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The quiet magic of Goodnight Moon grows into the zaniness of Dr. Seuss and widens into the dazzlement of Harry Potter then matures into the straight talk of Judy Blume and the gritty reality of The Outsiders. Such is the amazing journey children take through books. These stories are a treasured part of childhood and they linger for a lifetime. Writing for children is fun but not child’s play.
In our courses, you will discover how to balance youthful imagination with adult professionalism, gain awareness of the various forms and age-ranges, and learn such craft elements as character, plot, point of view, description, dialogue, setting, voice, and theme. You will also learn how and where to market your work.
Whatever type of children’s book you seek to write – picture books, EZ readers, chapter books, middle grade, young adult – we’ll show you how to write stories that will entrance young readers.
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Level I
Children's Book Writing | 10-week Workshop
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Using a balance of lecture, exercise, and feedback on work from the instructor and classmates, this course gives students a firm grounding in all the basics of children’s book writing. Everything is presented in a clear, accessible manner.
- Begin a children’s book
- Lectures on basics of children’s book craft
- Writing exercises
- Present work for critique
Children’s Books I is for beginners or anyone who wants to brush up on the fundamentals.
View a course syllabus
(3.0 CEU)
| New York City Classes |
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Tuition:
$395, Returning Students $365 .
Registration Fee $25.
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Advanced
Children's Book Writing | 10-week Workshop
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Focusing on developing projects and receiving feedback from the instructor and classmates, this course helps students sharpen their skills and work toward completion of publishable work. Writers often repeat Children’s Books II to continue their projects.
- Work toward completion of a children’s book
- Lectures that expand on basics of children’s books craft
- Writing exercises
- Present work for in-depth critique
Prerequisite: Children’s Book Writing I or the equivalent.
View a course syllabus
Which level is right for you? How
to Choose a Level
Children's Book Writing II will not be offered in NYC
in Spring 2008. Take this class Online
Please call 877-974-8377 for the next scheduled
date.
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Master Class
Children's Book Writing | 10-week Workshop
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The Children's Book Writing Master Class provides students deeply immersed in the writing of a children's book with the opportunity to work with a published author and other dedicated writers in a small class setting. (This class is not for picture books — only chapter books, middle grade, and young adult.) The class is devoted almost exclusively to workshopping — the reading, critiquing, and discussion of student work. Every student will be allowed to workshop approximately 150 pages of a book. Class size is limited to six students, all of whom have done a substantial amount of work on a childrens book and are experienced in the workshop process.
Instructor: Nancy Antle is the author of numerous children's books, including the young adult novels Lost in the War (Dial) and Playing Solitaire (Dial); the middle grade novel Beautiful Land (Viking); the easy readers Sam’s Wild West Show (Dial) and The Good Bad Cat (School Zone); and the picture books Staying Cool (Dial) and Ordinary Albert (HarperCollins/Australia). She has also published short stories and poems in Cricket, Children's Playmate, and Blast Off. She has taught with the Institute of Children's Literature. Nancy holds a BA from San Jose State University.
Prerequisites: The following are prerequisites for students who take the Children's Book Writing Master Class:
- A complete (or nearly complete) draft of a children's book
- Completion of one or more terms of Gotham’s Children's Book Writing II course
- Acceptance by Gotham based on a sample of the student’s work
To be accepted into the Children's Book Writing Master Class all students must first submit a sample of their work.
Your writing sample may be no more than ten pages. Ideally, the sample will be the first ten pages of the book you plan to workshop in the Children's Book Writing Master Class. If that material is not yet available, you may submit ten pages from something else you've written for children.
A Note on the Class: All students in this class will be expected to read and critique segments of one hundred pages or more per week. The success of the class depends on the full participation of all students. Students should only take this course if they are confident they can handle the weekly load of reading and critiquing. To make this more manageable, students should have already done most or all of the work on the book that they plan to present to the class before class begins.
A Note to Applicants: The Master Classes may get far more applicants than can be accepted, and so talented and dedicated students are often not accepted. If you are not accepted in a Master Class, you are welcome to apply another time, and you may well be accepted then.
Children's Book Writing MC will not be offered in NYC
in Spring 2008. Take this class Online
Please call 877-974-8377 for the next scheduled
date.
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Children's Book Writing | One-Day in
NYC
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The One-Day Workshops are fun, fast-paced immersions in a type of writing. You’ll get a mixture of brief lectures that hit the high-points and writing exercises that let you immediately try your hand at what you’ve just learned. The one-days provide an excellent overview of their fields, ideal for both the beginner and someone wanting a quick refresher course. Come in one day on the weekend with a notepad, pen, and desire to learn. By Monday, you’ll be a more knowledgeable and skilled writer.
One-Days are for beginners or anyone who wants to brush up on the fundamentals.
Topics include: overview of the field, character, plot, description, getting published
| New York City Classes |
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Tuition:
$125.
Registration Fee $25.
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