The Business of Writing for Young People
Used as the set text by a number of professional writing courses.
Offers advice on how to set up a writing business and the actual crafting of the projects.
Deals with important issues such as the business of creativity, setting up your workspace, time and money management(including overcoming procrastination) .
Activities include proposals, synopses, research, crafting, ms preparation .
Material ranges from non-fiction, YA, picture books, scripts and various genre.
Tips on collaboration, ghost writing ,agent and even how to launch a book
A companion resource to Mentoring Your Memoir
Reviews
The first thing you notice about Hazel Edwards and Goldie Alexander’s ‘The Business of Writing for Young People” is that it is so overwhelmingly, uncompromisingly practical.
Edwards and Alexander, both successful children’s authors and collaborators on a number of projects, cover both the business and technical aspects of writing. There are chapters on setting up a business, overcoming procrastination, dealing with agents, working with collaborators, handling the media and marketing manuscripts.
There are also sections on plotting, viewpoint, characterisation and dialogue, and discussions on different media and markets. The ideas, while not always fully developed, are head spinning, and exercises and checklists pop up at every turn. Going on a bookshop crawl to identify what’s being published and eavesdropping in fast food outlets to research young peoples speech patterns are just two strategies suggested for keeping in touch with this readership.
The language of the book is succinct, pithy and often humorous. Crazy examples and amusing cartoons are included to illustrate a point or emphasise an issue. The text is also peppered with questions and exercises, making the whole experience surprisingly interactive.
But a word of caution: if you’re expecting a simple, linear or narrative approach to writing for children, ‘The Business of Writing for Young People” is not for you. It is clearly designed for those who like brainstorming and will take the time to complete all the exercises and answer the pointed questions. And because of the number of ideas contained in it, the book has a tendency to make the reader want to rush off and try at least ten of them at once. So if you need a disciplined approach, you might find it best to work through the book with a writing buddy or your writers’ group.
That said, ‘The Business of Writing for Young People” is a book to dip into again and again for ideas, inspiration and practical advice. It is a welcome addition to any writer’s bookcase and is highly recommended.