The Must-Haves of a Successful Children’s Author

Children stories are difficult but fun to write. Being a children’s author, particularly, can be taxing but fulfilling at the same time. This is what you can learn from the experience of Lynda Daniele, an author who has found an unexpected success in writing for children. Lynda Daniele is a former public library trustee. She has also taught adult literary as well as faith formation in her hometown in Southwick, Massachusetts. However, after the death of her husband, Nick, Lynda Daniele decided to take a writing class at her local YMCA as a form of coping mechanism. Soon after, she began writing stories for children. Her recently published story, Grandpa Nick’s Bump, is a dedication to her husband. Grandpa Nick’s Bump is humorous and heartwarming story about the importance of grandfather-hood. Here, Lynda Daniele found her literary success. Taking some inspiration from the success of Lynda Daniele, this article aims to help you succeed in the field of children’s literature yourself. Below are the must-haves of a successful children’s author.

Knowledge and Skills

Knowledge and skills are always a requirement in achieving success anywhere. If you want to become a successful author for children, you need to be knowledgeable and skillful enough when it comes to writing literature. This does not necessarily mean that you have to be a literary genius like Shakespeare. But you need to at least have an idea on how to craft stories that can capture the attention of your target young audience. If you are not a natural writer, then you do not have to worry. Literary knowledge and skills can always be acquired. You can learn it in class or by self-practice. Lynda Daniele, for example, learned how to write stories for children by simply taking a writing class at her local YMCA.

Experience and Story

A children’s author is basically a storyteller. You need to have an experience or a story to tell. This means that, in order to succeed as an author, you should be willing to use your real-life experiences as a reference in crafting your stories. Doing so makes your stories more grounded and relatable. On top of that, children can also learn more valuable lessons from stories that are based on reality compared to those that are merely produced by the imagination. If you are struggling to come up with a good story for children, looking back into your past experiences might help you. Sometimes, you have already experienced the best stories you can tell. This is what Lynda Daniele did when she wrote the heartwarming story of Grandpa Nick’s Bump, which is all about her lovely husband and his unexpected grandfather-hood.

Creativity and Imagination

Creativity and imagination are also characteristics that a children’s author should possess. Being creative and imaginative essentially means that you know how to craft stories in a way that can make other people hook and invested in them. Creativity and imagination are the ones that allow you to write interesting and compelling stories. Basically, everyone is born with an imagination. Let that imagination of yours run wild in order to cultivate creativity. Always pay attention to your ideas no matter how absurd you think they are at first. Sometimes, your craziest ideas can turn into the most creative stories for children.

Passion and dedication

Generally, to succeed in life, you need to be passionate about and dedicated to what you are doing. The same thing goes when it comes to becoming an author for children. If you want to succeed as a children’s author, you must have the passion and dedication for writing children’s literature. You must love what you are doing. More so, you should have a great purpose for doing what you are doing. It can be to inspire children, encourage them, or teach them valuable lessons about life. Regardless of what it is, you need to have a reason for writing.

In summary, to become a successful author for children, you do not necessarily have to be a literary genius. Sometimes, you only need to have enough knowledge, skills, experience, creativity, imagination, passion, and dedication to be able to write stories that can interest and inspire young people. These things are the must-haves of a successful children’s author. They are what you need to acquire and possess in order to succeed in your craft. As demonstrated by the success of Lynda Daniele, sometimes, the best stories are those that are written not with sheer brilliance but with a heart.