Happy New Year, Readers! New Year (only last week) seems like an eternity ago. The reason being that we have been snowed in for almost every single one of those days. For me, this has been amazing. I love winter (it's my favourite season) and we managed to build snowmen, go sledging, and have all kinds of wintry fun and games. Because of this, it seems like ages since I drew up a few ideas for new year resolutions. I'm not very good at sticking to my resolutions, but I'm hopeful that I might manage more than a week with this year's! They are not all to do with writing (I'm determined to get better posture, too), and they are more long-term aims and goals than anything I will slog away at all year round, but here are one or two of them... Firstly, I want to finish writing the first draft of The Nobility of Caledon , which is Book 5 in the Caledon series. Book 3, The Strength of Caledon , will be launched in August this year, so I really need to get a move on with co...
It's weekend again! That means it's time for another Positively Weekend post! Let's be positive about the writing and publishing world. Today, I'm talking about why I love to write for younger readers, in particular 10-12 year olds. 1) Imagination Kids have a greater imagination than most adults. Yes, they perhaps can't show it as eloquently as mature people can. Yes, adults don't always understand what kids are trying to say. But their imagination is lively and unique. An adult sometimes gets upset if a child draws a picture of a battle, but more often than not this is just a story that is playing out in a child's mind. Writing for kids is so rewarding because they add their own imagination to the story. 2) Uncomplicated To make a good children's book, you need an engaging plot and believable characters. The ethical themes and unusual dialogue is what will engage the parents and teachers, but children really only care about an entertaining story. Thi...