Honestly, young readers may be the single most important audience for books. In this age of YouTube and Snapchat, children have far more distractions than ever before, and many simply aren't picking up books to read for fun. If you write a story that stirs a child's imagination, then you are supporting our future readers and writers.
But this doesn't mean writing for young readers is "easy." If anything, it's harder than many other genres. Many adult readers are willing to sit through a couple slow chapters in order to better understand the impact of your story — most young readers will not. Also, there is a lot of advice out there about what and how to write for younger audiences. Unfortunately, there is so much variety in these genres that no single piece of advice will apply to every writer — a children's picture book rarely features the high-stakes tension of stuffed animals taking the pet cat hostage while the babysitter steals a school bus. It doesn't make sense to talk about tension and Goodnight Moon in the same paragraph. On the flip side, a book for teens really needs to echo the angst and worry that our young adults experience in real life — hence, the popularity of Twilight. The vampires might be fiction, but a teenager with questions about love and romance and bad decisions is very much a real experience.
The writing process for children and teens has many similarities to writing for adults, but there are some key differences in the final product. Navigating all the different advice people give can feel daunting, so it's very important to remember that your book is your book. Most of those who give advice about books tend to be adults, and their tastes have been strongly affected by adulthood. So if you have an adult saying "children today should be reading X," or another saying "I think this reading level doesn't match children of X age range," just remember that your audience is very unique. You aren't just writing a book for some subset of adult interests — instead, you're writing for a subset of interests that's further subdivided by age groups. Well-meaning friends and family aren't likely to understand that subgroup unless they happen to be in that group, so don't let anyone drive you away from writing with words along the lines of "I think your book should . . . "
If you're writing for a younger audience, then there's a reason you've gravitated toward that age group. Maybe you have a favorite novel from high school that inspired you to write, or maybe the picture books you shared with your own children have inspired you to write something for other parents to share with their toddlers. Whatever it is, follow that interest. Use that inspiration to motivate you. And don't write children's literature because "it sells well" or something like that. It's hard to breathe life into the page unless you have a genuine desire to enjoy words.
It's important to remember this because it's harder finding good critical readers for a children's book. Your intended audience can tell you whether or not they like the book, but those children might not know why they like it or how you might improve it. The adults who read your book might not feel the same magic as a child — and you yourself might not be sure if these words work for the kids you imagine as your readers. Don't let that stop you. Just keep writing until you reach then end of the manuscript, and then figure out which group of children in which age range are meant to read this story.
Regardless of the genre, you must still gather ideas, draft them out, and then revise until you have a finished product. But let's talk about a few differences depending on the age group:
Picture Books tend to have very little text — the focus is on the illustrations. If you aren't an illustrator, don't worry! Publishers will often have their preferred illustrators, but they still need the text for the book. So it's important to have some pictures in mind, but your primary job is the words. Every word should fit together into a collection of simple, straightforward sentences that have a steady rhythm. Think of it like a melody for the child — a melody that's easy for the parent to enunciate. As with poetry, rhymes and meter can be helpful, but they aren't required.
Chapter Books will have scenes and chapters, but the reading level and story complexity offer a lot of variation. It's good to have an age range in mind for your book, but don't worry too much about the language level while you're working on the rough draft. Instead, imagine the children you're writing for, and then picture yourself telling them this story. Your written voice will naturally shift to that spoken register. Also, whatever age range you think you're writing for, an agent or publisher may feel your book fits a different age range — and that's okay! All that matters is that you are writing the best story you can, and that you're then finding readers.
Teens Desire More Tension in their Books, and it can feel like a delicate balance. Just remember what life was like for you as a teenager. Did you have a first crush? Arguments with parents? Conflicts with teachers? Teens are going through these tense situations. But they are also interested in more "adult" topics — they have questions about the meaning of love and how to survive trauma and why bad people sometimes do terrible things. By our teens, many of us have struggled with losing a loved one or facing rejection, and there are some big emotions that teenagers haven't always mastered. Teenagers are still finding their way forward in life, and they want books that will help them imagine both the perils and possibilities ahead.
Young Adults May Be Ready for Hard Reality. Some have lived through serious trauma, and others are making decisions that will shape their lives to come. Young adults are making decisions about careers, colleges, and relationships. They may also be facing pregnancy, raising siblings, or taking care of parents who aren't really adulting. And even for those young adults who see "smooth sailing" ahead, they still have friends who've been through tough times. So when writing for young adults, it's okay to write about the tough decisions and hard consequences that come with adulthood.
Revision is an important part of success in any genre, but it is possible to revise a story to death. When you revise, focus on a few key elements:
What do you like about the book? If there's a scene that you love, make sure you keep it. Don't try to "perfect it" to the point that it falls flat. Instead, let it stand on its own. If the scene is ridiculous and unrealistic, then that's probably why it works.
What sections do you skip over during your reading? If a section feels boring to you the writer, then it likely won't hold the attention of young readers. When you find a section that's not working, it's okay to cut it out. If you need that information but the information just feels boring, reconsider how you're sharing it. Info dumps don't work well with children, teens, and young adults — not in the age of TikTok. Make sure you're writing with scenes, and that every scene has something at stake.
Is the language clear? Clarity is especially important with younger audiences. Forget about whether a young child or student can understand your writing — ask if they'll want to. As you go through your sentences, focus on being direct. Use active voice, avoid excess adverbs and adjectives, and divide up any run-on sentences you find.
After you've drafted a children's book, it's important to see if children actually enjoy it. Obviously, this is easiest if you have young family members or if you happen to be a teacher, but what if you don't? In that case, do your best to network. If you know some parents, see if they're share your draft with their kids. If you know a teacher, see if they'd be interested in reading the draft aloud to their students.
Focus on those who love your book. If you hear that a child loves your book, try finding out what they loved. Was it a particular character? A certain hilarious moment? Whatever it was that caught a child's attention, try to understand what it was that captured their imagination. That will help you during the revisions and when you work on your future books.
If some people turn down your book, that doesn't mean the book is bad! There are many, many reasons why someone may or may not like a book. Some children don't like books, and some adults have very set opinions on what a children's book "should" sound like.
Children often aren't the ones buying children's books.
For self-publishing, you need to appeal to parents and teachers to convince those adults to spend the money on your text. Children, teens, and young adults may be your audience, but your customer is the one with the credit card. And this can be very, very challenging. If you do take the self publishing route, investigate how to get your book into libraries, book stores, or online recommendations.
For traditional publishing, your agent and publisher will guide you based on their publishing experiences. They'll have a sense of whether your book may be picked up by school libraries or whether it will sell well on its own. This is not to say that they always know what's best — A Wrinkle in Time and Harry Potter are two bestselling classics that were famously rejected by a number of agents and publishers. However, since traditional publishers do foot the bill for all the printing and marketing, they do have a vested interest in seeing your book succeed.