Greetings,

Well, I lived to tell the tale - we've moved, sort of unpacked and haven't had one argument about where to put the furniture ...

Thanks to all the kind comments and support - it's always reassuring to know that however chaotic the experience, someone can usually top it!

Since last week's guest article was about writing for children, I thought it might be worthwhile spending a bit more time on this topic. Writing for children can be a very lucrative endeavour as well as being an extremely satisfying pastime. If you have any children in your life (your own, those of friends or rellies) then you have a captive audience for your writing.

Kids love to have stories written about them, their own lives and interests, and this can be a terrific way to launch your writing career. With Christmas only five short weeks away, why not put pen to paper (or fingertip to keyboard) and write a short story for and about a child close to your heart.

Below are some tips to help get you started - there are quite a few and they're for beginners as well as for those who may be considering sending work off to publishers.

1. Spend some time jotting down memories of childhood - sights, sounds, feelings, events, friends and so on.

2. Spend time with children of the age group you want to write for.

3. Start a group of writers who are interested in writing for children.

4. Visit libraries and talk to librarians about the books children like best.

5. Read the winners of the Children's Book of the Year Awards.

6. Visit book stores and talk to the proprietors about which books children like best.

7. Ask book store owners which books adults buy for children.

8. Study published books for a range of age groups to get the 'feel' of the way children think and talk.

9. Read your work out loud to get a feel for the rhythms of speech in dialogue.

10. Read your work out loud to eliminate any long or unclear sentences.

11. Visit playgroups, playgrounds, shopping malls, the beach and other places where children congregate to watch the way they interact, speak and play together.

1 2. Approach your work like a professional. Study the craft carefully, and don't expect instant success. All successful people have put in some kind of apprenticeship.

13. lnvest in professional equipment. Although you can write stories by hand, you should submit your work to a publisher professionally printed or typed.

14. Be prepared to work with editors if they request changes to your manuscript.

15. Enrol in courses and/or attend workshops to learn fiction writing techniques.

16. When you send your work to a publisher make sure it is typed on A4 paper, double-spaced with wide margins all round. The text should be clear black, not greyish.

17. Enrol in courses and/or attend workshops to learn correct manuscript layout and submission procedure.

18. Build a professional library of books and magazines on writing skills.

19. Be as creative as you can when writing, then look at your work objectively when it comes to editing.

20. If an editor expresses interest in your work, make sure you meet agreed deadlines.

21 Always be courteous towards editors and publishers, even if you're (a) hurt that they rejected your work or (b) dissatisfied with changes they've made.

22. Find a quiet area in which you can work and leave the manuscript in progress.

23. Learn time-management skills to make the best use of your writing time.

24. If possible, establish a routine which allows you to sit down about the same time every day to work on your writing.

25. Learn to delegate tasks to others to make more time for writing.

26. Set realistic goals and stick to them.

27. Find another writer, or someone who knows a lot about children's books, to read and give opinions on your work.

28. Remember that children like action. Don't have your characters sitting around and thinking for a great deal of the time.

29. Children love suspense. Keep them wondering, and they'll keep turning pages.

30. Don't let your story stand still while you describe the scenery.

31. lf you want to write picture books, carefully study popular picture books to see how much of the story is carried by the illustrations.

32. lmagine your picture book divided into pages. On each page, the words should describe something (action, person, animal) which is readily illustrated.

33. The text which guides each successive illustration in a picture book should build the story, and not be too similar to previous illustrations.

34. Children love humour. Learn to write it and your books will walk off the shelves.

35. Not all children sound the same, so make sure your characters don't all sound the same.

36. Learn how to talk to children of different ages, so you can get extra work in schools as a visiting author.

37. Think about joining a drama group. This will help you to act out parts for children when talking to groups at schools about writing.

38. Do a scriptwriting course to help you (a) handle dialogue and action better and (b) learn how to write plays for children.

39. Try writing short stories for school magazines.

40. Keep a file of newspaper and magazine clippings that stimulate story ideas.

41. Join a professional writer's association.

42. Network with other children's writers. Go to where they're speaking or doing a reading.

43. Check your work for the basics before sending it to an editor - grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

Happy writing!

Last week's quiz:

Some different ones this week - choose words from the list below, using these clues:

1. has the opposite of darkness in the middle - deLIGHTful

2. is a bit sticky at the end - guiTAR

3. has a large, strong box in the middle - orCHESTra

4. is hurtful at the beginning - HARMony

5. has the opposite to 'down' at its end - groUP

musician, performance, delightful, composer, orchestra, accompany, guitar, group, instrument, percussion, harmony,

And some jumbled words (kids love these!) - unscramble these to form words:

SMGREENS, REHPAS, YRRLVAI, DAAEPR, ETAEALBRO

If you have a minute to spare, send in your answers to these - I'd love to know how many people have the patience to work them out ;)

Eliminate the word that doesn't belong:

1. vapid, pungent, insipid, spiritless

2. aversion, antipathy, repugnance, affinity

3. repentance, remorse, obduracy, penitence

4. recalcitrant, obstinate, amenable, refractory

5. reticent, taciturn, voluble, uncommunicative

And substitute one word for each of the following:

6. one who makes maps -

7. one who studies weather -

8. one who fights wars for money -

9. one who studies stamps -

10.one who studies birds -

And here are some fascinating little snippets of information that you can use to fill gaps in the conversation at parties during the festive season: (more contributions from Ed!)

OK - now there shouldn't be ANY embarrassing pauses in the conversation!

While on the subject of Christmas, here's a Fruit Cake recipe (sent to me by Chance) that you might like to try:

Fruit Cake Recipe

You'll need the following: a cup of water, a cup of
sugar, four large brown eggs, two cups of dried fruit,
a teaspoon of salt, a cup of brown sugar, lemon juice,
nut meats, a bottle of rum and a bottle of whiskey.

Sample the whiskey to check for quality.
Sample the rum to check for quality.

Take a large bowl. Check the whiskey again. To be sure
it's the highest quality, pour one level cup and drink.
Do the same with the rum.

Turn on the electric mixer, beat one cup of butter in a
large fluffy bowl.

Add one teaspoon of sugar and beat again.

Make sure the whiskey is still okay. Cry another tup.
Turn off the mixer. Check the rum.

Beat two leggs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup
of dried fruit. Mix on the tuner. If the fired druit gets
stuck in the beaterers, pry it loose with a drewscriver.

Sample the whiskey to check for tonsisticity. Next, sift
two cups of salt. Or something. Who cares? Check the rum.

Now sift the lemon juice and strain your nuts. Add one
table. Spoon. Of sugar or something. Whatever you can find.

Sample the whiskey and the rum. Again.

Grease the oven. Turn the cake tin to 350 degrees. Don't
forget to beat off the turner. Throw the bowl out of the
window.

Sample the rum again to ensure it's 'high' quality.
Check the whiskey again and go to bed.

Hoppy halidaze! Please share free to feel this Ruit fake receepee
with others.

~ * ~

Got all that?

Good.

OXYMORON OF THE WEEK: computer jock

And a Latin phrase to use when the family gets together over Christmas:

Nonne aliquantulum pinguescis? (Put on a little weight, haven't you?)

As a community service, I'm offering these dieting tips from now until the end of the Silly Season - they come from a great little book called "Calories Don't Count ..." which has been a member of our family for many years, but had been MIA ... it re-appeared during The Move!

Diet Tip 1.

Calories don't count - if you eat standing up.

This relates to the 'postural dispensation' theory of dieting which holds that food (or drink) consumed in a vertical position bypasses the digestive system and is changed into electrical energy that flows out through the feet. Note: for best results, wear open-toed shoes.

Regards,

Jennifer

Regards,

Jennifer

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