How to Write and Publish a Successful Children's Book Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply: Everything You Need to Know Explained Simply (Creative Writing Creative Writ) Paperback – January 8, 2010

Great read thus far!

This book has been very helpful. As a person that is not very experienced with the publishing world; I've found that this book gave a lot of insights. Good read.

Excellent book providing much needed information.

Have you ever wanted to write your own children's book? Or do you already have a children's book written, but you don't know how to get your book published? Cynthia Reeser is the editor-in-chief and the founder of a quarterly literary journal titled Prick of the Spindle and she has written the book How to Write and Publish a Successful Children's Book to help aspiring writers get their stories and books published. Several of my short stories have been published in various magazines and e-zines, so I was interested in reviewing this book that the Atlantic Publishing Group sent to me free of charge. The first few pages asks you to ask yourself, Why Write for Children?" and then takes you into a brief history of children books, in which the first children's books were written in back in the 1400s. Before you start writing your novel, you should look into the current market place and see what the popular trend is. Several chapters details the process of writing fiction, such as - the style, tone and voice; choosing the right narration; creating great characters; plot and story structure; and believable dialogue. After you finish writing your book, chapter four will guide you into solving those finishing touches and other challenges that might occur. If you are going to illustrate your book too, then you'll find chapter five interesting as it covers the subject. The author covers both the traditional publishing market and the self-publishing market. There are also chapters on how to submit your work properly with a few letter examples to get you started. How to Write and Publish a Successful Children's Book provides all the basic steps for aspiring writers and offers additional tips for published authors as well. Being a writer myself, I loved reading the book and how the author explained everything in laymen terms so anyone outside of the publishing world can follow along. I recommend the book to other children writers.

I found this book enlightening in many ways, but a little verbose at times. The book explains not only the ABCs of children's writing, but also the XYZs. It's an understatement to say that the book is thorough. When I first scanned it, I found it a bit overwhelming, but reading it in little chunks, I gleaned some very informative information.The book carries you through the process of writing, finding an agent, finding a publisher, self-publishing and even book tours. The book carefully examines the history of children's writing, the types of writing, how to search for ideas, character and plot development, as well as examining forms of Internet and self-publishing. I learned everything I ever wanted to know about printing costs and bar codes to marketing and public relations tips. This book also addresses the author/illustrator in one chapter and expounds on everything from the use of colors (which I found to be a little too basic for an illustrator) to how to create a storyboard and "dummy book."True to its title, the book is explained in simple terms. I found that when I had a question, it was often answered by the time I got to the end of a chapter (or even the page). One helpful tactic the author uses is to sprinkle a generous helping of case studies throughout the book. In these case studies, successful children's writers offer their heartfelt and useful advice to aspiring writers. Near the end of the book, Reeser provides sample cover letters, queries, book proposals, storyboards and even manuscripts. She also lists dozens of organizations, websites and other resources for writers.

I was skeptical when I saw Cynthia Reeser's book "How to Write and Publish a Successful Children's Book." I've bought similar books and workbooks in the past and was sorely disappointed. I have to admit, however, that Reeser's book gave me new information that actually seems to be valuable. This book has something for everyone who wants to write for children. There's information about writing nonfiction and graphic novels geared toward children as well as the standard fiction information.I think other writers will also find the section about self publishing very useful. Technology has made it possible for us to do this, but we are told too many times that self publishing has no benefits. Reeser's book looks at the pros and cons of self publishing to help aspiring writers determine what is best for them.The three biggest assets to this book are the last three "chapters." Chapter 11 outlines the importance of networking and marketing yourself as a children's writer. Chapter 12 reminds that it's okay to make a living doing other kinds of writing as you work on your career as a children's writer. The appendix is full of sample documents and resources that are geared at making you successful - not selling a sequel or workbook to this book! I'd recommend this book to anyone who has ever considered writing for children. As a matter of fact, forget about the other books out there and get just this one.