Children’s Writing Web Journal

Let’s continue our series which will take us, step-by-step, from absolute beginner to published author. The topic of the previous issue: What Should You Write About? If you missed it, you can read it here.

If you’ve been with us since the start of this series you’re (hopefully) well motivated, you know who your audience is and what you’re going to write about. Now it’s time to learn the rules of the game. Because kids grow and change so quickly, children’s book genres are far more structured and tiered than adult genres. What a 2nd grader and 6th grader read are worlds apart, and the “rules of the game” reflect that.

These rules, which cover page length, word count, subject matter and other elements of a book, aren’t really official. There’s no rule book, and no one standard to adhere to. They’re pretty much an unwritten set of expectations that editors have when they’re looking at a particular type of manuscript.

So, let’s fix that — by writing some of them down. For whatever age group you’re targeting, find the rules and follow them closely when drafting your first manuscript. (A note: As with all “unwritten rules”, these aren’t written in stone and can be a bit flexible from publisher to publisher. But our interpretation of the rules should work for most cases. Also, experienced, successful writers can and do sometimes get away with breaking these rules — but newer writers should stick closely to them.)

* Picture books — In its broadest definition, a picture book is a book in which the illustrations play a significant role in telling the story. Under this umbrella are several types of books:

1. Baby Books — For infants and young toddlers, these books are generally lullabies, nursery rhymes, fingerplays, or wordless books. The length and format varies with the content.

2. Toddler books — Very simple stories for ages 1-3 (under 300 words) familiar to a child’s everyday life, or concept books (teaching colors, numbers, shapes, etc.) Books are short (12 pages is average) and the format can be board books (sturdy paper-over board construction), pop-ups, lift-the flaps or novelty books (books that make sounds, have different textures, etc.) See the “Max” series of board books by Rosemary Wells and board books by Sandra Boynton.

3. Picture books — Traditionally, picture books (also called “picture story books”) are 32-page books for ages 4-8 (this age may vary slightly by publisher). Manuscripts are up to 1300 words, with 1000 words being the average length. Plots are simple (no sub-plots or complicated twists) with one main character who embodies the child’s emotions, concerns and viewpoint. The illustrations (on every page or every other page) play as great a role as the text in telling the story. Picture books cover a wide range of topics and styles. The list of Caldecott Medal winners is a good place to start your research. Nonfiction in the picture book format can go up to age 10, 48 pages in length, or up to about 2000 words of text.

4. Early picture books — A term for picture books geared toward children ages 2-5. These stories are simple and contain under 800 words. Many early picture books have been reprinted in the board book format, thus widening the audience. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle and Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems are two good examples.

* Easy readers – Also called “easy-to-read”, these books are for children just starting to read on their own (age 6-8). They have color illustrations on every page like a picture book, but the format is more “grown-up” — smaller trim size, sometimes broken into short chapters. The length varies greatly by publisher; the books can be 32-64 pages long, with 200-1500 words of text, occasionally going up to 2000 words. The stories are told mainly through action and dialogue, in grammatically simple sentences (one idea per sentence). Books average 2-5 sentences per page. See the “Amelia Bedelia” books by Peggy Parish or other “I Can Read” books published by Harper Trophy.

* Transition books – Sometimes called “early chapter books” for ages 6-9, they bridge the gap between easy readers and chapter books. Written like easy readers in style, transition books are longer (manuscripts are 20- 30 pages long, broken into 2-3 page chapters), books have a smaller trim size with black-and-white illustrations every few pages. See “The Magic Tree House” series by Mary Pope Osborne as an example.

* Chapter books – For ages 7-10, these books are 45-60 manuscript pages long, broken into 3-4 page chapters. Stories are meatier than transition books, though still contain a lot of action. The sentences can be a bit more complex, but paragraphs are still short (2-4 sentences is average). Chapters often end in the middle of a scene to keep the reader turning the pages. Look at the “Time Warp Trio” series by Jon Scieszka and Paula Danziger’s “Amber Brown” books.

* Middle grade – This is the golden age of reading for many children, ages 8-12. Manuscripts suddenly get longer (100-150 pages), stories more complex (sub-plots involving secondary characters are woven through the story) and themes more sophisticated. Kids get hooked on characters at this age, which explains the popularity of series with 20 or more books involving the same cast. Fiction genres range from contemporary to historical to science fiction/fantasy (with humor always a plus); nonfiction includes biographies, science, history and multicultural topics. Check out some middle grade novels from the list of Newbery Medal winners to get you started.

A new middle grade category has emerged, targeting readers 10-14. These books are slightly shorter than the 12 and up Young Adult category, and topics (both fiction and nonfiction) are appropriate for children who have outgrown middle grade but aren’t yet ready for the themes (fiction) or who aren’t studying the subjects (nonfiction) of high school readers.

* Young adult – For ages 12 and up, these manuscripts are 130 to about 200 pages long. Plots can be complex with several major characters, though one character should emerge as the focus of the book. Themes should be relevant to the problems and struggles of today’s teenagers, regardless of the genre. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton defined young adult when it was first published in 1967; the Newbery Medal award list also contains many worthy titles for readers up to 14.

Publishers are seeking more older YA (14 and up), with realistic, gritty plots and real-life situations. See the Michael L. Printz Award winners for some examples.

Reprinted from Children’s Book Insider, the Newsletter for Children’s Writers. Visit http://write4kids.com/aboutcbi.html for more details and a special offer.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 21st, 2008 at 10:48 am and is filed under business of publishing, writing tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.