|
|
How to Write a Novel Fast! |
How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Fast!
| Become a Freelancer in One Month |
The Ten Commandments of Freelancing |
Screenplay Basics for the New Screenwriter
Writing for Young
Readers!
Instructor:
Lynn Hall
5-Week Writing Course
Prerequisites: None
Fee: $37.00
View the Syllabus
Writing Course Description and
What You Can Expect to Learn
WRITING FOR YOUNG READERS
This course will focus on writing juvenile novels, that is, fiction books for readers too old for picture books and too young for adult novels. This is a wide age range, from about seven or eight to older teens.
Writing picture books is very different from writing for older children; in fact, most picture books are written by artists rather than writers because, by definition, in picture books more than half of the story is told by pictures, not text. Some have no text at all, and others have very sparse text. I’ve never written picture books so I wouldn’t presume to tell others how to do it.
Our aim is books for older children, middle or upper elementary grades, middle school, junior high, or high school. This field is often overlooked by beginning authors, but it shouldn’t be. These books are such fun to write and easier to get published than either picture books or adult novels. There is less competition. They can be about almost any subject, any interest you might have, any hobby or sport. They can be fantasy, sci-fi, biographies, historical novels, animal stories, or mysteries—it’s wide open.
In this course, we’ll take a close look at the characteristics needed for a good juvenile novel, and at the three necessities for writing a salable book. We’ll look at construction, plot, and lengths appropriate for various age levels. We’ll talk about creating characters, writing believable dialogue, and blocking your book out into scenes and chapters. I’ll nag you about the more common mistakes made by beginning juvenile authors. Grammar goofs and punctuation pitfalls will also be red-flagged.
We’ll look at the process of getting published, what to expect once your book is sold, whether to use an agent or go it alone, and what the bunny-eat-bunny world of children’s literature is like.
At the risk of tooting my own trumpet, I should point out that many who write how-to books or courses or speak at workshops and symposiums, may not actually be very successful in their fields. I wrote juvenile novels as a fulltime profession for more than thirty years until I retired exhausted but happy. I had eighty-one books notched up on my desk leg, most in print for many years. You can find at least a few of them in almost any public library although the first was published forty years ago. Several have won major literary awards, many were published abroad, and a satisfying number made the American Library Association’s Best Books list. One was a Disney TV movie and has been continuously in print for more than thirty years.
To view a list of Lynn’s published books,
click here.
I started with nothing going for me—no formal education beyond high school, no experience in writing, and precious little self-confidence. If I can succeed in this field, you probably can too.
Through my writing years I worked with a dozen editors, most good, some awful; each was a learning experience. This course is built on decades of actual experience writing successful juvenile novels, and surviving all those editors and reviewers, all those library conventions and friendships with other writers. I believe this history of experience will help you to write a successful juvenile novel, or to launch your own career in this delightful field.
This course will include weekly assignments, but they won’t be energy-wasting writing exercises. You will be working on your own book for every assignment, and the assignments will simply be guidelines for the step-by-step construction of that most important book, yours.
* * *
No feedback or critiques of your outline or
writing are provided in this course. However, if you're
interested in working one-on-one with Lynn Hall, she can give
you feedback and critique any aspect of your writing
assignments for this course.
You can contact her here.
Register
for this course now!
If you don't have time to write your book
now, that's okay. You can still sign up for this course,
and receive all the information, lessons and materials for
learning "how" to do it. Then when you're
ready to write, you'll have all the tools you need. You
decide.
So if you want to learn a simple, easy-to-follow method
for writing your book that will not frustrate you for years
and make you want to give up, then I'd encourage you to
register for this unique writing course.
Ready to start? If you have a book inside you that
you've been thinking about writing, now is your chance to
get it started, outlined, and written.
Register
now for this course!
For information about how the courses work, see
our FAQ. If your question isn't answered there, or you'd
like further information about any of our courses, please write to us through
our Contact Form.
To read what others have said after taking this course,
click here to read their
comments.
Thank you and I look forward to working with you.
Candace
Syllabus
Lesson
1
-
Who is Lynn Hall and why should I take advice from her
-
What is a juvenile novel, as opposed to a picture book
-
What are the specific qualities a juvenile novel must have
-
Who must the book appeal to
-
What are the three key factors to writing a publishable juvenile novel
-
Figuring page length
-
Vanity presses vs. commercial publishers
-
How to find a publisher
-
What to expect when your book is sold
-
How to find a book idea if you don’t already have one.
Lesson 2
-
More about finding and developing book ideas
-
Avoiding cliché plots
-
Building the framework
-
Why outlining is especially necessary for juvenile novels
-
Writers’ block
-
Laying the groundwork that will make the writing easier and better
-
Plots and themes
-
Pacing the action, building to a conclusion
-
Scenes and bridges
-
Finding the right title
Lesson 3
-
Work habits, finding the best time and place to write
-
Respecting your tools; words and punctuation
-
Sentence structure, varying it for dramatic effect
-
What to do when the sentence just won’t come
-
Paragraphing for smoothness and dramatic effect
-
Chapter titles, whether to use them
-
Painting in the backdrop, setting the scene
-
Anchoring your story in time and place
-
The importance of visual details
-
Viewpoint, selecting first or third person narration
Lesson 4
-
Creating and developing major characters
-
Developing the supporting cast
-
Avoiding cliché characters
-
Finding ideas for interesting characteristics
-
Making your protagonist grow and mature
-
Naming your characters, the importance of the right name
-
Sources for names
-
Writing natural dialogue
-
Handling dialects
-
Using dialogue identifiers
-
Mistakes to avoid
Lesson 5
-
Being your own editor
-
Steps to take in editing your book
-
Grammatical errors to guard against
-
Those sneaky bad habits
-
Punctuation, common problems
-
Coasting on clichés
-
A word about style
-
Submitting your manuscript
-
Finding the right publisher
-
Agents, pro and con
-
The wonderful world of kiddy-lit
-
Juvenile novels as a profession
Yes! Sign me
up.
|
