The world of children’s literature is a deep, diverse place with so much creative potential that it's no wonder so many adults aspire to write kids’ books. Picture books with lushly illustrated spreads are sprinkled with words that might be poetic, silly, or both at once. Chapter books welcome young readers into the wonderful world of books with colorful young characters and exciting stories told with age-appropriate language. Middle grade books begin to introduce harder language and harder issues, acknowledging young people’s great capacity for understanding life’s complexity. Young adult novels have an irresistible pull for many adult readers, but most importantly, they speak to tumultuous adolescent years with care and sensitivity. 

But if you’re an author who wants to try writing for kids, there’s more to it than writing shorter sentences with smaller words. 

Age Groups

What kind of kids do you want to write for? 

Sure, there’s an obvious difference between writing for toddlers and writing for teenagers. But when you’re a kid, even a year or two of growing can change the kinds of books that will serve you developmentally. 

And don’t forget, writing for kids is all about serving them in whatever stage of development they’re in. Different grades have different level markers for reading, and you don’t want to go above those levels, but you also want to make sure you’re challenging those kids appropriately. If the prose is too complex, sure, that’s obviously a barrier to enjoyment, but if it’s too easy? That’s boring.

Beyond grammar and vocabulary, what kinds of issues are your young characters facing? How do they see the world around them, with its inevitable problems and stresses? Even young kids need sensitively written books about tough issues, which is why many children’s librarians and teachers have picture books on topics such as divorce and death—to serve little ones who would benefit from a book that can help them make sense of difficult topics and feelings. 

The best children’s authors have a solid understanding of how their age group functions psychologically and know how to write for kids in a way they find directly relatable. 

Serving Your Audience

Having never known life without the internet, this generation of kids have the whole world of art and music at their fingertips. And so it makes sense that a lot of kids are not only influenced by what the adults around them like, but they are also into music and movies that were around long before they were born. 

But let’s face it; access to the internet has not changed the fact that every generation has their own language of references and favorite pieces of media. And if you want to write a twelve-year-old who thinks TikTok is weird and doesn’t listen to any music that was produced after 1994, well, you’re going to have a hard time selling it to actual twelve-year-olds.

Kids are individuals with different tastes, and you could definitely craft a character who’s a bit of an outsider and prides themselves on being offline. But kids are smart, and if they sense an adult is writing to vent their petty annoyances with “kids these days,” they’ll put down the book. 

Get Real

Children’s literature is no place to run to if you want to avoid writing about tough real-world issues or cultural conflicts. Even in fantasy, you’ll find nations at war, discrimination, and cruelty. Even books for younger kids are often purposefully written to address real world issues like climate change, racism, and violence. 

Children’s book writers know that kids are not immune to the harsh realities of the world, nor are they trapped in a bubble of ignorant innocence until they turn eighteen. Instead, the best writers tackle these topics in a way that helps kids learn about resilience, community building, and integrity. 

Have you ever heard people joke about how parents are nonexistent in kid’s adventure stories? About how these preteens are, for some reason, allowed to run amok in haunted forests, totalitarian governments, and experimental spaceships? That’s because it helps young readers feel as if they have agency in their own stories and know they have the power to make things better and to solve problems. 

In real life, of course, it’s unlikely that the leader of the mysterious band of wizards would send a teenager to infiltrate the evil corporation bent on world domination. But who would want to read a book about being sent to bed on time and waiting to hear on the news if the band of magical rebels saved the world? It's kind of hard to nurture feelings of independence and confidence if kids can’t explore those feelings in the protected world of fiction. 

Explore and Play

Kids are voracious readers, often even more so than adults. It can be extremely rewarding to write for an audience who wants to inhale all the books they can find, and it’s especially meaningful to create those core memories of joyful reading for young people so they can carry their love of books into adulthood. So don’t feel restricted when you try writing for kids. Instead, know that there are little ones out there who are craving the exact books you want to write for them. 

Chelsea Ennen is a writer living in Brooklyn with her husband and her dog. When not writing or reading, she is a fiber and textile artist who sews, knits, crochets, weaves, and spins.