One of the greatest challenges in writing for children and teens is addressing difficult subjects responsibly. Writers today are increasingly exploring themes such as anxiety, grief, trauma, mental health, racism, and neurodivergence, among many others, and writers sometimes wonder: How do you write honestly about...
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There is a persistent misconception that writing for children is somehow “easier” than writing for adults. After all, children’s books are shorter....
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Every year at both the Southampton Children's Literature Conference and at Picture Book Summit, whenever aspiring writers have a chance to ask...
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If you ask agents and editors what they’re looking for, you may hear many different answers: A strong hook. A fresh concept....
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Writers entering the children’s publishing world are often surprised to discover that most major publishers do not accept "unsolicited" - meaning "un-agented"...
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One of the most common questions I hear from my students, editing clients, and other aspiring children’s book writers is: How do...
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Writers often worry about beginnings. They worry about endings even more. But the place where picture books most often falter is the middle—the...
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I've often written about the importance of developing what Peter H. Reynolds calls story radar—the ability to notice ideas in the world...
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If you’ve been writing picture books for a while, you may have noticed that ideas sometimes arrive in bursts—and sometimes they don’t...
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Every writer eventually encounters a creative rut. The ideas feel flat. The enthusiasm fades. The work that once felt exciting begins to feel...
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