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how to write a marketable childrens book Tag

Kersten Hamilton is the author of several picture books and many middle grade novels.

 

TYGER, TYGER, book one of THE GOBLIN WARS series, was her first novel for young adults, and was followed by IN THE FORESTS OF THE NIGHT, BOOK TWO. 

We admire Kersten's craft and were happy she agreed to be interviewed.

Here's what she had to say.

Jennifer McKerley: The third book in your exciting YA series THE GOBLIN WARS was just released last month. WHEN THE STARS THREW DOWN THEIR SPEARS continues the fast paced fantasy series. Here are two reviews:

“This spectacular conclusion will satisfy fans and lead new readers into a complex world with fascinating magic and appealing characters.” —Kirkus, starred review

“Brimming with heroism,

 

An aspiring writer named Mike once wrote E.B. White and asked what he needed to do to get his book published.

 

The famous author took some time before he wrote back, but when he did, this was his advice:

 

"The principal thing (an author) has to do is to write a good book. Then he has to send the manuscript to one publisher after another until he finds one who wants to publish it. I'm glad you liked 'Stuart Little' and 'Charlotte's Web' and thanks for writing."

 

It may seem as if E.B. White were lazy and didn’t offer Mike much help. But his letter actually reveals exactly what a writer must do to get published.

 

I enjoy reading picture books for the fun of it, the art, and to analyze what makes a good story.

 

I would love to master the craft of writing wonderful picture books that become beloved favorites of children.

From researching and reading the masters, I’ve learned that most of the factors below are in stories that stay in our hearts.

 

A good picture book:

 

So deep down inside, you really want to write?

 

But you don’t know how or where to begin. Or you just have the “no-confidence” blues and can't seem to get back to what you started.

 

What can you do to make yourself get busy writing?

 

  • Forget about writing the story. 

Books are not necessary to life in the same sense that air and water are needed to sustain the body.

Yet a good book provides deep emotional and intellectual satisfaction—so much so that many adults and children cannot imagine life without the joy of great stories.

The following quotes about books show how universal this attitude is.

There is a Chinese proverb that states: "A book is like a garden carried in the pocket."

"Books let us into their souls and lay open to us the secrets of our own." ~William Hazlitt

"A book must be an ice-axe to break the seas frozen inside our soul." ~Franz Kafk

"Books are the bees which