Writing Magic a' la Gail Levine

It can be overwhelming for new writers to enter the fray of the writer's world. I've found the children's writing community to be especially kind, but still I do feel the inadequacies of being a newbie among more experienced and polished authors.

That's partly why I wanted to start this blog, to help myself and anyone else who may feel a little insecure about entering the world of a writer. 

One of the first books I checked out on my initial foray into serious writing was Writing Magic, by Gail Carson Levine.

I adore this book. It's written for kids, but that hasn't stopped me from loving it. I think it's fitting to use a writing book intended for a younger audience when I'm trying to write for that audience. 

Bookish Links to Get You Through the Weekend

In case your weekend plans don't include much time for writing, here's a few links to help assuage any writer's guilt:

Folio Lit Co-founder, Scott Hoffman, and NYT best selling author, Brendon Burchard, have a 50-minute video (it's worth every minute) for writers on how to develop a platform. 

They discuss working with agents, self-publishing, traditional publishing and solid tips on how to write and market yourself. See here: http://www.foliolit.com/nytimesbestseller/

If you want to make your characters more three dimensional, check out the soon-to-be released, The Negative Trait Thesaurus and The Positive Trait Thesaurus, by Angela Ackerman and Becky Puglisi:  

And just for giggles, here's a "rap" sure to tickle Jane Austen and/or Downtown Abbey fans:

You Want to Write for Children?

After we moved back to the U.S., I decided it was time to dust of a dream to write children’s books. So I started writing.

I found a writing group and regaled them with my 1000 plus word "picture book," with about 50 main characters (that's a bit of an exaggeration) and lots of description.

Suffice it to say, I shelved that story and started writing others. I thought I’d hit gold when my manuscripts started getting better reactions, so I started sending out queries—to agents and publishers.

AAAAAARGH!!!!! Here’s a few things I wish I would have done (and actually some I did) before ever sending my name out into the publishing world.