Prescription Seven

How to write a children's book - CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.

1. When you have the characters basic motivation established, secondary features will soon declare themselves: what kind of clothes are they wearing, what type of food do they eat, what are their dreams, desires, daily habits, inner thoughts. Not all this information will be given to the reader, but you the writer, must know these details.

2. Do not make a good character too good - it does not allow them to grow within the development of the story. Much better to begin with a faulty character, who by degrees learns a few things, and grows up in the course of the story.

3. Remember, the reader has to feel some emotion towards your character - empathy, affection, exasperation or curiosity.

4. Never describe the whole person - select one attribute.

5. It is useful if a character has such a distinctive way of speaking that he can be instantly recognized.

6. Note down all episodes which might enrich or enliven your characters eg. the annoying repetitive use of a word or phrase.

7. Children relish distinctive, well-drawn characters.

8. A character can only show his nature through his interactions with others. He cannot function in a vacuum - use the characters to describe each other by use of words, actions and subtle statements.

VILLIANS -

1. Villians will be of new use unless they pose a threat to the main character and has the power to cause anxiety in the reader. How do you achieve this? First, he must turn up early on in the book, and the reader must be aware of his power to influence their life.

2. Have plenty of mixed characters in your story - stupid but lovable, bad-tempered but reliable, lovable but wicked, funny but tragic.

DIALOGUE & DIALECT -

Dialogue must be real, individual and carry the stamp of the speaker. While you are writing, make an effort to hear your characters' voices in your mind's ear. Slang, catch-words, slipshods that are from the day will only date your work - avoid slang. Use plain, classic language.

MYTH & FANTASY -

1. Fairy tales have an important function. Unlike other forms of literature, direct the child to discover his identity and calling. Myth is a universal experience; fantasy is a personal experience. The myth or fairytale then interprets and resolves the contradictions which the child sees all around him, and gives him confidence in his power to deal with reality.

2. Piaget said children are animistic until they reach puberty - they believe inanimate objects have souls and natures, that the sun shines on us and the stone rolls in order to trip us up.

3. A system of sliding back and forth throughout a fantasy story, between reality and myth keeps the reader linked to the present-day existence and prevents the feeling of dreamlike exhaustion and surfeit which can result from an overdose of fantasy with no alleviation of common sense.

4. Whatever your fantasy world is, you must throw yourself into its construction and immerse yourself in its atmosphere and topography.

5. If you use magic, be sparing in using it. Too many magic rules can become difficult for the young reader to remember.

6. The plot of a fantasy generally follows a quest or a series of ordeals which the hero has to undergo; and it nearly always has to do with the rectifying of some wrong.

FINAL WORDS -

At all costs, avoid depression, violence and despair in your children's books. Nor do you want to give these young minds ideas that could be dangerous if tried out. Good writing for children should come out with the force of Niagara - it ought to be concentrated. The emotional range ought to be no less - children's emotions are as powerful as those of adults. A child's story ought to put life and the big wide world into perspective for them.