Picture Book Writer Series: The Hard Work Lecture

No matter how old people are or their feelings about reading, they have fond memories of picture books. These memories can range from reading with parents or grandparents at night books like, The Monster at the End of This Book or The True Story of the Three Little Pigs or just about any Golden Book. Memories, of row after row of hardback picture books with white tags on the spine in a school library or even a public one, are also front and center in readers' minds. Maybe some of these picture books were the first ones that you learned to read as a child, and now you are sharing your favorites with your kids--Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? or Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. 

Gosh, picture books are just fun, right?

I'm a picture book writer with two published books, Maggie Mae: Detective Extraordinaire: The Case of the Missing Cookies and That's the Way It Always Happened. My publishing company has also published two picture books in the Perky Pet Problems picture book series by Fred Olds: The Dog and the Flea: A Tale of Two Opposites and The Cat, the Mouse, and the Neighbor's Dog:A Tale of Problem Solving. I've read countless manuscripts and advised multiple picture book writers, and so I feel like I'm pretty well-versed in the genre, and I'm here to say...

1. They aren't as easy as they look.

2. Pay as much attention or more to these manuscripts as you would a novel while writing and revising them.

This is part one of a four-part series on picture book writing for The Muffin. (Part two will be on Dos and Don'ts, part three will focus on illustrations, and part four will be about marketing.) Today's post is a lecture. It is--I'm sorry. Experts tell us not to be preachy, and I started writing this post thinking that I wouldn't be. But then I felt myself taking a step up onto my soapbox and fully planting myself on it, holding a megaphone to shout out: "If you have such fond memories of picture books from when you were young, and if your kids do too, then your readers deserve picture books that can give them those same kind of fond memories!" 

Let's start with three main tips:

1. Know what kind of picture book you're writing. If you're writing a concept book, like Brown Bear, Brown Bear, then own it--put those concepts in the manuscript for your preschool audience and make the story fun and creative because there's not a concept that hasn't been covered. Fred's The Dog and the Flea is a concept book with a story--the concept is opposites, and the back-of-the book activities explain what opposites are and why dog and flea are in a book about opposites. Plus, there's a matching activity that kids can do with their parents to reinforce the concept of opposites. Commit to your concept, and be original. 

2. If you're writing a rhyming book, read it out loud--as many times as you can, into a tape recorder, to your partner, or kids. You know that it's not just about the rhyming words at the end of the lines--we aren't writing a grade school poem for our parents. The text has to have rhythm. It's one of the reasons why I publish Fred's rhyming books. He has a natural talent for rhyming and the rhythm. The book is like a song--we could probably put music to The Cat, the Mouse, and the Neighbor's Dog. 

3. Give those kids in the book a problem. Just like middle grade and young adult readers need to see themselves in the starring roles of the books they read and facing and solving challenges, so do our youngest readers. In That's the Way It Always Happened, my main character, Lucy, has trouble listening, and she has to figure out a way to listen to her teacher before the end of the week, or she might mess up the big cheer they're doing for Red Ribbon Week. If you aren't writing a concept book or a non-fiction book for kids, then you need a problem in your story--even if you're writing in rhyme. Stories need conflict! 

I meet a lot of picture book writers. Some hire me to help them improve their manuscripts. Most of the drafts I read are lovely, fun, interesting ideas for young readers. But making these drafts into publishable books takes work. (Don't worry the lecture is almost over!) Research the market. Read picture books like the ones you want to write. Study rhyme and rhythm with experts, like Dr. Seuss or Tedd Arnold. Make sure the story is solid with story elements, such as problems/solutions, rising and falling action, and character growth and motivation. Then remember, illustrations help tell the story--that's why you can get by with so few words, but those words have to be spectacular.

You can be the next Eric Carle, Patricia Polacco, Mo Willems, or my author pal, Fred Olds, publishing his first children's books at 91! You can be a great children's writer. But it will take work, just like being a novelist does. Stay tuned for part two on dos and don'ts, coming up next time I blog in a couple weeks! 

Margo L. Dill is a writer, editor, and publisher, living in St. Louis, MO. Check out more about her at https://www.margoldill.com. If you are interested in hiring her as a picture book editor, check out her writers' services here. She's picture to the left in a crown--it's probably gone to her head, and that's why she started lecturing...

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6 comments kids books, Margo L. Dill, picture books, Writing Picture Books

Trying To Get a Book Published Is Not So Easy...

Last week, I announced that I would have a new picture book out titled, Listen, Lucy! Listen! A Red Ribbon Week Adventure, and I do! I did it! I got the book out before a lot of schools are celebrating Red Ribbon Week and before the National Family Partnership's Red Ribbon Week dates of October 23 to October 31, 2019. I am thrilled.

But getting to this point was not easy. I share this story with you today for a couple reasons:

1. Maybe your own road to publication is not going as smoothly as you hoped, and you are feeling stuck with limited options.

2. My story is not atypical for any creative area--whether you write novels, paint landscapes, photograph family portraits, or create Christmas wreaths. Being creative, producing your work, and selling it is not for the faint of heart--but it is possible. "Where there's a will, there's a way."

I wrote this picture book over fifteen years ago when a friend of mine told me she was having trouble finding a good Red Ribbon Week book to share with her students. She said there are a lot of books--nonfiction--that talk about saying NO to drugs, but not many with a story that is also entertaining. So I wrote this manuscript; and of course, I revised and revised and tinkered and debated and all the things that picture book writers do.

Then I found a publisher. It was a small, regional publisher who was getting into picture books, and she had high hopes for a series of Lucy books, and so did I! She found an illustrator who worked in water color. We signed a contract for royalties, and I was even assigned an editor. The artist finished her illustrations, and there were a few back and forths about the cover and a couple of the illustrations, and then...NOTHING. I mean NOTHING.

Eventually, I discovered that the publisher suffered from some family problems and physical ailments and went out of business or at least stopped publishing anything new, and I gave up on Lucy. Until...everyone started self-publishing their books and doing well. It's very hard for a picture book author to self-publish because you have to find an illustrator, and your book price is hard to set as inexpensive if you print them in color because that is not cheap. But the brain wheels started turning and turning and turning, and finally, I contacted the illustrator and asked if she had the originals.

That was about two years ago, and I did nothing until the spring of this year. I realized that I had the capability to create a PDF of this book--but then I was still stalling. I had a form of writer's block until I began listening to podcasts on book marketing. One point the podcasters talk a lot about is giving something away for free when someone signs up for your email list. Before this picture ebook, I had designed a practical parenting worksheet for email newsletter subscribers, but I wanted to give something more. The lightbulb went off, and I decided my free gift would be Listen, Lucy! Listen!

Once I decided I would give this book away for free and use it as a marketing tool, the design took off, and I finished it up in a few weeks with my critique group looking over it to make sure it was done well. And then I emailed the illustrator to tell her I had finally decided what to do with Lucy and that she could use it to giveaway, too, and...

no email back.

I started to worry, and so I turned to Google, and sure enough, Pam Withroder, my illustrator, had died last year. Ugh. She never got to see the finished product, and I know that she had poured her heart and soul into those illustrations, so I was very sad that I had waited so long to finish it, and she never saw it.

But now it's done. And a lot of teachers have already downloaded it to use it, and I'm super excited that I finished a project and published it in spite of all the difficulties Lucy's story had getting out into the world.

If you're interested in reading Listen, Lucy! Listen! or you know a teacher or parent with preschoolers to second graders, then please click this link or pass the link on. (Scroll to the middle of the page, and you'll see the newsletter sign up and information about Lucy!) To receive the book for free, all it takes is an email address.

And to the authors and illustrators out there, to get your book into the world, it takes grit and determination--but you can do it!

About Listen, Lucy! Listen: A Red Ribbon Week Adventure:  It’s Red Ribbon Week, and Lucy is ready to learn about being drug free. But there’s one problem. Lucy always forgets to listen. She tries to listen to what her teacher Mr. Grant says, but she gets distracted by polar bears and police dogs. The whole week is a total disaster for Lucy, and she has to figure out the secret of listening. Will Lucy discover how to be a good member of her classroom in time to celebrate being drug free? Join Lucy, Mr. Grant, and her classmates for a Red Ribbon Week adventure! Click here to enter an email address and receive your book for free.

About Margo L. Dill: When she's not writing picture books, Margo is working on longer fiction and teaching novel writing classes, such as WOW!'s Writing a Novel With a Writing Coach, that starts THIS FRIDAY, November 1. It's not too late to achieve your 2019 goals of working on or finishing a novel with Margo's help. Register here before the price increases in 2020.

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4 comments email newsletters, marketing, marketing advice, picture books, Red Ribbon Week, self-publishing, Writing Picture Books

My Three Favorite Picture Books and Why They Work

By Lynne Garner

I'm always encouraging my students to read, read, and read some more. Reading is a great way to improve your writing. It demonstrates what works and what doesn’t. To show you what I mean, I've decided to share my three favorite picture books and explain you why I think they work.

1. The Picture Book With No Pictures by BJ Novak

This picture book doesn’t contain a single picture. So how can a picture book without pictures work? Well, it cleverly plays on the premise that an adult reading this book must read exactly what is on the page. Even if these words are nonsense such as "blork," "bluurf," or "my head is made of blueberry pizza!" Kids love this book. If you don’t believe me then watch the video below of the author sharing his work. Pure magic!

2. Tadpoles Promise written by Jeanne Willis and illustrated by Tony Ross

I was looking for a book that would prove an author could weave fact and fiction successfully in a picture book. As I read, I could see the author had achieved this, but what I didn't expect was the twist in the tale. The story follows tadpole and caterpillar who are deeply in love. Caterpillar forgives tadpole three times for breaking the promise that he’d never change (he turns into a froglet). Upset caterpillar climbs the branches and soon emerges as a butterfly. She decides to forgive her love and returns to the pond. Unfortunately, she is eaten by a frog who is waiting for his true love, the caterpillar.

Why does it work? It explains in simple terms the wonder of metamorphosis. It tells the story with humor, and children understand the joke that tadpole eats caterpillar. To listen to this book being read check out the video below.

3. The Big Bad Mole's Coming written by Martin Waddell and illustrated by John Bendall-Brunello

You don’t have to have hundreds of words to tell a story. What you need are the right words. In The Big Bad Mole’s Coming, the story follows a boy who warns the farm animals that the big bad mole’s coming. At first they don’t take him seriously, but after repeating the warning the animals begin to panic. The story is told in a grand total of 91 words and the entire book only contains 23 different words. Meaning, the author uses repetition successfully to tell the story.

What have I learned from reading the above picture books?

• It's possible to successfully mix fact with fiction
• Kids understand and respond to humor, even when it's sophisticated
• Choosing the right words is essential to good storytelling
• Don't use ten words when one will do
• When used correctly, repetition can create a memorable story

So, I'll say it again. If you want to improve your writing, read, read, and read some more.

***

Lynne Garner has been a freelance writer and author since 1998. Since that time she has written for a large number of magazines both in the UK and the US. She has 24 books published; this includes three picture books, with a fourth to follow shortly. Her first title The Best Jumper was recorded for the CBeeBies children’s radio channel (part of the BBC) whilst A Book For Bramble has been translated into five languages including Korean and Indonesian. To find out more about Lynne, visit her website at LynneGarner.com.

Would you like to learn how to write a picture book? Lynne teaches two picture book courses with WOW! Women On Writing: How to Write Children's Picture Books and Get Published and 5 Picture Books in 5 Weeks (Advanced Course).

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1 comment Lynne Garner, picture book examples, picture books, Writing Picture Books

What Makes a Good Picture Book?

What makes a good picture book? You would think I should know since I am a picture book author, have attended many workshops on picture book writing, have read countless picture books, and teach about picture book writing.

But, I read so many picture books I don't like.

I read some to my daughter and think:

• What exactly is the message this is sending? Is this what I want my daughter to learn?
• That was a great book until the last two pages. What a dumb ending!
• This book is only published because it is written by a celebrity.
• This book is only published because it is part of a series.
• This book is only published because a loveable, well-published writer wrote it.

But traditional publishers are publishing these books, and many get good reviews. So, why do I seem to have these negative thoughts popping up about these books? I'm not sure. But I decided to put a positive spin on it and talk about what I think makes a great picture book. (This is just a short list. Maybe I'll do a part two post next time I blog. Or add to this list on your own--with the comments section below.)

1. Creative spin on an old topic/theme. This is why I like the pigeon books by Mo Willems. The pigeon is such a toddler--I want to drive the bus! I want a puppy! But these books are clever, funny, and original.

2. Word choice and the fewer the words, the better: Picture books should be SHORT. These manuscripts should be 1000 words or much less actually. And really pay attention to the word choice and flow of the text. I LOVE Peter Brown's Mr. Tiger Goes Wild and so does my daughter. Wonderful example of this characteristic of children's books, in my opinion.

3. The rule of three: I love the rule of three--think about children's literature: three bears, three wishes, three pigs, and so on. Three things are just enough examples of the point you are trying to make as an author. I use the rule of three in my picture book, Maggie Mae: Detective Extraordinaire: The Case of the Missing Cookies--Maggie finds three clues, three suspects, and three shaky alibis!

4. Remember your audience: A picture book audience is supposed to be a child 7 or under and his or her reader (parent, grandparent, teacher). These children love to smile, adore their families, and go crazy over a cute puppy or kitty cat! Parents have to want to buy this book for their child, so you do have to consider that; but remember, your true audience is a child. This is why my child and I often do not agree on what book to read or check out from the library. But I'll tell you one thing: both of us LOVE Dr. Seuss. He's a classic, yes, but he knew his audience!

What do you think makes a good picture book? What are some that you like? 

Margo L. Dill is the author of three books for children from picture books to young adult novels. She is teaching a class about taking hold of your children's writing career, which includes a critique, in the WOW! classroom this spring. To see this class and others, please check out: http://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/WOWclasses.html

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7 comments children's authors, Margo L. Dill, picture books, Writing Picture Books

The Three Sentence Pitch: A Tool to Focus Your Writing

Last summer, I ran a picture book manuscript past my critique group.  It was ready to go.  I just wanted their stamp of approval and then I could send it off.

The problem was that I didn’t get it – the stamp of approval. 

It seems that in the process of rewriting my work, I hadn’t smoothed out bumps and made it tighter, but instead had lost my focus.  The telltale sign that this had happened was the chorus, or actually two choruses (chori?). 

In picture books, there is often a repeating line of text that echoes throughout the story, much like a chorus.  You don’t see it after every page turn, but you see it often enough that readers learn what is coming when they hear the first two or three words.

In the first draft of my story, I had created a chorus based on my theme of the story.  It worked because it made the story cohesive. 

But then I had to strengthen the character.  While I was doing that, I started to play here and there with the text and another chorus emerged. In a longer book, this might work but mine comes in at less than 500 words.  Nope.  No room for a second chorus.  With it, the story felt unwieldy. 

The only solution was to rewrite it and get it back on track.  It was going to be tough to evaluate each spread for what could and couldn’t stay in the leaner meaner version.  I needed something to keep me on track and help me focus. 

Fortunately, I remembered the three sentence pitches we practiced writing at a Missouri SCBWI writing retreat.  A three sentence pitch is just enough to give an agent or editor an idea what your story is about.  It deals more with theme and character than plot.  With only three sentences about your story, you have to focus if you are going to fit your character, her problem and a hint at the theme all in three sentences. 

It’s still rough, but this is what I came up with:

No one knows what’s going on at Sappington’s Superior Circus better than Felicity Fernandez. She finds lost children and car keys and can point the way to the next act. The problem comes when she can’t find her place in the Circus and she wonders if she would be better off someplace else.

In 53 words, I have the character (Felicity Fernandez), the setting (Sappington’s Superior Circus), the story problem (Felicity can’t find herself), and a hint at the theme (even if you know where everything else belongs, it may take some time to find your place). 

With this in mind, and on an index card, I can evaluate each paragraph of text. Does it develop this idea?  If not, cross it out.  When I am done, I will have a tightly focused story with a chorus that once again has the space to ring out.

--SueBE

SueBE blogs about writing at One Writer's Journey.  

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6 comments picture books, pitch, rewrite, Writing Picture Books

Broad Appeal: Writing a Nonfiction Picture Book That Will Sell

Publishers are buying picture books.  To be marketable your nonfiction manuscript has to appeal to not only the young reader but also the adult buyer. 

Your reader is interested in all kinds of things from animals to how things work. They are eager to explore their world. Although they are interested in a wide variety of things they are still kids so your manuscript has to have a kid friendly slant. In their biography of Abraham Lincoln, authors Kathleen Krull and Paul Brewer focused on his sense of humor. The aptly named book? Lincoln Tells a Joke. But kid appeal isn’t enough to sell your manuscript. Adults like the topic.  Kids like the slant.  

Parents and other adults stand between you and your audience. Picture books, especially durable hard covers, aren’t cheap and adults aren’t going to plunk down $16.99 to $19.99 unless the book appeals to them as well. How you do this depends to some extent on who the reader is.

Because teachers use picture books in the classroom, it pays to know what young readers are studying. Check the Common Core Standards for the appropriate grade levels. No matter how you feel about this educational initiative, it can help you see who is reading what and at what level.

In addition to their home in the classroom, picture books are read aloud at story times, in the classroom, at bedtime and more.  Many a parent knows that if a child really loves a book, this might mean reading it 15 times in just a few days. Don’t torment the adult buyer. Make this experience as fun as possible with language that is playful, lyrical or rhythmic. Lisa Wheeler does this in Mammoths on the Move, a fun to read aloud rhyming story that appeals to both the adult reader and the child audience.

I hinted at this above but to have broad enough reader appeal, your book has to be something the reader will want to experience more than once.  One way to do this is with a fun read aloud.  Another way is to create a manuscript with dual texts.

A manuscript with dual texts not only introduces a younger reader to a new topic, but also gives an older reader more information.  The main text is short and simple. It gives the younger reader what they need but also provides a framework for the older reader’s text.  This comes in the form of sidebars that provide additional, in-depth information. In Where in the Wild?, David Schwartz gives young readers a series of poem that invite them to find the camouflaged animals hidden in the illustrations.  The sidebars give in-depth information on each animal.

Create a nonfiction picture book with broad appeal and your work will find readers who want to experience it again and again.

--SueBE

Sue will be teaching one of our courses, Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults, starting October 7, 2013.  

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4 comments children's nonfiction, nonfiction writing, reader appeal, Writing Picture Books

Writing Picture Books: Set Yourself a Challenge

By Lynne Garner

A few months ago the lovely ladies at WOW sent me a link for PiBoIdMo (Picture Book Idea Month). Children's author Tara Lazar devised the concept. The basic idea is to come up with 30 ideas for picture books over a 30-day period. Thankfully, you're not expected to complete 30 manuscripts in 30 days. Simply come up with at least one new idea per day. This could be a title, a character, an idea based on something you saw or perhaps overheard.

I'll admit the idea was a little scary. I debated for a week or so before I took the plunge and signed up. I've seldom had a problem coming up with ideas but I definitely felt out of my comfort zone during this challenge. Some days I struggled to come up with anything. Other days I had two, sometimes even three, ideas. For example, whilst driving home on day 12 I had three ideas. First, I spotted a For Sale sign that had a large black hen on it. A few days earlier I'd read The Little Red Hen. I now had a friend for her, a big black hen. The story will focus on how these two friends use their size difference to help one another. Secondly, seeing a queue at a bus stop reminded me of a joke where people joined a queue but didn't know what they were queuing for. So this story will focus on what each character hopes is at the front of the queue. Finally, I was stuck behind a very slow moving tractor. Thankfully I had plenty of time, but this made me think about how life seems to put slow things in your way when you are running late. So this story will focus on how my character deals with slow things when he needs to be fast.

Taking part in Picture Book Ideas Month has reinforced my belief that ideas can be hidden around every corner. It has also highlighted to me that in order to improve your writing you have to set yourself the odd challenge or two. This challenge could be anything. Perhaps writing in a story format you've never used, crafting a story in rhyme or telling a story with a limited number of words. It could be joining a local writing group or a national group such as SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writes & Illustrators), writing a story to enter into a competition or, as I did, signing up for Picture Book Ideas Month.

So, go on, give your writing a boost and set yourself a challenge.

-----

Would you like to try writing a picture book? Sign up now for Lynne Garner's class, How to Write Children’s Picture Books and Get Published, which starts on January 5, 2013.

If you've taken a picture book course before then you can enroll in Lynne's advanced course, 5 Picture Books in 5 Weeks (Advanced Course), which also starts on the same day.

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3 comments Lynne Garner, online writing classes, Picture Book Idea Month, picture books, WOW Classes, WOW instructor, Writing Picture Books

Let it build!

by Lynne Garner

As a writer, there are many ways you can tell your story. One method that is often used in traditional stories is known as "repetition." This is where actions and words are repeated to create your story. However, there is also a variation known as the "cumulative" story structure or a "chain story." It is where the character repeats the same actions and/or words but with each repeat a little extra information is added.

This type of story not only uses repetition of words but is sometimes written using rhyme. To demonstrate this let's look at The House That Jack Built. The rhyme starts with:

The is the house that Jack built

Followed by:

This is the malt that lay in the house that Jack built

Followed by:

This is the rat that ate the malt that lay in the house that Jack built

As you can see more detail is added to the previous sentence, creating a story kids love.

Another equally famous cumulative story is There Was an Old Woman. The story starts with the old woman swallowing a fly. She then swallows a spider to rid herself of the fly. She then swallows a bird to rid herself of the fly. As the story progresses the animals the old woman swallows get bigger. They include a cat, dog, goat, cow and finally a house. Which brings the story to an abrupt end because "she died of course!"

I'm hoping you can see the possibilities this type of story offers a picture book writer. If so and you'd like to give it a go then why not read a few books written using this structure for inspiration. The following link provides a great list of books you may wish to start with: http://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/cumulative-tales.

***

Lynne Garner has been a freelance writer and author since 1998. Since that time she has written for a large number of magazines both in the UK and the US. She has 21 books published; this includes three picture books, with a fourth to follow shortly. Her first title ‘The Best Jumper’ was recorded for the CBeeBies children’s radio channel (part of the BBC) whilst ‘A Book For Bramble’ has been translated into five languages including Korean and Indonesian.

***

Join one of Lynne's latest WOW! Women on Writing classes:

How to Write Children's Picture Books and Get Published 

or 

5 Picture Books in 5 Weeks (Advanced Course)

Both start on Saturday, August 4th. Classes are limited to 15 students.

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1 comment Lynne Garner, online class, story telling, WOW Classes, WOW instructor, writing children's picture book, Writing Picture Books

Researching the Picture Book Market

I'll admit, when I first starting to write picture books I didn't approach it from the same angle as I did when writing my nonfiction books. That is to say, I didn't see my stories as a product that had to fit in a competitive market. However, when I finally experienced that light bulb moment I quickly placed my first picture book, A Book For Bramble.

What changed?

I started to research the market. I visited the local library and spent hours looking at picture books. As I read, I took notes. I noted the names used, how sentences were constructed, what themes were covered, how humor was included, word count, etc. I then visited the local bookstore and repeated the exercise (slightly more discreetly) to discover if there were differences between what was being published and what had been published (the books in the library). Armed with these notes, I returned home and tried to discover if I could see patterns in subject matter, in the way subjects were covered, and in the way sentences were constructed.

I discovered:

•  Humor appears to play an important part in many books.
•  Tools such as repetition are used to help move the story along.
•  The magic number three appears in many books (for example in The Gruffalo, you'll discover "'three" hidden all over the place).

I started to use the patterns I'd found in my own stories. Within months of changing the way I looked at my stories, I fulfilled one of my lifetime ambitions of becoming a published picture book author.

Today I still continue to research the market and read picture books as often as I can. The receptionists at my dentist, doctor, optician and vets are used to seeing me rummage in the stock of picture books they provide to keep kids entertained. The assistants in the library and bookstore now take no notice as I read their picture books. Family and friends watch in amusement as I encourage their children to show me the latest addition to their bookshelf. Without this research I'd not be able to keep up to date with a changing market. By keeping abreast of what the reading public wants, I'm able to write stories I can place with a publisher.

So if a new writer (of any genre) wants to become published, my advice is research, research, research.

***

Lynne Garner has been a freelance writer and author since 1998. Since that time she has written for a large number of magazines both in the UK and the US, having over 300 features printed. She has 21 books published; these include 10 craft-related how-to books, working with both publishers and packagers. Lynne designed, produced copy, and photographed many of the craft projects featured on The Craft Ark.

*****

Join Lynne's latest WOW! Women on Writing class:

HOW TO WRITE CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOKS AND GET PUBLISHED,

a five week course starting on Saturday, May 5, 2012.

This class is limited to 15 students and early registration is recommended!


*****

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1 comment Lynne Garner, market research, WOW Classes, WOW instructor, writing children's picture book, Writing Picture Books

Five Tips for Making Time to Write

by Lynne Garner

It doesn't matter if you're writing a novel or a book based on your favorite hobby or craft, sometimes finding time to write can feel impossible. So here are a few tips I've used and continue to use.

1. Create an appointment. Put in your diary that perhaps for 20 - 30 minutes every other day you have an appointment to write. Just like an appointment with the dentist or doctor, you can't break it. You will find you can get quite a lot completed and your family and friends soon get used to you being unavailable at these times.

2. Take yourself out. If you find the home environment difficult to write, then take yourself out. Perhaps when you do the shopping, stop off at your favorite coffee shop. Treat yourself to your favorite drink and spend time on your writing.

3. Set goals and/or deadlines. Perhaps you could set yourself a goal that every day you spend just 10 - 20 minutes working on your book. This may sound impossible but perhaps you can implement tip four to achieve this goal.

4. Repurpose your time. I think it's safe to say many of us have time that can be classified as wasted. For example, I used to classify walking the dog as wasted time. Now it's not! Between throwing the ball, I use my phone to make notes. So, do you spend time waiting for the children to come out of school? Do you have to wait for a bus or train? Take a pen and pad with you or even print off some copy and sit and edit. Those wasted minutes soon add up.

5. Use bribery! It's amazing how much time you can suddenly find if you offer a bribe in exchange for a little writing time. It doesn't even have to be something that will cost you financially. For example, agree with the kids you'll cook their favorite meal if they keep themselves quietly occupied for half an hour.

The above tips have worked for me, and I hope they work for you.

Good luck!

Lynne Garner has been a freelance writer and author since 1998. Since that time she has written for a large number of magazines both in the UK and the US, having over 300 features printed. She has 21 books published; these include 10 craft-related how-to books, working with both publishers and packagers. Lynne designed, produced copy, and photographed many of the craft projects featured on The Craft Ark.

*****

Join Lynne's latest WOW! Women on Writing class:

HOW TO WRITE A CRAFT BOOK,

a five week course starting on Saturday, May 5, 2012.

This class is limited to 15 students and early registration is recommended!

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2 comments finding time to write, Lynne Garner, making time to write, online class, WOW Classes, WOW instructor, writer inspiration, writing children's picture book, Writing Picture Books