Introduction To Writing For Children

Join chair of the board, Sarah Hindmarsh for a complete introduction to writing stories and books for young children.

This course will look at how stories for children aged 0-9 are different from (and similar to) stories for an older audience. We'll explore picture books, early readers and chapter books. We'll look at some popular books, and less popular examples, and break down the reasons for their success, or failure, with the aim of being able to identify which ideas and techniques work and which don't - and how much of this is in the execution. We'll also explore ways to get into the head of a child and write something they'll love without patronising them or talking down to them.

You'll learn...
To understand the differences between writing stories for young children and stories for an older audience.
To understand the differences between picture books, early readers and chapter books.
To identify the age-appropriate language, themes and complexity in stories for children
To identify some suitable ideas for stories for children
To practice writing a short piece that is pitched for young children and will interest them and be understood by them without patronising them.
About Sarah
As well as being chair of the board at NWS, Sarah is the award-winning author of 8 books, and a large number of short stories and poems published in various literary journals and anthologies. Her debut children's chapter book, 'The Mouse Who Howled at the Moon,' was the silver medal winner in the 2014 Wishing Shelf book awards and shortlisted for the 2014 Spaspa independent books awards. She is an experienced creative writing tutor and qualified teacher.

Book your place
The price of this session is £12 for NWS members and £18 for non-members. Book your place below, or to find out about joining NWS, head to our membership page.