What are the different types of editing and how are they different from one another? I get this question a lot, so I thought I’d answer it here on our blog. There are 3 main types of editing and they’re usually tackled in this order: 1. Developmental Editing Developmental Editing is a holistic look at…
Hook Kids’ Attention With Your Writing
by Marcia T. Jones and Debbie Dadey Between the Internet, Nintendo and the TV remote how can “boring” books compete? Marcia T. Jones and Debbie Dadey explain what it takes to grab a kid’s attention and hold onto it from the beginning to “the end.” One chance. That’s all kids will give you before they toss…
Hook Your Readers With Tension
by Laura Backes Tension. Without it, life would be–let’s face it–boring. So would fiction. Tension works with conflict to raise the emotional level of the text to a boiling point. It forces the reader to become invested in the story. But many children’s book writersare afraid to apply too much tension to their plots. They…
9 Tips for Writing Stories
by Sid Fleishman Here are a few writing tips drawn from the pages of The Abracadabra Kid, A Writer’s Life. 1. It’s the job of the hero or heroine to solve the story problem: don’t leave it to a second-banana character like Uncle Harry. You’d know something was wrong if Watson solved the crime instead of Sherlock…
Three Act Structure Chart
This handy chart was created by Advanced Fiction Writing student David Lovelock, who explained: When constructing outlines for a novel, I like to create a one-page overview that allows me to visualize and move my ideas around. Attached is what I’ve created to help with creating the main points of a Three Act Structure. I…
Intensive Research Is Important for Children”s Nonfiction
by Donya Dickerson, from Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market Author Robie Harris” books It”s Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health and It”s So Amazing!: A Book About Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families focus on sexual health for kids. Here, Harris talks about the process of doing extensive research as she prepared her manuscripts. Robie Harris never…
Why Write Screenplays?
I was a novelist before I was a screenwriter. And, like most novelists, I firmly believed the book was always (well, okay, almost always) better. So why write screenplays? I found my answer when I had an idea I was convinced was going to be a novel. It had a great protagonist and an interesting…
Analysis: Moana (2016)
Moana has been on my mind recently thanks to Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s adorable video singing his rap to his one-year-old. Like most kid’s movies, Moana’s structure is impeccable. And, like most musicals, some of the nine story structure checkpoints even get their own song! Here’s how this movie breaks down: Act 1 Hook The…
Tips for Working/Writing from Home
Right now, many people are in the unexpected situation of having to figure out how to effectively work from home. Those who don’t work (or can’t work from home in self-quarantine ) are also facing the prospect of figuring out how to live, pursue hobbies, and relax in the same space with minimal or no…
Analysis: The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
Like many romance novels, this book has two protagonists. That means there are two complete sets of story structure checkpoints woven together. First, here’s a quick summary: Stella Lane is a smart woman. She loves numbers, statistics, and algorithms. She has very little dating or sexual experience because, frankly, she doesn’t find it that appealing….