics for writing ABOUT kids - articles for parenting magazines, for example, or even tips for classroom teachers.

And, there are usually at least a couple of small regional parenting publications in every large city, so you can gain publishing credits by starting out writing for these publications. If you're good at it, you might even eventually gain your own regular column in one of these publications.

4) You can develop professional connections and associations with other moms who write, so you'll have other adults to communicate with on a regular basis every day. Many moms can feel isolated when their only contact during the day is with their children. But as a children's writer and mom, you can become part of a professional network of other stay-at-home moms who write for children.

5) You'll build up your writing skills and publishing credits through the years, so by the time your children have grown and left the nest, you will probably be able to make the transition from part time children's writer to full time children's writer fairly easily if you so desire.
As you can see, for moms who like to write, writing for children offers the perfect part-time career.

Click here to join the Children's Writer's Coaching Club and learn how to write for children.

Learn to write for children


Find out how you can get a free ebook called "Tricks of the Trade: How to Write for Children," plus additional information about writing for kids, by visiting the National Writing for Children Center at http://www.writingforchildrencenter.com or Suzanne Lieurance's website at http://www.suzannelieurance.com

Brilliante Weblog Promo - 2008 Award

I am honored that Donna McDine of Write What Inspires You awarded me the honor of the Brilliante Weblog Promo -2008 Award.

Donna and I were part of the Children's Writing Coaching Club earlier this year. Donna's career is taking off like gang busters. Every time I look around she is getting accepted. Her most recent acceptance was her article "Sports Buddies" for Hopscotch for Girls to be published 2014.

That seems like a long way off but I learned from Donna that it is common for many publishers to plan years ahead. It does give a writer a good sense of security. In addition this also means that Donna's words are timeless and will always be applicable. Congratulations Donna.

To learn more about Donna, visit her at http://donna-mcdine.blogspot.com/

Following are my nominations for the Brilliante Weblog Promo Award 2008

Terri Forehand


http://heartfeltwords4kids.blogspot.com/


Dorothy Massey


http://kidsbooksuk.blogspot.com/



Here are the rules for the next recipients of the Brillante Weblog Promo 2008 Award, established in 2005:

l. The award may be displayed on a winner’s blog.
2. Add a link to the person who you received the award from.
3. Nominate up to seven other blogs.
4. Then add their links to your blog.
5. Add a message to each person that you have passed the award on to in the comments section of their blog.

Write it down,

Carma

A Single Shard: YA Novel Book Review

Title: A Single Shard

Author: Linda Sue Park

Publisher: Clarion books (April 23 2001)

Hardcover: 152 pages

Age Group: 9 to 12

ISBN: 10-0395978270

ISBN: 13-978-0395978276

Historical fiction novel, A Single Shard, is the 2002 Newbery Medal award winner. Sometimes you can get a hint of a story by the title. At first glance the title threw me off because it did not sound like the type of book a ten or 12-year old would read. Linda Sue Park gives readers insight to an unfamiliar period of twelfth-century Korea which chronicles the life of an orphan, a homeless man and a talented potter.

Tree-ear was named for a “mushroom that grows without benefit of parents” by Crane Man who was so called because of his one shriveled leg. No one knows where Tree-ear came from. Rumor had it that his parents were killed in an accident.

In order to survive Tree-ear rummages through garbage dumps and scavenges for food every day and if he is lucky he is able to pick up some left over rice that no one wants. Crain-man, who is a straw weaver, tries to do his part but because of his disability he is only able to manage some scavenging near the rivers edge where they live. Crane-man is the only family Tree-ear has ever known.

Tree-ear made a habit of stopping at potter Min’s outdoor studio to watch him create delicate celadon pottery. One day Tree-ear accidentally breaks a pot. In order to pay for damages, Tree-ear goes into servitude for nine days and ends up working full time for the potter. Naturally Tree-ear hopes Min will teach him the pottery trade but Min has no intention of training a boy who is not related to him. Min and Tree-ear begin a precarious relationship. This is a well-developed account of triumph of a boy who shouldn't have overcome the odds but did.

This story is well worth reading. The passages describing how this beautiful celadon pottery was made over 700 years ago will intrigue any reader. Park’s dialogue and prose are a prime example of the adage for writers. “Show don’t tell.”

About the Author: Linda Sue Park

Linda Sue Park was born and raised in Illinois. The daughter of Korean immigrants, she has been writing poems and stories since she was 4 years old, and her favorite thing to do as a child was read.

Park was first published when she was 9 years old. She was paid one whole dollar for a haiku that ran in a children's magazine. Her father still has the one-dollar check in a frame above his desk.

Write it down,

Carma

How To Make Money Writing How To's

Are you an article writer with all kinds of helpful hints but don't know how to organize them? Surf on over to 3Questions...and Answers blog and read her article "Website Wants You...to Write How-To" It is full of examples, a How-To template and well researched information.

In addition, check out her interview with Journalist/novelist Janice Harayda. A few good links are scattered through out plus you can go over to Janice's website and look around.

Write it down,

Carma

Skellig: A Book Review

Title: Skellig
Author: David Almond
Reading level: Ages 9-12
Paperback: 182 pages
Publisher: Laurel Leaf (September 11, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0440229081
ISBN-13: 978-0440229087

Skellig has a distinctive British feel to it but it is not confusing to American readers. Author, David Almond, never defines who Skellig really is other than in the context of a fantasy character. The short chapters make the story move smoothly forward and entice the reader to want more.

Michael, his baby sister and his parents move into what the real estate agent calls a fixer upper but Michael sees it for what it is. A horrible dump where the floor is full of cracks and holes. The old rickety abandoned shed out in the yard is another eyesore and Michael is warned to stay out. Of course as soon as you tell a teenager don’t go in there, what do you think he or she will do? Michael never imagines he will see anything other than junk and a mouse or two. When he steps into the dusty structure his first look at Skellig is astonishing. Michael thinks he may never see him again or if he is even real.

“He was lying there in the darkness behind the tea chests, in the dust and dirt. It was as if he’d been there forever. He was filthy and pale and dried out and I thought he was dead. I couldn’t have been more wrong. I’d soon begin to see the truth about him, that there’d never been another creature like him in the world.”

Skellig is neither pure fantasy nor realistic fiction but rather a blend of both. Michael soon meets his home-schooled neighbor, Mina who has a passion for William Blake’s poetry, a vast knowledge of birds and a low opinion of public schools. Mina and Michael become close friends and Michael shares his secret about Skellig with her. Together they mend Skellig’s weakening body and move him to a secret hiding place away from danger of being discovered. During the move Michael brushes his hands across Skellig’s back and feels what appears to be a pair of wings.

The mysterious connection between Skellig, Michael, his sister and Mina is expertly woven by Almond’s magical and poignant prose. The story line hovers between life and death for Michael’s sister and Skellig’s own failing health. Everything about Skellig is up to interpretation by the reader. However, there is a tension of magnetism about Skellig that draws the reader into the individual qualities of nature versus nurture. Michael’s father and mother nurture their critically ill daughter, Michael nurtures Skellig and Mina nurtures the little birds and owls in the empty house her grandfather left her.

The book is written for an audience of eight to twelve year olds but I believe many adults will enjoy this story because it shows the value of friendship, family unity, trust and love.

Write it down,

Carma

Are You Making These 10 Mistakes in Article Writing?

1. There's no point. Is there a clear focus to your article, or is it just a rambling of opinions and ideas? Using the structure of a Top 10 list should help.
2. There's no space. Is there enough white space for the reader in between ideas? A good rule of thumb is four lines maximum per paragraph. If you're publishing an HTML newsletter with a sidebar, that could be as few as one or two sentences!
3. There's no discretion. Oh my goodness!!! Are you overusing exclamation marks? If it's really that important, tell us why! Otherwise you're just distracting your reader.
4. There's no reader. Are you talking AT your reader or TO them? Ask them questions, use the word "you," and take a conversational tone in your writing. Try reading your articles out loud as you write; imagine a client is listening.
5. There's no end. Do your sentences tend to run on and on? Don't make it hard work to read your articles, or your readers won't stay with you. Write clearly and your ideas will be read, understood and shared.
6. There's no action. Do you let your reader off the hook with passive language? Pull them in by using lots of action words for things they should do, or to describe things you or others have already done.
7. There's no logic. Are you confusing your reader by combining too many points in the same paragraph? Use a clear and concise structure to separate your ideas.
8. There's no match. What is the focus of your list? If it's problem-focused, or a "don't" list (Top 10 mistakes, Top 10 symptoms, etc.), then that's what the header of each point should be. If it's solution-focused, or a "do" list (Top 10 ways to, Top 10 tips, etc.), then ALL of your list items should reflect that.
9. There's no magic. Do your list item titles (mini-headlines) stand out and attract attention? Choose a similar short phrase or keyword for each, rather than a full sentence. Make each mini-headline approximately the same length.
10. There's no invitation. Have you ever heard Andrea Lee say, "A confused mind always says no"? In the Author Resource box at the end of your article, make it clear which ONE action you'd like the reader to take - preferably to visit your website and sign-up for your free gift.
(c) Linda Dessau.

Linda Dessau is an editor, ghostwriter and certified coach, and is the author of The Customizable Style Guide for Coaches Who Write: Look Smarter, Write Faster and Get Better Results from Your Writing. Want more secrets to good writing? Visit http://www.forcoacheswhowrite.com to pick up your FREE copy of the Readability Secrets for Coaches Who Write. It includes a 5-point checklist that is guaranteed to improve your writing.

Write it down,

Carma

Why You Should Hire A Writing Coach

A writer needs a coach just as an athlete does. Although writing is not an athletic sport, (unless you count the activity of pacing back and forth in your office while you tear your hair out trying to figure out what to write,) it is a specialized profession. A coach is a specialized expert in their field.

Click on the Children's Writer's Coaching Club logo in the sidebar. Find out how Suzanne Lieruance can help you get your writing for children's career off the ground.

Following are five reasons why you need a writing coach.

1. Increase productivity. Free up more time for writing. Work like cooking, washing dishes or cleaning house is unproductive for writers. This type of work can be delegated to other family members or if your budget allows it, hire someone else to do it.
2. Earn more money. Your writing coach will teach you how write top notch query and cover letters leading to great writing jobs. Also, a writing coach will show you where to look for jobs.
3. Generate desired results. You are your own worst critics. A coach can be objective and open your eyes to your positive attributes.
4. Receive self-esteem support. It is easy to feel depressed when creativity seems to get stuck. You may feel inadequate and the knee-jerk reaction is to beat your self up. A coach can show you how to combat against writing blocks.
5. Shatter Procrastination. All the planning and goal setting in the world will not help you become a best selling author unless you apply action. A writing coach is there for you every inch of the way. Each time you cry out "It's too hard", your coach will tell you yes it is hard but you can do it!

A writing coach gives support, listens and teaches. If your writing career is not going where you want it to go you need a coach. It's time to get off the fence. Suzanne Lieurance is The Working Writer's Coach and the director of The National Writing for Children Center.

Write it down,

Carma