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WOW! Women On Writing
Classes & Workshops
Spotlight: Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults
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Writers!
Flip through most children's magazines and you'll notice page after page of nonfiction including articles, interviews, and how-tos. Nonfiction is also taking on a more prominent role in the classroom with the push for Common Core Standards. It's a great time to dive into kids and teen nonfiction writing, and we've got just the person to show you the way.
Sue Bradford Edwards is teaching a brand new class that will help you develop the skills that you need to provide nonfiction for the markets that need it. She's a nonfiction author with over 400 sales to her credit including 100+ articles on how to write, 200+ pieces of children's nonfiction, as well as other nonfiction.
Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults starts Monday, February 4, 2013 at a $175 Introductory Rate (which will rise to $200 after this first class is offered). Students will learn how to research possible markets, evaluate the competition, refine an idea, balance secondary and primary sources, create a polished manuscript, and more. The instructor will also critique a market research plan, a topic research plan, a query or cover letter, and a manuscript (up to 50 pages). Be sure to take advantage of these extra class benefits.
In the article below, Sue Bradford Edwards describes four questions you must answer before putting the first word on the page of your project. Helpful advice for any nonfiction writer!
Also, don't miss several great classes starting in the next few weeks: How to Get the Right Agent for Your Manuscript (Feb 11), Write from Your Soul: Memoir Workshop (Feb 18), Journey Through Life's Losses (Feb 18), How to Write Children's Picture Books and Get Published (Mar 2), and Writing Your Novel from the Ground Up: Part III: The Final Draft (Mar 4). Our full list of classes can be found below.
Happy New Year!
Marcia & Angela
Marcia & Angela
Classroom Managers
WOW! Classes & Workshops
classroom@wow-womenonwriting.com |
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Who Needs to Read It?
("Victims" in photo: Sue's hubby and son)
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4 Questions to Answer Before Beginning Your Next Nonfiction Project By Sue Bradford Edwards
You've got a great idea for a humorous essay. Or maybe it's an activity. Or a memoir.
No matter what nonfiction project you have planned, answer these four questions before putting the first word on the page.
1. Why is this piece needed?
Sometimes this is easy. In early December, my editor and I discussed the limitless misinformation in the news about the Maya and their alleged predictions.
"Too bad no one's publishing anything accurate on the Maya," I said. Take a nonfiction author whose background is in anthropology. Add an editor whose degree is history. The result? One project on sculpting a real Mayan glyph and another on making a circular calendar. Why? Because kids need to know how awesome the Maya really are.
No matter what nonfiction you write, it has to matter. You might be correcting misinformation, helping a student get better grades or saving someone money.
2. Who needs to read it?
Different people will make different demands concerning any given topic. You need to know who your audience is to make the why as strong as possible.My Maya inspired pieces were for Education.com, a site used by adults who want fun learning experiences for the young people in their lives. I have to sell the adult on the value of the activity before hooking the child with the fun. Who is your audience? Second graders will love a biography about Julia Child that focuses on her cat, Minette. A teen taking a foods class will have an altogether different, but equally strong, interest in Child.
3. Why am I the right one to write this piece?
What skills, education or interests do you have that make you the best person for the job?
Not only do I have a background in anthropology, archaeology, and history, I have written for a variety of state tests and have published a large number of activities. I can vet my sources and craft a winning how-to. Not many writers bring this combination of experiences to a Mayan calendar project.
What makes you uniquely qualified to tackle your topic? It might be a combination of educational or job skills or even the people you know.
4. Do I go beyond Google?
The Internet has changed the world of nonfiction. Answers to basic questions, recipes and more are yours after a simple keyword search.
For nonfiction authors, this means going beyond what readers find in a Google search. Sometimes it is a matter of research. What material do you have that doesn't appear in a search? Perhaps it is an interview or something you had to dig to find.
Sometimes it is your approach. Narrative nonfiction--facts telling a story--goes beyond the straightforward, often repetitive, information found online.
Or perhaps you found a subject with little online coverage to date.
Go beyond Google, know your topic's importance to your audience, and you will be able to show an editor you are the author to meet this market's need.
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Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults
Instructor: Sue Bradford Edwards
Workshop Length: 5 Weeks
Price: $175 (Introductory Rate! Normally $200)
Start Date: February 4, 2013
Limit 10 Students
Course Description: Flip through most children's magazines and you'll notice page after page of nonfiction including articles, interviews, and how-tos. Nonfiction is also taking on a more prominent role in the classroom with the push for Common Core Standards. This course will help you develop the skills that you need to provide this nonfiction for the markets that need it. You don't need a completed manuscript to sign up for this class. Students will learn how to research possible markets, evaluate the competition, refine an idea, balance secondary and primary sources, create a polished manuscript, and more.
Visit the Classroom Page for a complete listing of what you'll be learning week by week and instructor testimonials. 
About the Instructor: Sue Bradford Edwards is a nonfiction author with over 400 sales to her credit including 100+ articles on how to write, 200+ pieces of children's nonfiction, and other nonfiction, such as book reviews and prayers. Her children's nonfiction has appeared at Education-dot-com, in Gryphon House anthologies, in Harcourt and Houghton Mifflin testing packages and also in READ and Young Equestrian Magazine. Her nonfiction for adults has been published in Writer's Market, Children's Writer newsletter, WOW! Women on Writing, Writer's Digest, The Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market, and The Writer's Guide, and Magazine Market's for Children's Writers. Sue is also a dedicated blogger, writing for The Muffin as well as her own personal blog, One Writer's Journey.
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Upcoming Classes & Workshops
All the classes operate online--whether through email, website, chat room, or group listserv, depending on the instructor's preferences--so you do not need to be present at any particular time (unless a phone chat is scheduled and arranged with your instructor). You can work at your own pace in the comfort of your own home. If you have any questions, please reply to this email or email us at: classroom@wow-womenonwriting.com Enjoy!
Starts Every Friday (Self-Study Course) by Deana Riddle:
Independent Publishing: How to Start Your Own Self-Publishing Business | $99 or $150 with 1 Hour Phone Consultation
Starts the First Tuesday of Every Month: (Next class: February 5)
Introduction to the Craft of Screenwriting | 6 Weeks | $150 | Limit: 10 Students | Instructor: Christina Hamlett
Introduction to Playwriting | 6 Weeks | $175 | Limit: 10 Students | Instructor: Christina Hamlett
How to Write a TV Pilot | 4 Weeks | $150 | Limit: 10 Students | Instructor: Christina Hamlett
Starts the Third Friday of Every Month: (Next class: February 15)
Get Paid to Write! Become a Freelance Writer | 8 Weeks | $150 | Limit: 15 Students | Instructor: Nicky LaMarco
Published in 90 Days | 12 Weeks | $299 | Limit: 10 Students | Instructor: Deana Riddle
Click here to see all of our upcoming workshops
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