Words to Build a Better World: Contemplating and Crafting Authentic Stories for Children
In this workshop we will talk about writing for children and review some basics of picture books and novels as well as elements of a story that move a young reader through a strong narrative. Additionally, we will look critically at what makes a good children’s book, especially when considering the importance of capturing authentic and diverse voices. Finally, we will analyze our own stories to see where we can begin revising and strengthening our manuscripts. Attendees are asked to bring up to five pages of a work-in-progress and ready for revision or 1-2 fresh book ideas to start on. This workshop is geared at helping authors better understand children’s books as a whole, consider the importance of authentic diversity, and begin crafting and revising their work to really make their manuscripts shine!
JaNay Brown-Wood, PhD, is an award-winning children’s author, educator, and scholar. She is an Assistant Professor at California State University, Sacramento in the Child and Adolescent Development Department. Her first picture book Imani’s Moon won the NAESP Children’s Book of the Year Award, and her second book Grandma’s Tiny House: A Counting Story! received a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly and won the CELI Read Aloud Book Award. She has several poems published including Falling Leaves in the poetry anthology Thanku: Poems of Gratitude a Chicago Public Library’s Best Informational Books for 2019, an American Library Association Notable Children’s Book, and a Notable Children’s Book for the Global Society. She has more than eight forthcoming books including Shhh! The Baby’s Asleep (2021), Where in the Garden a four-book series (2021, 2022, 2023) and Jam, Too (2023).