Ten Mentor Texts to Inspire Your Writing
What are mentor texts?
Mentor texts are models for writers, well-done examples of specific writing skills that authors can use to learn how to become better writers.
Whatever areas upon which you feel you could improve as a writer, finding a mentor text to inspire and teach you is always a great idea. First, know your target audience and read the kinds of books that you feel will reach that audience. After that, whether you want help with character development, plot and story arc, pace, voice, dialogue, structure, tense, point of view, or world-building, find the books that feature the specific skills you’re looking for and read as many as you can.
Here are ten recommendations:
Picture Books:
The Napping House by Audrey Wood. Cumulative text, humor, story arc.
Plants Fight Back by Lisa Amstutz. Humorous, rhyming nonfiction with sidebars and a gold mine of information for the school curriculum.
teaches math skills.
Ah-Choo! by Lana Wayne Koehler and Gloria G. Adams. Interactive, rhyme, repetition, story arc,
teaches empathy.
Chapter Books:
The Zoe and Sassafras series by Asia Citro. Relatable characters, story arc, dialogue, voice,
how to write a series.
The Cody series by Tricia Springstubb. Relatable characters, life lessons, dialogue, voice, story arc, how to write a series.
Middle Grade:
Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston. Fantasy, character development, voice, world-building.
Young Adult:
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Social/political issues, strong character development, suspense, world building, writing a series
Here’s a tip from the writers at Journeytokidlit.com: “Try typing out the full story or 1st chapter to get a better sense of what it was like to be the writer of the book. It will help you learn word choice, sentence structure, and voice.”
TEN BEST SUBMISSION PRACTICES
By Kate Carroll
In today’s tight publishing market, submissions are serious business. It's vital to tailor your work for an exact fit. Kid lit professionals would love to uncover the next big hit, and with a little work, yours may be the story that gets their attention. Look at this list to give your manuscript the best chance at being seen.
1. Know your audience. Be sure you study what the agent or publisher is looking for, and submit only if your manuscript is a match.
2. Follow the submission instructions provided by the agent/publisher exactly. They streamline their requirements so that they can assess as many manuscripts as possible - which is to your benefit. If they are bogged down with material that isn’t formatted to their liking, it takes away precious time. Bottom line: If you don’t follow the rules, don’t expect to play.
3. Never use a question to begin your pitch. It is overdone and a guaranteed pass.
4. Manners always matter. Submitting is like interviewing for a job. Bring your very best attitude and demeanor to your cover letter.
5. If your manuscript is over the word count for your genre, think twice, no, three times about sending it out. The economy of words matters. Make each word work in your story or toss it!
6. Use a formal salutation in your letter to an agent/editor. Include his/her correct name! Research the right person for your book genre and interest. Sending a PB to a YA agent/editor only takes time away from the readers and doesn’t help you at all. In fact, it could have a negative impact for future submissions.
7. Do not query too soon after submitting a project. Give an agent/editor time to evaluate your work in and among the many tasks they do each day. Websites usually indicate how long it takes for an agent/editor to respond to a submission. After that time, and only after that time should you reach out again.
8. Never sit back after making a submission. Move on to your next project.
9. Be humble. Your best friend or your mom may have told you how wonderful your work is, but the industry professionals prefer to make their own decision!
10. Be open to rejection. It is a huge part of acceptance in the world of publishing.
TEN MUST-HAVE BOOKS
Informative resources to support you throughout your journey as a children’s writer.
1. Writing Picture Books Revised and Expanded Edition: A Hands On Guide From Story Creation to Publication by Ann Whitford Paul
2. Writing For Children and Teens, A Crash Course, By Cynthea Liu
3. How to write a Children’s Book and Get It Published by Barbara Seuling
4. Children’s Writers & Illustrators Market, 33rd Edition, Newly Revised Guide and Update
5. The Magic Words: Writing Great Books for Children and Young Adults by Cheryl Klein
6. Queries, Pitches & Proposal by Moira Allen
7. Children’s Writer’s Word Book, 2nd edition, by Alijandra Mogilner
8. How to Write a Children’s Picture Book, Tips and Tricks For Writing Illustrated Picture Books for Kids by Darcy Pattison
9. Writing Irresistible Picture Books, Insider Insights into Crafting Compelling Modern Stories for Young Readers by Mary Kole
10. Writing Irresistible Picture Books Workbook: Guidance, Checklists, Worksheets, and Reading Lists to Go from Theory to Practice by Mary Kole
TEN REASONS TO LOVE WRITING FOR CHILDREN
Here are ten reasons to love writing for kids.
1. We can explore our own creativity. We can write anything from picture books to poetry to chapter books. Along the way, we can let our imaginations run wild. Will it be make-believe? humor? mystery? We have the freedom to write about anything we choose and to unleash our creativity while doing so.
2. We can create new characters and get to know them. Anything can become a character – a scarecrow, a car, a dog, a person. The choices are unlimited. As we choose our characters and develop character sketches for them, we get to endow them with all sorts of traits which can be important in the story. Sometimes these characters even try to take over the story – which leads to even more creativity.
3. We can shut out the outside world and get lost in our own mind. As we develop our stories, we can play with structure and plot and shape our stories in any way we want. We can play around with different ideas until we discover the one that brings us satisfaction.
4. We can get back in touch with our own childhood. Remembering people and incidents which impressed us as we were growing up can provide fodder for stories. Sharing some of our interests or personal history might help today’s children make sense of their world.
5.
We get to hone our craft and improve our skills.
Through all the steps of the writing process, we can become better writers.
Whether editing, rewriting, or wordsmithing, we grow in our knowledge of what
works and what does not. By attending workshops and joining critique groups, we learn from
others. Applying what we learn helps us perfect our stories so they are just right.
6. We grow and learn as we write for kids. As we do research about time periods or search for information needed for nonfiction, we absorb many helpful facts and are exposed to new ideas which just might lead to that next great story.
7. We have the opportunity to change the world and make it a better place. Stories can teach our readers important ideas about life. As we craft stories about such topics as empathy, kindness, and friendship, we can inform and educate children and guide them to develop these values. When kids internalize these values, they grow as individuals and become more compassionate. Our stories can provide different points of views, expose kids to different cultures, or just help them to better understand life. The possibilities are endless.
8. We can help foster a love of reading and literature. Reading about topics which interest them helps children keep reading. Every author wishes that his work would capture the interest of a child and inspire him to keep reading. There is a child just waiting for a certain story to touch his heart.
9. We have the opportunity to meet wonderful, like-minded people. The kid-lit community is filled with kind, gracious, fellow authors who are willing to be teachers, mentors, and critique partners. Not only do these folks help us hone our craft, but they can become wonderful supportive friends.
10. We have fun! Yes, writing can challenge us in multiple ways as we try to reach our full potential. But if we are honest, who among us does not enjoy playing around with the ideas swirling in our brains and perfecting them until they come out our fingertips at the keyboard? It is fun to see our stories take shape and give us such a sense of satisfaction. Many other reasons to love writing for children exist. Which ones would you add to the list?
Ten Writing Prompts for 2025
by Gloria G. Adams
To celebrate our tenth year of writing A Song of Six Pens blog, we begin with 10 writing prompts to get your creative ideas flowing for 2025. Have fun!
1. Once upon a time there was a tiny green frog named Thomas. One day he woke up and he was no longer green. He was a brilliant shade of…
2.
As soon as I saw the look on Mama’s face, I knew
exactly what had happened.
Who are they?
What happened
to them?
Are they
related to each other?
What
is the setting?
What sensory
details does the picture conjure up?
What
will happen to them?
4. Write a story about a world where everything is upside down, except for people.
5.
Make up a story in which a little girl is
obsessed with wanting to be an astronaut.
6.
Research an unusual animal, insect, or plant and
write a lyrical nonfiction picture book about it.
7.
Write a picture book about things in nature that
are black. For a bigger challenge, write it in rhyme.
8.
Make up a story using this picture.
9. Maggie was the naughtiest dog in the whole neighborhood. She was always getting into trouble. But then, one day…
10 Celia
Carolina Crawford counted everything. She counted how many times she brushed
her hair. She counted the number of tiles on the kitchen floor. She always
counted each of her stuffies every morning. (Then, something related to counting goes
wrong.)
Do I Need an Editor for My Manuscript?
By Gloria G. Adams
You’ve written the first draft of your manuscript.
You’ve revised it.
And revised it some more.
Your critique group has given you feedback.
But you still think it needs more work.
Maybe you’ve sent it out to several publishers and agents, but no one has picked it up.
Maybe, just maybe, it’s time to look for an editor.
There are several different kinds of editors.
Three of the major ones are copy editors, proofreaders, and developmental
editors.
Copy editors
A copy editor will check line by line for the following:
- Spelling
- Capitalization
- Word
usage and repetition/overuse of words
- Dialogue
tags
- Usage
of numbers
- Point
of view
- Tense
- Inconsistencies
with characters, world building, etc.
A proofreader looks for inconsistencies in:
- Language use
- Grammar
- Style
- Layout
- Typography
A developmental editor looks for “big picture” issues such
as:
- Character development
- Dialogue
- Point of view
- Story Arc
- Plot
- Tense
- Voice
- Pace
- Theme
Eight years ago, my friend and critique partner, author Jean Daigneau and I started a developmental editing company. To make it unique, we named it Two-4-One Kid Critiques because we offer two separate critique edits for the price of one.
Here are some questions to ask that we’ve come up with over the years:
- Does your character change from beginning to end or show emotional growth?
- If applicable, do subplots work seamlessly into the story?
- Can you write out your book’s story in one sentence?
- Does your dialogue sound authentic?
- Can you clearly define your intent for your story, your character(s), and your reader?
- Is there enough tension to keep your reader engaged?
- Is your vocabulary appropriate for your target audience?
- Do you have a complete story arc?
- Does your pace match the action in the story?
- Are you using enough action verbs or too many passive verbs?
- Are you spending too many words on back story?
- Have you added a lot of sensory details so your readers will relate to your characters?
- Will your page turns/chapter endings keep your reader turning the pages?
- Is your word count within the expected range for your book’s reading level?
- Does your setting compliment your story, and are your world building details consistent?
If you’d like help answering these questions or have the
need to hire a developmental editor,
we’re here to help!
Check out our website: Two-4-One Kid Critiques, or email us: two4onekidcritiques@gmail.com
Jean Daigneau writes fiction and nonfiction for ages 3-12. Her latest nonfiction titles include Code Cracking for Kids: Secret Communications Throughout History and Ellis Island and Immigration for Kids: A History. She is represented by Vicki Selvaggio of Storm Literary Agency.
Gloria G. Adams has three new nonfiction picture books out this year: If You Lived Beside the Ocean, If You Lived Beside the Desert, and If You Lived Beside the Forest. She is represented by Lisa Amstutz of Storm Literary Agency.
Dispelling The Book Marketing Mystery
by Merrill Rainey
If there’s
one thing I’ve
learned in my career as an Author, Illustrator, and Paper Engineer, it is that
not one project ever runs the same path.
Some projects need more time, while others zip right through, and
sometimes they need a little more hand holding.
Each book I’ve
created has had its own individual journey and that includes how I approached
marketing them. When marketing a book, I
always look for new avenues to attract people to my work. Some ways help me find work, and some ways
don’t. When they don’t work, I learn from these experiences and improve how
I approach my process the next time around.
Like most things in publishing, there is not one set way to do
something, and that includes how to market your book. So whether you are traditionally published,
or independently published, I’ve
compiled some suggestions that I have found success with over the last
decade to help get my work out into the world.
Marketing is the business of building an audience. So for our books and our careers to succeed,
we need to build that following. And
sometimes it takes a little time to do so.
Hopefully the strategies below will help to dispel some of the mystery
around how to market your book!
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Make a marketing plan
Marketing plans are so important! They help you define how you are going to
approach getting your book out into the world and how you are going to afford
doing so. When creating your plan you
need to think through various things:
1.
How do you plan
to get the word out about your book?
Will it be through social media, local advertisements, video media,
etc...?
2.
Decide what
events you might want to attend to help you promote. Will there be a cost associated with doing
so?
3.
Make a list of
what type of giveaways you might want to create to go along with your
book. How much will they cost?
4.
Will you need to
pay someone to help design your marketing materials?
5.
Most importantly,
create a budget. Know how much you want
to spend on your marketing plan. It’s easy to get excited about finding creative ways to
market your project, but make sure it’s
affordable, and make sure those ideas are worth your investment.
Know what your publisher’s plan is
If you are going to be traditionally published, know
what your publisher plans to do to get the word out about your book before you
start to market on your own. If you don’t know the details, ask what their plan is.
You should know:
⁃
Where they plan
to advertise your book
⁃
What their social
media strategy is
⁃
If they are
sending your work out to reviewers
⁃
If there are ways
that you can help support them by supplying materials that they can send to
booksellers
⁃
Are they willing
to help with booking school presentations, bookstore appearances, and library
events
The World Wide Web
The number one thing you must have when marketing your
book is a website. You need a place that
you can send people to that showcases you and your books. Your site must include images of your book
covers and what your books are about, links to where you can buy them, as well
as a bio about yourself. You can also
include any downloadable activities related to your books, and information on
if you offer speaking engagements, library presentations, school visits,
etc. It is also good practice to link
your site to your publishers.
Once you are set up, you will want to link your site to different social media accounts. You’ll have to decide which social media platforms work the best for you. I know social media is a mess right now, but it’s still the place where publishers share about events, book releases, and other announcements. It is where a huge part of your audience engagement occurs, so it is still a viable place to get the word out about you and your work. I’m not a social media guru, but from my experiences, you’ll want to post something at least once a week to keep your audience engaged.
If you have the means to create a book trailer, I suggest doing so. Book trailers don’t have to be anything fancy. They just have to give your audience a taste of what your book is all about and where to find it. You can easily create a slide presentation in PowerPoint or Apple’s Keynote, then export it out as a movie. Or if you have kids, or grandkids that are tech savvy… let them create the trailers for you. Then you can post what was created for all to see on the world wide web, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, etc.!
Note: When possible, I like to link the sales of my book to bookshop.org. This site allows readers to buy your books from your local independent bookstore, or if you don’t have one, they can choose another store to buy it from.
Mass Media
One thing I’ve
learned over the years is that any positive press is good press! That includes small town local papers to
national news. Once you know when your
new book will be released, start reaching out to local media sources; news
station, newspapers, parents magazines, radio shows, podcast, blogs, book
reviewers etc. See if they will run an
interview or a special section about you and the book or if they will write a
review. From my experiences, news
sources are usually more than willing to help you promote and celebrate your
book and yourself. The best things about
these types of resources is that most of them are free, and you can normally
find who to contact listed on their websites.
Also, if you attended college, trade school, etc., reach out to your alma mater. Most places of higher education have a magazine that will highlight the successes of their current and past students.
In person events
No one knows you or your work unless you are telling
them. One of the most common questions I
get from parents is; “My son or daughter is graduating from art school
soon. Do you have any advice for them?” and my
response is always “They need to learn how to sell themselves and their
work, and if they don’t
know how to do that, they need to learn how.” Many people in this field are
introverts, but you have to break out of that comfort zone to succeed! No one else knows how to sell your work
better than you!
So, with that said...
⁃
Participate in as
many local events; book festivals, parking lot parties, street fairs, etc. that
you can and have energy for. You
definitely want to grow your audience, but you don’t want to burn out doing so.
⁃
Submit to larger
national book festivals, you never know whether you’ll be accepted if you don’t try!
⁃
Connect with your
indie bookstores. These bookstores are so important to the book biz! Ask to see if they would be willing to
partner together to host a book launch event.
⁃
Attend writing
and illustrating workshops, classes, and conferences. Networking is key!
⁃
If you have a
book that has a niche topic… are there events in that same topic that you can
attend? The great thing about attending
an event like this is that it already has a built in audience, which you can
then use to build upon and grow yours.
⁃
If you are
presenting at libraries, schools, or events about your book, know your audience
and find ways to make your presentation engaging for them. Engage
being the key word here… you have to use a little bit of showmanship to keep
the attention of your audience members big and small… Are you using
puppets? Are you doing interactive read
alouds? Or maybe some kind of craft
activity that relates to your book?
Also, be willing to adjust on the fly based on the reactions of your
audience or any event issues that might arise.
Being flexible and engaging will always help grow your following and
lead to more presentation opportunities!
⁃
Going back to
your marketing plan, know what your travel budget is. Also, know what your time is worth. Sometimes you can find, or are invited to
free events, but those FREE events will come with travel costs to get
there. Sometime those FREE events are
great for networking and building your audience, sometimes they are not. After awhile you’ll know which events will benefit you and your books
the most. A few years back I attended
NERD Camp Ohio. It was a free event, I
didn’t get paid to be there, I
had to pay for my own travel expenses, but this event ended up being one of my
favorite events of the year! I presented
multiple times to teachers, librarians, book fans, etc., and from that event, I
was able to acquire a few paid school visits the following year.
*Side note: Something to keep in mind while you
attend in-person events; whether you sell 100 books or just 1… every in-person
event is an opportunity to help build your audience!
Giveaways
I’m a
big fan of creating new giveaways for my books.
When Roar I’m a Dinosaur launched, I created a mask bookmark that mimicked the
concept of this novelty board book. It
showcased what the gimmick of the book was, acted as a toy, and functioned as a
bookmark. When GIANTS ARE VERY BRAVE PEOPLE released I created a GIANT sized bookmarks which were
just oversized bookmarks, but again it riffed off of the concept of the
book. One other give away/tradition that
I started is creating a new t-shirt design based on my new book. I would then send these shirts to a more
focused audience which usually included my publishing team, bookstore owners,
librarians, and other event hosts.
The trick to creating effective giveaways is to know who your audience is that will be receiving them. You must make the giveaway something that they’ll keep and not just throw away. Again, it doesn’t have to be something overly creative, just keep it simple, fun, and effective (ie. making a normal size bookmark two inches bigger and calling it giant sized).
Some giveaways are created for crowds of people and others are created for more focused audiences as noted above. Looking back at your marketing plan, when coming up with giveaways directed towards large amounts of people, you want to find something where you can get more for your money. When creating something for a more focused audience, you might want to spend a little more money for a more substantial takeaway. Remember to not stretch yourself to thin here; do what is within your means!
Here are a few ideas for book giveaways;
⁃
Bookmarks. Probably the most common giveaway, but the
most effective. Make sure the bookmark
relates to your book and gives some kind of snippet of what the book is about. Showcase any industry reviews, and of course
include your website link so they know where to go to order your book. There are a lot of places to order bulk
bookmarks from. I’ve had good luck with GotPrint in the past.
⁃
Pins and
buttons. Same as with the bookmarks,
make sure they relate to your book and if possible directs your audience to
your website. There are a lot of venders you can choose from to order or create
these, but I’ve
always used Sticker Mule and have enjoyed their products so far.
⁃
Activity
sheets. Activity sheets that can be
downloaded from your website, or given away at events are a great way for
places like schools and libraries to highlight your books and to engage with
customers or students. When creating
these, consider things such as: Is there a fun activity you can create that
relates to your book? Mazes, word searches, and such are pretty common, but is
there something you can create that would be more memorable? When Color, Cut, Create came out, I
created an oversized postcard that had one of the dinosaur paper toys on
it. It also included where you could
order the book from. My hope with this
particular activity sheet was that the dinosaur would get built, the builders
would enjoy their time doing so, and then they would end up ordering the book
so they could do it all over again. For GIANTS ARE VERY BRAVE
PEOPLE, I did a compare and contrast
activity using the art on the end pages where the kids would circle what was
different in the art. The end pages at
the beginning of the book showed how Bigelow saw his world and all of the
things he was afraid of. Then at the end
of the book, the end pages changed to show that Bigelow had gained his courage
and was not afraid anymore. Then, to tie
into the message of the book, I left space for them to write down what they are
afraid of and what they could do to gain courage to overcome those fears.
——————
To find out more about my work check out ->
Littlerainey.com
Follow me on Instagram and thread @littlerainey
Bluesky: @littlerainey
X: @littlerainey
Facebook: @MerrillRainey
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Looking for someone to design your book or marketing
materials? Email me at
merrillr@littlerainey.com for rates.
Looking for an illustrator for you project check out
HIA.com (Hire and Illustrator) or check out SCBWI.org (Society of Children’s Book Writes and Illustrators).