A Wonderful Website for Children’s Authors

Robyn Opie–Author, Children’s Books (an Australian author with more than 70 books to her credit) has a great website for children’s authors. She offers numerous how-to articles on writing children’s stories from picture books to YA. In her online Writing Tips, she shows all the ways to “make your story sparkle.” I especially liked her article, “How to Edit Your Children’s Book.” She explained all the ingredients for writing a winning story– pace, word choice, transitions, endings, and more. And in her presentation on “Plotting a Children’s Book,” she provides a plot map–a visual on how she plots her stories. Another of my favorites was her article, “Creating Ideas for Children’s Books.” Ms. Opie explains the way to never run out of story ideas is to be always on the lookout for them–open to new possibilities at every turn in your everyday life. It means “thinking and behaving as a writer” in every moment.

Ms. Opie’s site was chosen as one of Writer’s Digest 101 Best Websites for 2008. You can learn more about her at this YouTube interview. She offers online writing courses, as well.

And for more writing helps, visit my TIPS FOR WRITERS.

Muse It Up

Today I’m offering a review of Lea Schizas’ book, ASSAULTING A WRITER’S THINKING, as well as the opportunity to receive the Ebook FREE! Look for the details following the review.

ASSAULTING A WRITER’S THINKING by Lea Schizas

In this humorous motivational how-to Ebook for beginning (or reluctant) writers, Lea Schizas—award-winning author and editor—tells it like it is. No holds barred. She de-mystifies the writing life and provides real insights into the profession.

· Chapter 1: Explains many of the “roller coaster” ups and downs inherent for those who choose to weld the pen.
· Chapter 2: Offers numerous suggestions for seeing story ideas everywhere—even in a dresser drawer. A great bonus in this chapter, especially for children authors, is a list of questions which helps the writer enter back into the childhood mode.
· Chapter 3: Provides tips on finding a critique group and emphasizes the importance of doing so.
· Chapter 4: Advises writers to use research material to create more than one story and submit stories and articles to various magazines and publishers to increase market presence.
· Chapter 5: Encourages writers to keep plugging away despite rejections and failures—to keep believing.
· Chapter 6: Reiterates the need for writers to be as professional as possible by setting (and meeting) goals, maintaining a writing schedule, networking, and following publishers’ guidelines.
· Chapter 7: Emphasizes the rallying cry to “Keep at it!”
· Chapter 8: Lists a variety of links for writing-related associations, agents, editors, publishing houses, and much more.
· Bonus Chapter from her full-length book on writing: Muse It Up. If this first chapter is any indication, the book must be jam-packed with hands-on helps and encouragement for beginning authors. This one chapter alone provides a wealth of suggestions to motivate any reluctant writer.

Here is more information on Lea Schizas:

Author of the award-winning Young Adult Fantasy Novel
THE ROCK OF REALM

Co-author & Editor of THE MUSE ON WRITING
http://leaschizasauthor.tripod.com Email: museitupeditor@yahoo.ca

Lea Schizas is an award-winning author/editor, a short story competition winner,
living in Montreal with her husband Jimmy and their five children. She describes herself
as “finally woke up after a 23-year self-induced coma taking care of the family, and
re-discovered my passion for writing.”

She is the co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of two Writer’s Digest 101 Top Writing
Sites of 2005 & 2006 and recipients of the Preditors and Editors Most Useful Writing
Sites Award: Apollo’s Lyre, an online writer’s Zine: http://www.apollos-lyre.com and
the online writing critique community The MuseItUp Club,
http://museitupclub.tripod.com/

-Founder of The Muse Online Writers Conference,
http://www.freewebs.com/themuseonlinewritersconference/
-Founder of The Muse Marquee, http://themusemarquee.tripod.com
-Founder of The Muse Book Reviews, http://themusebookreviews.tripod.com
-Co-founder of Coffee Cramp eZine http://coffeecrampmagazine.tripod.com
-Reviewer for the award-winning site AllBooksReviews.com
-copy editor for Double Dragon Publishing

You can read more of Lea’s bio and accomplishments at: http://leaschizaseditor.tripod.com/

To receive your FREE copy of ASSAULTING A WRITER’S THINKING, send me an email via the Contact section here on my website.