What Publishers Want in a Children’s Book:
An Editorial Perspective, Part 1
from the collected notes of children's author
Barbara Jean Hicks
As children’s writers, our stories need to appeal to several audiences. The last two Fridays we looked at the needs of the Child Audience. This week and next we’ll look at the needs of the Publisher Audience.
Over the years I’ve been writing for children, I’ve heard many editors speak about what publishing houses are looking for in a children’s book. The bottom line, of course, is that houses want books that will make them money! What kind of book does that? After analyzing the comments from a slew of editors from seven major houses, I’ve come up with eight characteristics editors are looking for to take a book to market. Following are the first four; check in again next Friday for the final four.
A manuscript that appeals to children’s editors and publishers is child-accessible, shows originality, has an unforgettable hero and has a unique narrative voice.
Here are those first four characteristics, with questions to ask yourself about your work in progress and direct quotes from editors relating to the characteristic. BTW, the answers to the questions make an excellent basis for a query letter…
1. Is my story child-accessible? Why will children love it?
- The main character is a child or a child-surrogate.
- The story and language are “age-appropriate.”
- The story is “grounded in the emotional life of childhood.”
- The story “communicates the central conflict from the child’s point of view.”
2. Does my story show originality? What’s unique about it?
- The story is “imaginative,” “quirky,” “refreshing,” “unpredictable,” “surprising,” “daring,” “shocking,” “subversive.”
- The story “takes the reader on a new journey.”
3. Does my story have an unforgettable hero? What’s special about him/her?
- The hero is “fully realized.”
4. Does my story have a unique narrative voice? What’s different about the way I tell my story?
- The narrative voice is “strong,” “distinctive,” “quirky,” “clear,” “fresh.”
- The voice is “authentic,” “rings true.”
- The voice expresses “a unique or interesting point of view.”
How does your work in progress hold up in light of these characteristics and questions?
Check back next Friday for four additional qualities editors want in a children’s book.
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