Tools of Writing for Young People
Susanne Gervay – sgervay.com
?Where to find inspiration?
"As a child, I disliked books in which children learned to be 'better' children." Beverly Cleary
“I know what I liked as a child, and I don’t do any book that I, as a child, wouldn’t have liked.” H A Rey who created Curious George
"[Children's books] are deceptively simple. I admit that. But for me, all my life I try to simplify things. As a child in school, things were very hard for me to understand often, and I developed a knack, I think. I developed a process to simplify things so I would understand them." Eric Carle
“I’m probably more pleased with my children’s books than with my adult short stories. Children’s books are harder to write. It’s tougher to keep a child interested because a child doesn’t have the concentration of an adult. The child knows the television is in the next room. It’s tough to hold a child, but it’s a lovely thing to try to do.”? Roald Dahl
“I don’t want to write for adults. I want to write for readers who can perform miracles. Only children perform miracles when they read.” Astrid Lindgren
?"Writing for children is bloody difficult; books for children are as complex as their adult counterparts, and they should therefore be accorded the same respect." Mark Haddon
On how long he expected The Cat in the Hat to take to write: "I figured I could knock it off in a week or so." . On how long it really took: "A year and a half." Dr Seuss
Think about what and why you want to write:-? What are your goals?
The Idea/Theme
The idea/theme needs to be about subjects that excites kids in the appropriate age groups— dinosaurs, robots, ballerinas, cars and trucks, aliens, fairies, princesses, super heroes, fantasy, relationships, history, love and so on.
Be careful of selecting topics which have been done endlessly like 1st day at school, getting a pet, bullying, having a new baby in the family, moving to a new home.
Holiday books have a lot of competition and tend to be linked to highly profile authors and/or series – for example Christmas Wombat from the Diary of a Wombat team of Jackie French and Bruce Whatley; How the Grinch Stole Christmas! By Dr Seuss, Olivia Helps with Christmas by Ian Falconer – or the classics are repackaged such as Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Their seasonable nature, means they have short sale times.
Thinking about original and new ideas. For example:-
-?????? Unique ideas such as Oliver Jeffers picture books, Books by Roald Dahl
-?????? Inspired by personal experiences such as? I Am Jack books (Susanne Gervay), Diary of Anne Frank, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
-?????? Fantasy/dystopian ideas such as The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Garth Nix books, Harry Potter by JK Rowling
-?????? Historical novels such as books by author Kate Forsyth,
-?????? Reinterpretation of classics such as Jane Austen Diaries by Jenni James
-?????? Chapter books series such as Sally Rippin’s’ Billy B books, Lulu Bell by Belinda Murrell and Serena Geddes
Keep searching for your original ideas!
Some ideas are generated by publishers who invite authors to write them or authors pitch to write them such as My Story Australian historical diary series published by Scholastic with a different author for each book; the chapter series Ella and Olivia written by Yvette Poshoglian; Aussie Bites series by Penguin with numerous authors; The Making Tracks series by Australian National Museum with various authors and illustrators.
Character
Character is key to driving the story.
Sample: Chapter 1 - ‘I Am Jack’ (HarperCollins) by Susanne Gervay. It opens with:-
Mum, will you listen?
Mum's talking to Nanna. She said she'd only be a minute. That's such a lie. A minute means an hour in Mum time.
Oh no, I'm right. Mum has put the kettle on. She's going to the cupboard. Two mugs, crackers, cheese and tomatoes. Poor Nanna. Mum is always on a diet. Nanna won't like those crackers and cheese. That doesn't mean Nanna is thin, or even sort of average. No, she is definitely round and walks with a wobble and she loves cookies. I love cookies too. Mum is average in height and weight, except she hates her thighs and the top of her arms. She is very funny when she starts to do star jumps in the middle of making chicken soup. Mum's short blonde hair fluffs up when she jumps. My sister, Samantha, loves it when Mum does that and she jumps with her. It wasn't so funny when Mum did it in the car park the other day. What if someone from school saw her? I told Mum that I wouldn't help her with the shopping if she goes nuts like that in the car park.
"Mum. I've got to talk to you."
"Yes, Jack."
I give her the stare. She knows it is private. "Jack, Nanna and I are talking about something important. Can it wait?"
No. It can't. "Mum, I need to talk," I grit my teeth. Mum can see I'm stressed.
"All right, then." Mum and Nanna look at me.
This is PRIVATE, Mum. Nanna is grinning at me. It is VERY private. I give Mum the eye. Like she has to know. I want to speak to her alone. But what does she do? She just sits there with Nanna waiting. Mum always says I can talk to her any time about anything. It doesn't look like it, does it?
What characters stand out for you? Without explaining age, personality, looks, you should already know who they are. Why and How? Do you identify engage?
Character is the driver of story engagement. Voice is essential to achieve effective character.
Getting inside the head of a young person is a way to create memorable characters, with more than appearance including voice, behaviour, relationships to others and response to their world.
Think about:-
Voice
Voice is trusting yourself. Allowing yourself to write from your voice within the character and you. Be emotionally involved with your plot and your characters. They need to feel real to you, and inhabit your head and your heart. Pay attention to how you’re feeling. Afraid? Nervous? Worried? ?Excited? Think about how you talk and it will assist you in reaching your unique storytelling rhythm.
How to create an opening page/chapter?
Inspiring elements - Authentic. Original. Relevant. Some ways to do this.
Set scene
Characters
Incident
Drama
Theme
The stakes
Dialogue
Ideas/themes of interest to age appropriate reader
Inspirational and authenticity from Research
Fiction, requires the reader to suspend disbelief and enter into the story. Writers must convince the reader that the characters are real people, that the events the writer says are happening are events that could happen, that the place where this story occurs is a real place, and these events and these characters happen.
Where the facts are incorrect, it undermines that suspension of disbelief.
Where to go for the research
Internet – Interviews –Books – Experts – Photos Libraries – Travel – old documents – Library – images -news.
Research informs the YA novel “Butterflies” and is internalised through character and their actions.
Dr Hugh Martin OAM President of the Australian and New Zealand Burn Association and
Head of the Burn Unit, The Children’s Hospital Westmead, Sydney, writes:-.
Every survivor has a story … “Butterflies” is the story of a burn survivor ... It explores the complex areas of the emotional impact of a burn on the individual and family while giving insight into the world of hospitals, patients and doctors. It traces the development of the personality from insecurity and relative isolation to a healthier level of self esteem that enables the individual to form balanced relationships with family and friends. It shows how the inner person can triumph over a preoccupation with surface scars and know that basic values of commitment, caring and trust are more important than the texture of the skin.
“Butterflies” has relevance outside the narrow circle of burn survivors and their families. It shows the ebb and flow of emotions that affect us all, particularly in the transition between childhood and adulthood, and how parenting and family life make these bearable.
Those of us who are involved in the world of burns know how survivors need help from time to time, but slowly develop a depth of character and an inner strength which is rarely seen in others. Like tempering steel, the process of passing through the fire helps make a person of exceptional quality. “Butterflies” captures these subtleties for the reader, and gives a stunning insight into a difficult topic.?
Chapter 4 is inspired by an interview with a mother.
Swollen eyelids shut tight. Head shaven bare.? The woman strokes the baby’s face. A seven year old girl holds onto the woman’s skirt.? A plastic tube feeds into the baby’s nose and a drip is taped onto her arm. A catheter empties urine into a bag. Her arms are in splints. Her small body wrapped in gauze. Her? hands are in mittens also tied to splints.?? She tries to open her eyes, searching through the swelling,
The nurse comes to check tubes and? vital signs.
The woman brushes back her dark wispy hair and looks up at the nurse. “What is wrong with that baby? Where is her hair?...? Her face? ... Her body?”
“Remember the doctor spoke to you about it?”? The nurse’s voice gently persists.. “Remember? Remember?”
“No. Spoke to me? No.”
“About her body, her face.”? Pulling a chair close, the? nurses sits next to her. “The baby will? ....?? she will ..... look a little different.”
The woman stares confused at the nurse in her white uniform. “Where is Katherine? Where is my baby? My little girl?”
The nurse answers softly. “This is Katherine. You can see her.”
“But I can’t. I can’t .... see her. I can’t see her.”
STORY is made of many parts. Play around with them to find the story you want to tell.
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Executive Producer, Screenwriter, Author, Illustrator and kids' content specialist with 25 years experience with brands including Nickelodeon, Paramount, ABC, The Sesame Workshop, Network 10, Hachette and Scholastic.
5 个月Fantastic article, Susanne!
Author-Educator-Speaker
5 个月Lots of practical advice in this article by Susanne Gervay who has written successfully for varied age groups