Nuances of Children’s Writing

Literature and art has many forms, many genres for every kind of person but then, why do we don’t conceive it that way? Why is there a difference between the types of it? Every piece deserves appreciation, be it classic literature or the new coming-of-age ones and, every person should indulge themselves into it as it needs to be recognized. Books can teach us a lot, changes our perspectives and helps us explore our imagination. It helps us grow in a better way so why not introduce books to children as well?

If you want your children to be able to make up their own minds then the best solution is giving them a good book. It is highly needed and should be considered so, for a child while growing up has the most curious mind and books can help. And so, we got to discuss books meant for children and it’s own complications with some amazingly talented women, Vidya Mani, Vibha Batra and Khyrunnisa A.

This in turn, gave us a lot to think about. It is recommended that every person should read some children’s book if they wish to write and with that being said, let us see what insights we could get from the Q/A session.

What is the most difficult part of writing a book for children?

Writing a book for children is much more complex than it looks and it can take a toll on you as it requires attentiveness. One of the authors, Khyrunnisa claimed that the most difficult part is setting the tone of the book. Writing a book for children requires delicacy and it is very important to set the tone right so that you can get under the skin of children. In order to writes a children’s book, you need to think like a child, speak like one and even act like one, basically you need to become a child to write a book meant for them and, well that can be pretty difficult don’t you think? After that, think about how you can engage the children with a good opening sentence and grab their attention by making the story interesting and relatable. These elements are the difficult parts of writing a children’s book and highly essential too.  

How does a children’s book author write for different age groups?

This question was perfectly and in a crisp manner answered by Vibha, she exclaimed that you need to motivate yourself to write, be it because of confidence quotes or Shah Rukh Khan’s infamous dialogue “70 minute” , you need to not forget to motivate yourself. But what can be even more important than that? Well, she strongly suggested avoiding social media, switch everything off and get social media out of the way. It can help you in gaining a wider range of perspective in writing books.

How different are the experiences of writing a book and selling it?

Vidya claimed that selling a children’s book is more difficult than writing a book. She said that while writing a book does require a lot of discipline, which is the hardest part of it yet selling a book requires more than that. You need to be on your feet, aware about everything around you and when you are writing a book, you can sit anywhere and keep writing it. To sell, you have to listen to what the readers want and be quicker in taking decisions. At the end of the day, they are vastly different.

What are the tips to keep in mind while writing a book for children?

There are various tips for writing a book for children given by the authors, mentioned below;

• Do not talk down to children while writing for they are your primal audience and you have to keep that in mind.
• Don’t be too direct and share too many morals while writing a book for them.
• Keep the text simple, short and silly even, in a good and fun way obviously so that you speak to them.
• Focus on the text while writing as a child needs a good story.
• Keep the kiddish jokes alive so that the innocence is alive (poop or fart jokes too)
• Think from your inner child and keep the language friendly to them
• Last but not the least, take the craft of writing seriously.

And there, you have got yourself a good children’s book.

Do the authors and artists work together for graphic novels and illustrated books for children?    

The authors and artists collaborate for an illustrated book or a graphic novel like two imaginative minds where the description of the setting and compromises are needed. The making of this book offers a beautiful synergy between illustrations and words. The author sends out the character sketch and the artists offer their illustrative skills to come to a common groud. Both of them should not get in each other’s way but also, help out when needed.

How do you reach out to the audience for they are children and social media would not be a certified option?

As Khyrunnisa liked to mention, you can promote the books for children through social media as however they might not use it but their parents do and that can be helpful. Other than that, you can promote it through session with authors and pop up quizzes in schools, by listening to the kids you might find out what they are interested in. you can also promote it in bookstores near by and through online forms.

Some book recommendations (children) by the guests.

The books or authors mentioned are some of the their favorites and they are;

• Richmund Crampton’s and Just William’s books (Vidya)
• The YY Girl by MahaShweta Devi (Vidya)
• 3 Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome (Khyrunnisa)

And while she also suggested to read classics, both Indian and Western, Vibha suggested we read all the books by Indian authors.

The session was interesting enough and it made it clear that we need to look at writing books for children as a genre of literature. The writing journey can be weary but is also very interesting and well, fun. You can watch the entire conversation here.

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