Course Description for

Children's Picture Books

with Karen King

Registration Fee and Course Length

Prerequisites

Standard course: $240 / 8 weeks. Click here to register.

No prerequisites.

Course Contacts

Course Description

Week 1: Getting started. Researching picture books, the age of the reader, finding time to write, getting ideas, the new angle.

Week 2: Characters. How characters dominate stories, look at well-known picture book characters, how to create characters children will love, using animals or inanimate objects as characters, naming your character.

Week 3: Plotting The Story. Picture book formats, the illustrators role, structure, conflict and plot. Making sure the story has a beginning, middle and end. The 'feel good' ending.

Week 4: Writing It Down. Writing the first draft, page by page layout, titles. Picture Book page layout.

Week 5: The Right Language. Keeping the language simple. Rhyme, rhythm and repetition, making every word count.

Week 6: Let The Pictures Do TheTalking. Show don't tell. Always see the illustrations in your mind as you write. How the illustrations move the story along. How to write up the story and artwork suggestion. Making a dummy.

Week 7: Revising And Rewriting. How to re-read, revise and rewrite your story. The final draft. Presentation.

Week 8: Agents And Publishers. How to go about getting an agent. Looking for the right publisher. Sending your work off.

HOMEWORK
Lesson 1: Write a brief study of a well-known children's picture book character.
Lesson 2: Create a character suitable for a children's picture book.
Lesson 3: Write a story outline for your character.
Lesson 4: Write the first draft of your story.
Lesson 5: Write up your story in page by page layout. This assignment is spread over two weeks.
Lesson 6: No assignment.
Lesson 7: Submit the final revision of your story. This assignment is spread over two weeks.
Lesson 8: No assignment.

Karen King has been writing children’s books since the mid-eighties. She’s also written for many children's magazines including Sindy, Barbie, Winnie the Pooh and Thomas the Tank Engine. Some of her short stories were featured on Playdays BBC and some of her poems on the BBC One Potato, Two Potato website.

She writes for all ages and in all genres. She’s written more than 100 books including picture books, story books and joke books. Her picture book I Don’t Eat Toothpaste Anymore! won the Gold Award for Best Product and Country Companions:The Birthday Picnic won the Practical Parenting Award.

King's latest books are Dognapped! Sabotage! and Smugglers! (the first three books in the Amy Carter Mysteries series) and Silly Moo! a lift-the flap picture book.

She wrote the ‘Write for Profit using the Internet’ course for The Writer’s Bureau, part of their ‘Writing for Children’ course and the study guide for the ICS ‘Writing for Children’ course.  Her first romance novella has just been published in Large Print.

King has a Certificate in Education and tutors for The Writer’s Bureau. She runs writing workshops for children in schools.