Guest Author - Yvonne Russell

Children’s Book Editor, Rosalind Price, of Oxford University Press, shared some insights on what she hopes for from a children’s book manuscript.

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Interestingly, while these observations were made in the early 90’s, they remain as relevant today.

The Heart of Writing for Children
These insights focus on the heart of writing, with children in mind, as opposed to the mechanics of writing. There’s no magic formula, but these give a valuable glimpse of how an editor may determine whether your book stands out from the crowd. These criteria may vary from editor to editor.

Some of the key things Price looks for as an editor are –

• “… flair, humour, wisdom, originality… the magic ingredient ‘X’
  that makes the difference between an ordinary book and an extraordinary one.”



• “…the unexpected…I want you to tell me something I haven’t already thought of; show me things I haven’t seen before; or at least to show me familiar things from an unfamiliar angle.”



• “truthfulness… fresh vision…clarity and intensity…emotional and intellectual insight… engaging characters…generosity of spirit…we want life to illuminated for the reader in some way…we don’t want life to be sanitised for children – we want the truth; and on the other hand we want optimism – we want something positive…



• “Writers must approach children with care and respect. And the must certainly approach the act of writing with respect. In storytelling, the two are inseparable.”

What to Avoid
She cautions us to avoid characters, stories and phrases that are trite, clichéd, bland or cute. “They present a coy, saccharine, diminished version of reality for children.” On the other hand, she says that darkness should not be thrust upon children, without also offering “possibilities for change; that the dark can be contained – at least some of the time.”

This is seen in themes such as good triumphing over evil, and perserverance winning out over adversity. It is through characters' dealing with conflict or problems, that we see character development. The best children’s stories empower and affirm.

The Editor and the Author
Once a book is accepted, the editor and the author have a very close working relationship. The publisher trusts the editor’s judgement. However, the editor has to love the book too, and feel she can work with the author to bring the project to fruition. Thus, the editor’s own subjectivity comes into the decision making process as well.

Other Factors
Writers’ guidelines often deal mainly with the mechanics, so I found Rosalind Price’s insights enormously valuable. We know that editors are actively looking for great books and great authors, and that’s good news.

Suggestion
If Rosalind Price was your editor, would your manuscript meet all her criteria? Are there other criteria you set for yourself, either relating to the “heart” of writing, or the mechanics, that are not listed here?