Picture Book Saavy, Part 2

In creating a story for the picture book crowd, we have to ask, What is the want? In last week’s example, I used—I want to win every game.  

Now we need to ask—Why is that important? Is it because the child thinks the parents expect him/her to win every game? Does the child think winning will produce more friends? 

The “Want” must be believable. That is the heart of the story, the motivation. Why does he want to win every game? 

Once a believable “want” is established, obstacles must be introduced to impede the character from reaching the goal or solving the problem. Obstacles create conflict, and conflict keeps the reader interested in the story. The character must overcome the obstacles, but shouldn’t easily. 

Three types of conflict exist:

1.      Protagonist against another character.

2.      Protagonist against circumstances (weather, luck, nature, etc.)

3.      Protagonist against her/himself (afraid, shy, etc.) 

The ending should be happy or at least offer hope. The last page is an opportunity for a writer to offer a twist in the story to surprise or provide an emotional connection to the reader.

Next week, I’ll provide more golden nuggets of our conversations. 

Call for submissions for Young Writers

Teen Ink. If it has a beginning, middle and end ... if it has a well-developed plot and interesting characters ... it if takes place in the past, present or future ... then submit your story to Teen Ink's Fiction Contest.

Prizes

Winning stories are published in Teen Ink magazine and contest winners receive a copy of the magazine featuring their work. Plus, they’ll have the opportunity to choose from an exciting selection of Teen Ink merchandise – apparel and other items – available exclusively from Teen Ink.

Guidelines: Teen Ink will only consider original fiction written by teens. Entries of all genres are accepted, whether fantasy, horror, historical, sci-fi, or romance. Short stories should be between 500 and 2,500 words.

Submit entries through our website. All fiction pieces submitted to Teen Ink are automatically considered for the contest. See our submission guidelines for more information.

No deadlines.

Submission guidelines at http://www.teenink.com/Contests/FictionC.php

 

Call for submissions for Adult Writers

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Stories about Cats
We are working on and collecting stories and poems for another wonderful book about our cats. The focus of this book will be on rescued cats that were adopted from shelters or rescue organizations and who luckily found their forever homes. Whether adopted as kittens or adopted as older cats in the last few years of their lives, what amazing stories of survival our cats could tell us. We love these heartwarming and inspirational stories about our cats and the amazing and magical things they do. We rejoice in their simple absurdities, funny habits, and crazy antics. Our cats make us smile and laugh every day, but sometimes they really outdo themselves. Whether they came up with the idea themselves, or you put them in a situation that caused them to do something unusual, we want to hear about it! We know you'll have many great stories for us about your cats. Stories can be serious or humorous... or both. Tell us what your cat did. The deadline for story and poem submissions is January 31, 2017. 

Submission guidelines at http://www.chickensoup.com/story-submissions/possible-book-topics 

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK.

Compelling Characters

If you are a writer, you want to create a protagonist that is empathetic. Is this a character you would spend a lot of time with? If not, the reader probably won’t either and will stop reading the story long before reaching the end. Does the character defend those who are vulnerable, stand up to a bully or commit to other acts that showcase empathy?

Pile on the problems but give the character enough backbone to confront the obstacles. We are striving to develop compelling characters, not perfect ones, so allow them to have a few frailties and faults, something to hinder the ability to succeed. As the story progresses with the character facing even greater obstacles, s/he grows, adapts, changes and becomes strong enough, clever enough to keep trying. Conflict is a must. If there is no conflict there is no story because conflict leads to growth.

 Make characters relatable, reflecting real life so they seem real. Have them take action and not be passive. Action drives the story and ups the tension. Compelling characters are the basic element to any story. The reader is cheering them on to reach their goal. After all, we write for the reader.

Call for submissions for Young Writers

CALLING for Submissions from Middle Grade and Young Adult writers! The Crawl Space Journal, a small place for big imaginations, is looking for great writing, especially short forms: poems, prose, and flash fiction, within the realms of magical realism, fabulism, and fantasy, for our Spring Issue. We do accept novel excerpts (up to1,500 words) if they stand alone. Our readers are mainly between the ages of 11 and 14.

Submission guidelines at http://thecrawlspace.me/about-us/submissions/

Call for submissions for Adult Writers

Lilybell welcomes writer submissions. Lilybell has a very specific voice. We recommend reading several issues before submitting work.

Submissions should be sent to sara@mylilybell.com. Please include your work in the body of the email. No attachments accepted.

Submission guidelines at http://mylilybell.com/writers/