Is Your Children’s Book a Hit? Ask the Experts

“I am so tired of your book!” Huh? Yes… you read it right. That is one of the biggest compliments I get on a regular basis. Pretty crazy right? I’ll explain but first…
Everyone hopes and prays their book will be the next big hit. You know, the next “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” Right? But how do you know? Is it even possible, or do you merely have to sit back and wait for the book gods to smile down upon you? Do you dream of the day that you will get a call from Caldecott or Newbery telling you it is so?
OR, is the key spending a small fortune on review companies while at the same time trying to wrap your head around all of the submission guidelines? Then, in fine print, find that after all of your efforts, due to a high volume of submissions, your work may or may not be reviewed. I am writing this to tell you YES! It is possible! The answer is simply this… Ask the experts.
And… what if I told you that these experts were generally free of bias, are almost always spot on, and they won’t charge you a penny? Too good to be true? NOPE! The experts are KIDS.
What do kids know about publishing a children’s book? Well… not much, if even anything. But, kids know what they like. If you are going to write a children’s book, are you writing for Caldecott and Newbery (who have long since moved on from this life) or are you writing to inspire a child, to make them laugh, or to teach them? If your answer is the latter you are already on the right track. You are writing for kids, right? So ASK THEM.
There are many advantages to asking the experts:
#1 Kids are BRUTALLY honest. They are generally unaware or frankly don’t care about hurting your feelings, so they usually don’t tell you what you want to hear. This is a GOOD thing. If they don’t like something they will let you know.
#2 Kids don’t hide their true feelings. They wear their emotions on their shirtsleeve. If they are bored… you will know. If they are entertained… you will know. If they think something is funny… they will laugh. If your story connects with something they have experienced or are experiencing… you will know.
#3 Kids see/hear things through the eyes and ears of… you guessed it! A CHILD. And, who are we writing for? You got it- KIDS. Sometimes kids say it better. Sometimes kids see it better. And often times, kids will help us relate to kids better.
So back to my biggest compliment… “I am so tired of READING your book (Silly Monkeys). I have to read it EVERY night. My kids just LOVE it.” I have lost track of how many times I have heard this. That is how I know. The Experts. I might not be a best-selling author… YET :) (We’ll save the Marketing Monster talk for another day), BUT… make room Caldecott and Newbery… BAM!… I have made a difference in the life of a child. And that is the very first WHY behind what I do.
Click HERE to see some fun with Silly Monkeys
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