SOME WRITING QUESTIONS and ANSWERS
(except for the last one!)
Q: Why do I write for kids?
A: My mom made a new rule the summer between 3rd and 4th grade. She said I had two choices after lunch.
A: My mom made a new rule the summer between 3rd and 4th grade. She said I had two choices after lunch.
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1) I could take a nap, and that wasn’t happening because who wants to waste their vacation sleeping?
2) I could read a book, and that did happen even though I complained at the beginning. |
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My reading got better because I practiced every day, and one afternoon it was so easy that I forgot what I was doing and decided to run after my new friends. That was impossible, of course, because I could only join them when I was reading.
I still read new children’s books even though I’m grown up, but now I also write books about things I wish I had done, and friends I wish I had made, when I was a kid.
I still read new children’s books even though I’m grown up, but now I also write books about things I wish I had done, and friends I wish I had made, when I was a kid.
Q: Do I always know the whole story before I write it?
A: Never! It begins when something happens to an imaginary kid I’d like to meet. Then a few other characters – which always seem to include a dog and sometimes a cat – enter the picture.
It’s their story after that and they share it with me as I’m typing, or lying in bed trying to fall asleep, or taking a shower. (Some people sing in the shower. My subconscious tells me about the next chapter. Or how the book ends. Or where I missed something important.)
And I don’t always write each chapter in order from the beginning to the end of the book. I write the exciting stuff first and fill in the gaps later.
A: Never! It begins when something happens to an imaginary kid I’d like to meet. Then a few other characters – which always seem to include a dog and sometimes a cat – enter the picture.
It’s their story after that and they share it with me as I’m typing, or lying in bed trying to fall asleep, or taking a shower. (Some people sing in the shower. My subconscious tells me about the next chapter. Or how the book ends. Or where I missed something important.)
And I don’t always write each chapter in order from the beginning to the end of the book. I write the exciting stuff first and fill in the gaps later.
MAYA
from THE WOLF, THE ELKTOOTH & THE WINDBREAK |
NINJA
from WANTED: BEST FRIEND FOREVER |
Q: What’s the hardest thing about being a writer?
A: Books must be published to share them with readers, and that takes a great story, excellent writing, and lots of luck!
A: Books must be published to share them with readers, and that takes a great story, excellent writing, and lots of luck!
That means you should start writing now if you want to be an author!
(But it's never too late...)
(But it's never too late...)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was turned down by 12 different publishers before the 13th one gave it to his 8-year-old daughter to read, and she loved it and wanted to read more.
More than 120 million copies of the book have been sold, and it was made into a movie (along with the rest of the series). |
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A Wrinkle in Time was turned down by at least 26 publishers before it was printed and went on to win several major awards including the Newbery Medal.
More than 10 million copies of the book have been sold, and in 2018 Disney made a movie based on the book. |
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While the exact number isn’t known, between 20 and 40 publishers turned down Dr. Seuss’s first book. He went on to write and illustrate 44 books for children.
Over 600 million of his books were sold, and they were translated into more than 20 languages. |
