DeScribe

The following writing tips come from workshops for children’s writers and illustrators, given by various authors at the Highlights Foundation Writers Workshop based in Chautauqua, USA. To find out more visit www.highlightsfoundation.org.

Patricia Lee Gauch:
Fiction, non-fiction, picture books, easy readers . . . the great books come alive. They breathe. They lament. They stand up and cheer. And, whether I had intended or not, they pull me as editor, as reader, into their living world, allowing me to breathe and lament and stand up with them. The heart of a really good book beats.
Okay then, you might ask, what makes a good book’s heart beat? There are more answers to the question than anyone can give in one morning, but I believe you give yourself a leg up in discovering the heartbeat, if as a writer you dare to look at life on a slant.
Readers do not want what is straightforward, understandable, four square, typical, sturdy, easy, predictable. No, I believe character and plot and setting and language—on a slant—is what readers thirst for. They are intrigued with what is odd, aberrant, offbeat, strange—for goodness’ sake. And praise be!
Patricia Lee Gauch is vice president and editor at large of Philomel Books as well as a respected author in her own right. She holds a doctorate in English literature, and has taught children's literature on the college level and reviewed for The New York Times. Patti has edited three Caldecott books, including Owl Moon by Jane Yolen and John Schoenherr, and So You Want to Be President? by Judith St. George and David Small. She has worked with many well-known authors, including Jane Yolen, Andrew Clements, and Brian Jacques.

Jerry Spinelli:
Write your book. Underline your. (Not someone else’s). That’s one of those things that sounds so obvious that it’s not even worth saying, but in fact it is.

Writing your book simply has to do with tapping into whatever we have. We all grow up, and all we’re doing is simply making use of something that is as common as gravity—memories. When we grow up, our past is not irretrievably lost to us, like the juice squeezed from an orange. The past stays with us. Tap into it for your writing.
If I were training you to be writers, I would say pick your best experiences and write at least a hundred pages, covering your life up to age fifteen or so. You’ll be giving yourself a lifetime’s worth of material to draw on, like ore in the ground. It’s just a matter of extracting it, refining it, and purifying it until you’re laying out pure wrought iron.
With titles like Do the Funky Pickle, There’s A Girl in My Hammerlock, and Who Put That Hair in My Toothbrush?, Jerry Spinelli has won the hearts of many young readers. His 1991 release Maniac Magee won the Newbery Medal, and his eighteenth book, Wringer, received a Newbery Honor. Jerry's latest, Milkweed (Knopf), has been called "stunning" by Kirkus Reviews.

Rich Wallace:
Coming up with a basic plot is nothing too remarkable. What makes the story worth reading is the characters. So where do they come from?
For me, it’s always been from within myself. I write primarily about teenage boys, so I need to reconnect with myself at that age. But even if I were writing about a talking bear or an animated steam shovel, I’d still want to infuse that character with my own angst or joy or confusion or anger—something I know because I’ve experienced it.
I have a few tactics for reconnecting with my teenage self. Most of us have a point in our childhood that still holds fairly intense emotions—probably a time of real turmoil and life changes. When you focus on that point—writing from the viewpoint of a character at that age—you might find that your stories have greater emotional resonance.
Rich Wallace is the author of four acclaimed novels for young adults: Playing Without the Ball, Wrestling Sturbridge, Shots on Goal, and Restless. He has also authored a short-story collection called Losing Is Not an Option, and a series of sports novels for middle-grade readers called Winning Season. His columns, profiles, and other features have been published in Highlights, Track and Field News, Runner’s World, and other publications. Rich is a former senior editor at Highlights. His fifth and most recent YA novel, One Good Punch (Knopf), was released in October 2007.

Eileen Spinelli:
Here’s a beautiful quote that I love. Natalie Goldberg said, “If you love the work, it will love you back.” How can you love the work if you’re already a mile down the road worrying about whether it’s going to be published? The publication will take care of itself. I hate to see writers just cringing and skipping ahead, and worrying about publication. I think it interferes with what you do. It makes you afraid to take risks, for one thing, because you are too afraid. “Is the publisher going to want this?” or “Is the editor going to like this?”—that’s the adult in you.

Kids aren’t afraid of risks. It’s a wonder we’re all here alive for all the risks we took when we were younger. You’ll be more able to do what you need to do and take risks if you kind of let the other parts go. Let the marketing go. Make the marketing the lower rung on the ladder rather than the top rung. The top rung needs to be the writing and the joy that you derive from it, even if you never get published. Honest.
Eileen Spinelli is an award-winning author and poet whose work includes the 1991 Christopher Award winner Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch. Eileen has published more than thirty books for children. Some of her recent titles include Bathtime, Rise the Moon, Moe McTooth, Three Pebbles and a Song, The Perfect Thanksgiving, and City Angel.


Carolyn Yoder:
When kids are asked if they like history—or social studies—their answers tend to be a big flat "No." But if kids hear and understand that history involves them—their stories, their parents’ stories, their ancestors’ stories, the stories about where they live, the stories about what they do—history . . . becomes personal, and more importantly, relevant.

I strongly encourage authors to investigate their lives in order to discover these “little” (or “big”) stories of history. I have met a mother from the Midwest whose mother sewed blankets in the Caribbean during World War II, a ninety-year-old writer who captured the story of her great-great-grandfather moving west to Indiana, and a young girl who discovered dinosaur bones in her backyard.
Think about writing your stories, the stories of your family or the stories about where you live. Capture the human element and the historical element. Together they will help to make your stories universal.
Carolyn P. Yoder is the senior editor of history and world cultures for Highlights and has written numerous articles on research and writing history for children. She spent a decade serving as the award-winning editor in chief of Cobblestone: The History Magazine for Young People; Calliope; Faces; and Odyssey, which led to her position as assistant publisher of Cobblestone Publishing, Inc., overseeing development of its book division.

Peter Jacobi:
The necessity of voice—with writing we cannot ever become someone else.[JG1] Yes, we can learn much from other good writers and, I guess, from bad writers, too. We can emulate the good ones, but ultimately if we are to succeed, we must discover and disclose our own voice, our own sense of style, our own particular embrace of language and information.



Consider by way of explanation, by way of definition, these words: authentic, nonformulaic, rhythmic, properly detailed, nuanced, musical, magical, bone-and-sinew touching. Consider the show-verses-tell concept. Consider noun- and verb-centered writing. Consider experiential closeness. Consider the startling, the inescapable, the visual, the conversational, the different with a purpose. Consider the vital and the energetic. Consider writing that pulses with a heartbeat of the writer—his soul, her personality—something that cannot be duplicated because it comes from within a someone.
Peter P. Jacobi is professor emeritus of journalism at Indiana University and a consultant with magazines and corporations, helping CEOs, writers, and editors learn to express their ideas more effectively. His articles have appeared in World Book, The New York Times, Highlights, and others. His two guidebooks, The Magazine Article: How to Think It, Plan It, Write It and Writing with Style: The News Story and the Feature, are standard reference sources for journalists.



Andy Gutelle:
Content is king. For today’s kids this includes everything from old standbys like dinosaurs and horses to new passions like cell phones and iPods. Since publishing companies are eager to produce what kids want, it is critical that you stay current on the subject of reader interests.
Because they must attract and hold an audience every month, editors of children’s magazines are on the frontline when it comes to interpreting the likes and dislikes of kids. Be sure to check several different magazines regularly. Even general interest publications have a particular point of view, and you want to consider kids from different perspectives. Whichever ones you choose, pay close attention to letters to the editor, advice columns, and other departments where readers can openly express their thoughts in their own words.
Andrew Gutelle is a writer, editor, and editorial consultant who has participated in the development of many publishing projects for children. He has written nonfiction books for many publishers, including Random House, Putnam, Workman, and Time-Life Books for Children. Andy received five Emmy nominations for his work on the television show Reading Rainbow.



Kim Griswell:
Setting cannot be a casual afterthought—it’s too important to what can and will happen, to who your character is and what he or she can become. Think about it—what would Harry Potter be like if he lived in Lubbock, Texas? Paris, France? Harare, Zimbabwe? Just as the places you’ve lived have helped shape who you are, the setting of your story shapes your characters.

How do you experience the world around you? Creating a sense of place allows your reader to fully share your characters’ experiences. Good writers use all five of their senses when they write. Most writers remember to use the sense of sight. But they may forget the other four senses—sound, smell, taste, and touch. Think about your favorite place. It might be a park, your room, a tree house, or the library. Any place you really love. Close your eyes and go there. List the things that make the place special to you. Use colors, sounds, smells, tastes, textures, and objects that you remember. Use this same technique to call forth sensory details about your setting. And don’t forget your research here! Can your character really smell magnolia blossoms outside her window? Do magnolias grow in this setting? When do they bloom? How do they smell? Include all five senses, but make sure your sensory details are as accurate as possible.
Kim T. Griswell is the coordinating editor of Highlights and Highlights High Five. Her service has spanned the worlds of publishing and teaching, leading her to positions as senior editor, book development manager, a university instructor, and a teacher with the Institute of Children’s Literature. She holds master’s degrees in teaching writing and in literature. A prolific writer and committed editor, Kim has published more than two hundred short stories, articles, and columns. Her children’s book, Carnivorous Plants, was published by Kidhaven Press in 2002.

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