You managed to scare the bejeezus out of your 6-year-old niece last week with your tale about the one-toed mutant pigeon that hides in the cereal bowls of little girls who don't obey their uncles and aunts. Suddenly, a light bulb appears over your creative head and you think, "Hey, I should write this stuff down and make a little ka-ching." Easy money, right? Um, no.

Sorry to break it to you, but your potential success as a book writer has nothing to do with how much the short people in your family love you. They think that everything you do is awe-inspiring. Furthermore, writing a children's book is a lot of work that doesn't often provide a whole lot of return on the investment. Especially not the green kind. Many authors work on a single manuscript for years, only to have it rejected by every publishing house they send it to.

But here's the upside. If you do create a great story and it is picked up by a publishing house, you get to go to a bookstore and watch little Billy tug his mom down the aisle and squeal, "C'mon mom, we gotta get that book about the pigeon and the cereal."

We can't tell you how to be a good writer. We're sorry. For that you need a writing course or a genie in a bottle. But what we can do is tell you what the procedure is for getting a children's book published, as well as help you avoid a few common mistakes that fell many a writer.

For firsthand experience, skip the tutorial and check out this how-to video.

WATCH THIS HOW-TO VIDEO

1. CHOOSE AN AUDIENCE AND A BASIC STORY

Chances are, you have millions of ideas milling around in that little brain of yours, but only a few of them are going to attract a publisher's eye. Publishing is a business, and any business needs to pay close attention to what sells and what doesn't. So you need to make a few decisions before you sit down with your double nonfat latte and turn on your laptop:

  • Decide what type of book you want to write and what age group you're going to be writing it for. Currently, publishing companies are looking for easy readers for kids age 6 to 8 who are just learning to read on their own, chapter books (short novels broken into chapters) for ages 7 to 10, spooky stories for ages 8 and up, and nonfiction for all ages. Extra points if you can put a multicultural spin on it. Anything with ethnic characters and/or a glimpse into a different culture is at least going to get a second glance from an editor.

  • Toy with the idea of writing a short story for a magazine first, like Highlights for Children or Cricket. It's good practice and you'll probably get some useful feedback. It's also much easier to get published in a magazine, and once you start submitting book manuscripts, editors will pay a lot more attention if you can list magazine credits in your cover letter.

  • Go to libraries and bookstores and read. Read the classics you loved when you were a kid, but also pay close attention to books that are being published now - like any of the Harry Potter books by J. K. Rowling, which have been on the bestseller lists for months. Also check out Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak, and Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown. Try to find stories that are targeted to the same age group and fit the same genre as the one you're working on. Figure out what they have in common, and how you can use that to tailor your work to today's market. The times, they are a changin', and Dick, Jane and Spot just don't cut it for this generation of Pokemon connoisseurs. Caution: this may necessitate leaving your ego chained to the bike rack outside. Even the best writer has something to learn from the work of others (we read that in a fortune cookie once).

  • Time to figure out the specifics. Editors look for originality, so steer clear of clichés and stereotypes. This applies to both characters and plot. "Claude the Conscientious Cumulus Cloud" is neither cute nor funny, and the alliteration won't amuse the editorial assistant who gets the first read of your manuscript. The general rule is: if it doesn't talk in real life, don't make it talk in your book. Match dynamic characters with an imaginative plot, and be careful not to moralize. We all know it's okay to be different and that cheaters always get caught. If you want to get a message across, do it through a rich and interesting story that evokes an understanding. Your primary goal is to entertain.

  • As painful as it can be, open a window to the corporate mindset for just a moment. Come up with a story that will sell well at any time of the year, isn't redundant, will appeal to a broad audience, and won't become quickly "dated." Although an individual editor may find a soft spot in his heart for Maude the Millennium Monster, the big boys at the publishing house who make the final decisions aren't going to touch your manuscript unless they think they can keep making money well past the millennium mark. Okay, you're done. Close the window.

2. DEVELOP YOUR IDEA WITH THE HELP OF OTHERS

Here's the part where you actually buckle down and write. It seems easy: children's books don't have many pages, have easy words, and use a big font. And then there's all that space used up by pictures. A good hour or two, with a break in the middle to see how Buffy is fighting evil this week, and you should have all the material you need.

Fool. If it were that easy, Bill Clinton would be doing it. Think about it this way: you have far less space than authors of other types of books to weave a convincing story. And you have the toughest critics - kids are brutally decisive about what they do and do not like, and they're not known for their lengthy attention spans. You have to engage them and keep them engaged from page one, using language they'll understand without talking down to them. Here are some tips:

  • If your book is for young children (7 and under), you really should have pictures incorporated into the story. If you're a real artist, that helps immensely, but if not, you should not actually include pictures. Publishers can tell a good story when they read it, with or without pictures, and if the house wants to publish it, they'll hook you up with an artist that they think matches your work. Instead, you'll be able to describe the pictures in words if they really aid the content.

  • Once you've decided what age group you're working with, you should read up on some child psychology and find out how kids' minds work at that age. Six-year-olds are very different from 9-year-olds, who are different from 12-year-olds. Six-year-olds like silly fantasy stories with pictures, 9-year-olds like chapter books and scary stories that require the use of imagination, and 12-year-olds like stories that they can relate to (involving school, parents, and friends). To write for a child, you should think like a child.

  • Once you've worked and re-worked your manuscript into something you think is publishable, get it critiqued by a professional. You can do this by taking a class at a local college, joining a writer's group, hiring a freelance editor, or taking it to a conference like those sponsored by the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI).

    SCBWI is an excellent resource for aspiring and published authors alike. An Associate Membership, open to anyone who has an interest in children's literature (regardless of whether he/she has been published or not) is $50.00 per year, plus a one-time $10.00 initiation fee. You can request a membership application via e-mail to membership@scbwi.org or snail mail to:
    SCBWI
    8271 Beverly Blvd.
    Los Angeles, CA 90048
    Phone: 323-782-1010
    As a member, you'll receive their publications and invitations to their annual conference and regional events. They also give out grants based on work proposals, and offer advice and document exchanges so writers and illustrators can get feedback on their work.

3. FIND THE RIGHT PUBLISHER

In your travails to find a publisher, the first decision you need to make is whether or not you want to hire an agent. As glamorous as it sounds, it really isn't necessary for children's book writers to have agents. In fact, it's extraordinarily difficult to find a good agent who will work with you if you haven't already been published. Beware of agents who seem too eager to take you on, especially if they demand money up front. Since there's no special certification required to be an agent, just about anybody can chisel a shingle and hang it on the door. If you decide you need one, be sure to find him/her through a reputable source. Check the Guide to Literary Agents, published by Writer's Digest Books, and Literary Market Place, available in the research section of most libraries. You can also write to the Association of Author's Representatives (AAR) at:

Association of Author's Representatives
10 Astor Place, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10003

For $7.00 and a self-addressed envelope with $0.55 in postage, you'll receive a list of agents who are AAR members, their code of ethics, and sample questions to ask agents when considering working with them.

Here's what an agent can help you with: he/she can read and critique your work, find appropriate publishers and submit your material, get manuscripts on the desks of the right editors, and negotiate your contract. For this, they usually receive a 15% commission on your earnings (advances, royalties, permission fees, etc.).

What an agent can't help you with: writing a better story. In fact, since they only get paid if you get published, there's no way they're going to sign you up unless they're pretty sure your book is marketable. It may be a better use of your time to thoroughly research publishers, find one that is looking for the type of story you've written and cross your fingers. Although a few of the largest publishing houses don't accept manuscripts unless they come from an agent, they are the exception. As long as you have a good story and you do your research, you've got the same chances with or without an agent.

If you opt to go solo, it's up to you to find a good publisher for your book. So, Sherlock, here's what you have to do:

  1. Buy (or spend a whole lot of time at the bookstore looking at) the book The Children's Writers and Illustrators Market. It lists every important children's publisher and also tells you what type of books they publish and what they're looking for.

  2. Contact the Children's Book Council for an annotated list of their members.

  3. Subscribe to a publication like Children's Book Insider (1-800-807-1916), which will keep you abreast of publishers' changing needs.

  4. Go back to the bookstore you camped out in when you were preparing to write, and find a few newer books that are like yours in style, audience, and genre and note the names and addresses of the companies that published them.

  5. Once you have a list of potential publishers, send each of them a self-addressed stamped envelope addressed to the Editorial Department with a brief note requesting their writer's guidelines. These guidelines will tell you what type of book they publish, whether they accept unsolicited manuscripts, what format the manuscript needs to be in and/or if they prefer query letters, any other rules and expectations, and where to send your materials. This will be your bible. Sprinkle with holy water and laminate.

4. SUBMIT YOUR MANUSCRIPT

Editors receive thousands of manuscripts in a year and will almost certainly reject any that aren't properly formatted. Pay attention to the guidelines they have sent you and follow them to the letter. Each publishing company will have different guidelines, but in general:

  • Manuscripts should be double-spaced with 1" to 1-1/2" margins on the top, bottom and sides of each page.

  • Your name, address and social security number should be in the top left-hand corner of the first page, single-spaced.

  • In the right hand corner, you should type your phone number. Then double space down three times, center the title, double space, then "by", double space again, and your name.

  • Space down to the middle of the page and begin the text of your manuscript.

  • Each successive page should include your last name, your title, and the page number at the top.

  • Don't include illustrations with your manuscript unless you really are a bona fide artist. Most publishing companies have illustrators they regularly work with, and prefer to match a well-recognized illustrator with a new author for the sake of name recognition.

  • Avoid day-glo paper or envelopes, don't add stickers, pictures or slides, don't dot your i's with little hearts . . . in other words, be tactful. Although it's a children's book, it's an adult's business.

  • All you need to send in is a copy (not the original) of your manuscript, a self-addressed stamped envelope (always include one of these - they won't write back if you don't), and a brief cover letter.

Ah, the cover letter. The cover letter is key. It's the first thing the editor will read, and if it's poorly written, then the editor will assume the manuscript is poorly written as well. Here are our tips:

  • Address it to the Submissions Editor, unless you've made a real contact with a particular editor. Don't pretend to know someone you don't, they're on to that little ploy.

  • Half a page. Repeat. Half. A. Page. You send in a cover letter that's longer than your manuscript, and the whole pile is likely to end up under a Duraflame.

  • Aim for simple and direct, letting the editor know what type of book it is and why it's unlike anything else already out there. Don't tell them you're just like Dr. Seuss or Judy Blume. You're not.

  • Don't blather on about how much the kids in your family love it. Don't include quotes. It's just an introduction, the editor's decision will be based on the manuscript itself.

  • Some publishers prefer query letters, especially for longer manuscripts. A query letter is like a condensed manuscript, and you have to give the editor enough of a feel of the style and language of the book that they'll be enticed to request the whole thing. It should still be short. Less than one page. But feel free to include a great paragraph from your manuscript as well as a detailed description of what happens and why it's fabulous.

5. SIT BACK AND WAIT

So you've submitted your polished manuscript with a brief cover letter and self-addressed stamped envelope to a publisher who prints just the type of book you've written. And now the toughest part: you wait, often for several months. Spend your time working on other manuscripts and reading SYWs. You can submit your manuscript to a different editor if you haven't heard from the first one after 2 or 3 months, but as a courtesy, send a brief note to let that editor know that you've submitted your manuscript elsewhere due to his/her aggravating tardiness.

Above all, don't get discouraged. If this is really something you enjoy doing, keep working on it. Publishers can only accept a few new authors a year, so if your manuscript gets rejected, it says a lot more about the financial constraints of the publishing company than about your skills as an author. And if your manuscript does get accepted, be sure to dedicate the book to us.