How to Write a Children’s Book: A Step-by-Step Guide

Do you have a unique idea for a children’s book? You don’t have to be a professional writer to bring it to life. All you need is a great story, relatable characters and an active imagination.

Let’s take a look at what makes a good children’s book and the steps you can take to write your own.

Things to Consider Before Writing a Children’s Book

Before you start writing, take some time to think about the following:

Your Target Age Group

Children’s books generally fall into three categories, based on the readers’ age group:

Board books are meant for babies and toddlers. They are primarily picture-based, but may have some words (under 200).
Picture books are for readers aged 4-6. They contain more words than you’d find in board books (typically under 800), but pictures are still essential to the story. They’re usually read with assistance from more experienced readers.
Early reader books are geared toward children aged 6-8 and are often the first books they’ll read on their own. These usually contain 1000-2000 words, along with illustrations to keep kids engaged.

Different Types of Children’s Books

Children’s books also vary in style. For early readers, a captivating story is often enough to grab and keep their attention. But for younger children, it’s worth considering adding some fun elements to your book. Below are just a few ideas:

Participation books invite young readers to engage with the story in some way. You can ask them to repeat words, make sounds, identify body parts or explore interactive portions of the book like flaps, tabs and textured areas.
Patterned books have a clear pattern in the story that’s repetitive, predictable and easy to remember. For example, you can write a story about a girl who visits a farm and, with every page turn, describe her encounter with a new animal.
Rhyming books are easy and fun to memorize. Kids can often recite these books from memory or even turn them into songs.

6 Steps to Successfully Write a Children’s Book

Once you’ve decided what kind of children’s book you want to write and who your target audience will be, it’s time to get to work. Your own writing process will be unique to you, but the steps below can act as a helpful guideline:

1. Choose a Theme

Books can be entertaining and fun, but they also play an important role in teaching children about the world they live in. That’s why great children’s books tend to center around specific themes.

Consider your target age group and think about some of the questions or new situations they might encounter. For example, if you’re writing a book for four-year-olds, your story could revolve around dealing with big emotions, making friends, sharing toys or taking turns.

That said, kids are very perceptive, so try to keep the moral of your book fairly subtle. A learning opportunity disguised as a fun story will resonate much better than something that’s obviously meant to be a life lesson.

2. Create a Character

Your book should center around a fun, memorable protagonist. This can be a child, animal or even an inanimate object with human-like characteristics.

The most iconic children’s book characters are unique—feel free to dig around in the depths of your imagination to craft someone quirky and unforgettable.

At the same time, they should be relatable. Once again, think about your target audience and give your character the same interests, problems and aspirations your young readers might recognize in themselves.

3. Tell an Engaging Story

If you haven’t already, familiarize yourself with the fundamental elements of storytelling. These are universal—you’ll recognize them in your own favorite books, but you can also rely on them when writing for younger audiences. The challenging part is incorporating all the essential components, while still maintaining a relatively low word count.

Beyond basic storytelling techniques, here are a few other tips to keep in mind:

Define the main question or conflict of the story within the first few pages to capture your readers’ attention and keep them interested in how the story ends.
Look at the world from a child’s perspective and describe it in a way they can relate to and understand. For example, if your main character is going to wash their hands, perhaps the process can involve grabbing a step stool because the sink is too tall for them.
Your readers should be familiar with most of the words in your book, though an occasional new word might be a welcome opportunity to expand their vocabulary.
Treat illustrations as an additional storytelling tool. You can use them to “show” certain parts of the story, rather than telling your readers about them through words. Since final illustrations won’t be done until after the story is written, you can simply make notes about what you’re envisioning and give them to the illustrator when the time comes.

4. Choose a Title

When coming up with a title, try to put your marketing hat on. Since parents will be the ones deciding whether or not to purchase your book, the title needs to appeal to them. They’ll want to know what the book is about and what sorts of themes and questions it can help their children explore. You can help their decision-making process by hinting at this in the title or the subtitle of your book.

5. Edit Your Book

Once you have a draft, it’s time to edit. Start by self-editing and proofreading. See if you can cut out any unnecessary words, make something easier to understand or replace a descriptive passage with an illustration.

If you have any children in your life, read the book to them and note their reactions. Do they remain engaged throughout the entire story? Do they have any questions or need any clarifications? Are they able to summarize the story back to you when you’re done?

At some point, it may also be worth it to consider hiring a professional children’s book editor to really help your story shine.

6. Hire an Illustrator (Optional)

If you’re planning to pitch your book to a publisher, then there’s nothing else you need to do. Most publishers don’t need to see illustrations and, if they like your book, will actually prefer to hire their own children’s book illustrator.

Otherwise, if you’re taking the self-publishing route, you’ll be responsible for finding an illustrator. If you have the skills, you can even take a stab at illustrating a children’s book yourself. After all, no one knows what you envision better than you do.

Turn Your Idea into a Children’s Book

Your first finished children’s book is closer than you think! Be sure to read plenty of children’s literature by other authors to get comfortable writing in this genre. And if you’re interested in illustrating your books yourself, take a class that specifically covers illustrating picture books.

Now get to writing—you’re about to start an incredibly fun and rewarding journey!

Written By

Sayana Lam

Sayana is a musician, writer and graphic designer based in Toronto, Canada.