Children's Book Writing Course

Lesson 1 • How Children Read and Process Story

Introduces child development research on attention, comprehension, and emotional response. Explains why developmental stage shapes every craft choice.

Lesson 2 • Age Categories and Reading Levels

Maps the spectrum from board books to middle grade, defining word counts, themes, and cognitive demands for each tier. Anchors all subsequent format decisions.

Lesson 3 • The Children's Book Market Today

Surveys current publishing trends, bestseller patterns, and reader demographics. Grounds creative decisions in real commercial and cultural context.

Lesson 1 • Brainstorming and Concept Refinement

Introduces structured brainstorming methods including mind mapping, SCAMPER, and constraint-based prompts. Refines raw ideas into focused, pitchable concepts.

Lesson 2 • Theme vs. Concept vs. Plot

Clarifies the distinction between a book's universal theme, its specific concept, and its plot events. Ensures students build stories with layered meaning.

Lesson 3 • Finding Ideas Worth Writing

Teaches observation, memory mining, and empathy exercises to surface authentic child-centered ideas. Distinguishes adult nostalgia from genuine child perspective.

Lesson 1 • Supporting Characters and Antagonists

Designs secondary characters who serve the protagonist's arc without overshadowing it. Covers antagonists, mentors, and comic-relief roles in children's fiction.

Lesson 2 • What Makes a Child Protagonist Work

Analyzes the traits that make child heroes compelling: agency, relatable flaws, and clear desire. Connects character design directly to reader identification.

Lesson 3 • Character Arc in Short Form

Adapts the classic character arc to the compressed word counts of picture books and early readers. Shows how small internal shifts create satisfying transformation.

Lesson 1 • Core Story Structures for Children's Books

Compares three-act structure, the hero's journey, and circular narrative as applied to picture books and early readers. Selects the best fit for different concept types.

Lesson 2 • Midpoint Escalation and Complications

Builds skills for raising stakes and introducing complications that deepen the central conflict. Prevents the sagging middle that kills picture book momentum.

Lesson 3 • The Opening Hook

Teaches techniques for launching a story on page one with immediate conflict, character, or wonder. Establishes the standard that every manuscript must earn attention instantly.

Lesson 4 • Endings That Satisfy Young Readers

Analyzes what constitutes a resonant, age-appropriate resolution and how to avoid false or rushed endings. Connects the ending back to the opening promise.

Lesson 1 • Developing a Distinctive Author Voice

Identifies the elements that constitute author voice and provides exercises to discover and amplify a student's natural style. Differentiates voice from tone and genre conventions.

Lesson 2 • Show vs. Tell for Young Audiences

Reframes the classic show-don't-tell principle for children's books, where some telling is appropriate and efficient. Teaches the balance between scene and summary.

Lesson 3 • Rhythm, Rhyme, and Sound Devices

Explores how meter, alliteration, assonance, and onomatopoeia create the musicality children love. Distinguishes effective rhyme from forced rhyme that undermines story.

Lesson 4 • Point of View in Children's Books

Compares first, second, and third person as used in children's literature and the effect each has on reader immersion. Guides students to choose and sustain a consistent POV.

Lesson 1 • Writing Illustration Notes Correctly

Establishes when and how to include illustration notes without over-directing the artist. Protects the writer's vision while respecting the illustrator's creative role.

Lesson 2 • Visual Subtext and Hidden Story

Teaches writers to plant story elements that only the illustration can reveal, creating a richer dual-audience experience. Develops the skill of writing with visual imagination.

Lesson 3 • How Text and Image Divide the Story

Explains the four text-image relationships: symmetry, complementary, counterpoint, and contradiction. Teaches students to exploit the gap between words and pictures.

Lesson 1 • Micro Revision: Line and Word Level

Applies sentence-level editing techniques including cutting adverbs, tightening dialogue, and eliminating redundancy. Produces prose that is lean and precise.

Lesson 2 • Receiving and Applying Feedback

Develops the skill of evaluating critique objectively and deciding which feedback to apply. Distinguishes subjective preference from structural problems.

Lesson 3 • The Generative First Draft

Establishes a fast, judgment-free drafting approach that prioritizes completion over perfection. Removes the internal critic that blocks forward momentum.

Lesson 4 • Macro Revision: Structure and Story

Teaches top-down revision that evaluates arc, pacing, and character before addressing prose. Prevents polishing sentences in scenes that will be cut.

Lesson 1 • Building an Author Platform

Establishes the online and community presence that supports both traditional and self-publishing careers. Focuses on school visits, social media, and author websites.

Lesson 2 • Rights, Contracts, and Royalties

Explains key publishing contract terms including advance, royalty rates, subsidiary rights, and reversion clauses in plain language. Empowers students to negotiate from knowledge.

Lesson 3 • Querying Agents and Editors

Teaches the craft of the query letter, synopsis, and sample pages as a persuasive submission package. Covers research methods for identifying the right recipients.

Lesson 4 • Traditional Publishing Overview

Maps the traditional publishing pipeline from acquisition to bookstore shelf, including the roles of agents, editors, and art directors. Sets realistic timeline expectations.