Join an award-winning children’s author for this one-day workshop. We’ll look at children’s fiction and non-fiction as well as educational publishing, and explain how the markets differ from each other. We’ll talk about how to create characters that children love, and discuss how to build and shape plots that suit your readers. Writing for children and young adults has its own specific challenges, and we’ll be identifying and addressing them.

The workshop will contain fun activities carried out in a supportive and positive environment, with constructive feedback given on writing activities. We’ll even talk about the do’s and don’ts of approaching publishers, for when you feel that you are ready! This workshop is suitable for writers of all ages and stages, from beginners to more experienced writers, to those who feel they want to take the leap and seek publication. Its aim is to inform, motivate, and show you that it is possible to fulfil your dreams!

Course Outline:

• What age group should you write for?
• How to think like a kid
• What can you write about?
• The different publishing markets and their features
• Creating plots and characters that children love
• Writing tips and techniques
• How to approach a publisher:

Learning Outcomes:

• An understanding of the different types of children’s publishing markets
• An understanding of what makes a successful children’s story
• The ability to use this knowledge to write a variety of material for children and young people of different ages
• An understanding of how best to approach publishers
• An appreciation of the author’s role in the publishing process

What to bring:

• Pens
• Notepaper or laptop

About the Tutor:

'Stella is a lawyer-turned-author who has won several awards for her work. She has had more than 50 books for children published over the years. She’s written fiction, non-fiction, and educational books, and uses her breadth of experience to help you on your path! She loves sharing her passion for writing and the knowledge she’s gained, and has been running writing workshops with the community college for more than ten years. You can find out more about Stella and visit her blog at https://www.stellatarakson.com/'

Other Information:

• To ensure resources are ready for you at the start of your course, we ask you ideally enrol at least one week before the course commences.
• All courses need a minimum number of students to run ("we try our hardest to get those") . If your course does not have enough students it will be cancelled before the commencement and you will be informed.