Many aspiring authors believe that writing a book for children is easier than writing a book for adults. While this might be true to some extent, the thing is that a children’s book is so much more than a colorful book cover that appears attractive to children and their parents.
The thing is that writing a children’s book is not so easy – it requires dedication and your input as much as any other book would require.
Nonetheless, you will want to follow the tips below to write a children’s book that will sell.
Keep reading!
Practical Tips to Write a Children’s Book That Will Sell
Assess the Book Market of Your Target Children
As an aspiring writer with no prior experience, you will want to do your research and assess the book market for your target children. The target market for children might be an easy one – but in reality – it is so much more challenging.
The niches for children’s books are much more limited than the niched for adult readers. This aspect indicates that you must narrow down the nice and aim more accurately before setting for an age range.
Many aspiring children’s books writers might find this challenging – but –you will not want to give up your quest to find your desired book market. You know that it can be quite challenging to appeal to children readers, which is why you will want to do your research so that you can develop a better relationship with the children that you are writing for.
Ideally, your reader relationship should grow as your children’s audience grows.
Select an Age Range
After assessing the book market for your target readers, you will want to select the age range for which you will be writing. Typically the age range of children readers is divided in the following way:
- Age Range 1: 1-3 (Years)
- Age Range 2: 4-6 (Years)
- Age Range 3: 7-9 (Years)
The age range of pre-teens stands between 10 and 12. The young teens fall in the year range of 13 to 15. Then we have the age range of young adults that fall in the category of 16 to 18.
Now that you know the age range, you will want to do your research and understand the interests of the different age ranges and the types of books that the target children prefer to read. You will want to thoroughly assess the formats, language use, and layouts for the different age ranges.
You can only make the right decision after you have a knowledge of the requirements of the different age ranges. As the children mature, they will want to read books with a greater element of suspense and incorporating heavier themes.
If you are confused, you will want to visit your local library or browse some books online and see the different types of books that appeal to young readers. You will also want to read the books of different children’s authors to get a better idea about the different themes used in their books.
You will want to allow yourself to be influenced by your favorite authors and even include some of their writing elements in your own writing.
Understand Your Target Children
Before you start to write and work on your draft, you will want to understand what your target children like to read and then write the way your target children will like to read. Once you have completed your first draft successfully, you will want to assess your options for how to publish a children’s book, as there are three ways of publishing a book:
- Traditional Publication
- Indie Publication
- Self-Publication
So, you will want to know your options to set your writing and publication goals accordingly. For instance, if you opt for self-publication, you will be wearing many different hats as you will be doing most things on your own.
You will be the businessperson, and you will also be the marketing expert. You will also be responsible for promoting your book so that your target audience will know that your book is coming out. On the other hand, if you opt for traditional publication, you won’t have to worry about anything but writing the book before pitching it to the publishing house with the help of a literary agent.
If you opt for indie publishing, your manuscript will be accepted by any of the smaller independent publication houses that accept unsolicited manuscripts. So, if you cannot find a literary agent, you will want to opt for indie publishing instead.
Never Underestimate the Power of Editing
You might think that you won’t need an editing session because you are writing for children – but – the truth is that even though you might be working on a picture book, you will still want to edit the book or hire a professional editor and proofreader to check the flow and length of your book.
You get the point – you will want to ensure that your writing style fits the age range that you have chosen to write for. And the best thing you could potentially do is to read the book aloud to yourself to get a better idea about how the book will sound to the children if their parents are reading it aloud to them.
The length of the book plays a crucial role in not making the child lose interest and momentum, which is why it is essential to ensure that the book’s flow and length are appropriate.
Apart from reading your book out loud, you will also want to test your book by reading it to your target market. If you have children on your own that fall in the age range or if you have nephews and nieces that fall in that target market, you will want to test the book’s worth by reading it out to them and assessing whether the kids feel engaged and interested in reading the book or not.
The children’s response will suffice in letting you know where you are heading with the book. There is no better feedback that you can have than getting it from your target audience.
