...or else this would be a very short column.

But what does that accomplish?

1: Anchoring. Because children have such a limited range of experience, it is important that there be characters and situations that they can relate to in each story. That's not to say that the entire story needs to be about them and set in their living room, though.

Children's classics like Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland feature a single "viewpoint" character going on a strange journey through a bizarre land. Other stories might feature unfamiliar characters with recognizable relationships (i.e. "child-parent" or "sibling") or in familiar settings (i.e. "the grocery store").

The goal is to help children understand how the new ideas introduced in your story relate to ideas they're already familiar with. If children can relate your story to other stories they've read, or to past experience, they will understand (and enjoy) your story more.
 

2: Conventions. In adult fiction, there is a premium on being original. We've heard some version of "boy meets girl, boy loses girl" a million times, and we're looking for something new. Kid's haven't. They're still trying to understand the basic rules of fiction. By using conventional storytelling techniques--some would call them cliches--we are slowly teaching them structure.

As children become more familiar with these conventions, they'll be able to predict what happens next. ("She can't die! She's the hero!") And that's a good thing! Prediction is a critical skill for young readers. What's more, children will be elated when they predict a story's outcome correctly. ("I knew it! I knew it!")

We discussed anchoring above. Conventions serve as a strucutral anchor for children.

And I'm sure it goes without saying, but a story can have a very conventional structure and still be filled end-to-end with colorful characters, outlandish settings, and mad, wonderful ideas! In fact, I highly recommend it!
 

3: Continuity. Kids love becoming experts. There's so much they don't know that it's really exciting for them when they find something that they can really master. Especially if it's something that there parents find really confusing!

Think about Pokemon or Yu-Gi-Oh: hundreds of creatures, and all those rules. It's a lot to figure out. But there are four year olds who can name every single Pokemon along with its unique powers. You migth think complexity is an obstacle for children, but in many cases, it's a strong motivation.

Just remember there's a diffence between fun continuity and lame continuity. One hundred monsters, each with a unique power: FUN! Knowing the names of each of the Justice League's accountants: LAME!
 

4: Imagination. There are few joys in writing greater than transporting your reader to a new world and helping that reader to see and hear that world as clearly as the one outside their window. Visualization is another key skill that young readers need to develop, and the more vivid your depictions the easier (and more enjoyable) it will be for them.

We've talked quite a lot about familiarity, and that's no different here. Strange new environments should always have an elements of the familiar in them. Tell a child that the trees on Glorbock-4 are the color "bloof," and they'll probably stare back blankly at you. Tell them the trees are the color of a million-billion sunsets are shoved into one, and they'll have something to compare them too.

1: Vocabulary. By all means, use big words! Just make sure that you either (1) explain what they mean, or (2) give enough context that a kid can figure it out for themselves. And give them some space. If you load up a caption or balloon with too many new words, a kid's just going to get lost.

Most importantly, make sure that you use the words correctly! If you're not sure what "banal" means, look it up before you use it in a script!
 

2: Science. Science in the children's literature rarely works like it would in the real world, but that doesn't mean that we have to ignore real world science all together:

Even if your villain's "Electromagnatron" doesn't confirm to any scientific laws, you can still introduce kids to the overarching concept of magnetism. And an evil clone could introduce children to the idea of genetic engineering. A particular scientific fact might turn out to be a pivotal clue in a mystery.

Very often, the real science is almost as unbelievable as the science-fiction. If you introduce kids to an interesting topic like "volcanoes" or "dinosaurs," they may well lead them to research the topic more on their own.
 

3: History. Fiction also presents the opportunity to examine our history. Some stories might be set in the past. Others might establish a link between the past and the present. In a story written for an adult, we might assume a certain level of familiarity with a particular era. When writing for children, it is important that we present each new fact as an introduction.

Who were the Egyptians? What was a joust? Why was the Wild West so wild?

Again, the potential to interest children in these topics is phenomenal.
 

4: Myth, Lit. & Folklore. Children's literature is always referencing myth and legend. Characters like Zeus, Merlin, Dracula, and Sherlock Holmes reappear again and again and again, as do dragons, golems, werewolves, and other creatures.

Then there are the allusions. What does it mean when one character calls another "Romeo" or "Don Juan" or even "Don Quixote?" Writers can and should expose young readers to these sorts of allusions for the first time. But they need to present them as "children's allusions" and not "adult allusions."

An adult allusion is a shortcut. An author expects the audience to pick up on the allusion and understand it's meaning. A children's allusion draws a deliberate connection between the story and some previous story and spells out that connection. It is using the current story as a teaching text. (Think of the Ahab references in Star Trek: First Contact.)

Finally, we might consider allusions in structure: stories that evoke A Christmas Carol or Romeo and Juliet or Rashomon...

Okay. So you might not want to explicitly teach kids about Rashomon, but maybe exposing them to just the structure wouldn't hurt.
 

5: Culture. Fiction is also a great opportunity to introduce young readers to new cultures... including their own! Kids still have a lot to learn about the world around them. Remember, everything is new for them! For many, the life of a fireman or policeman will be a strange and mysterious and exciting as the life of a starship captain or a superhero.
 

6: Puzzles. Earlier, we talked about how kids like to figure things out. In a world of ever-multiplying distractions, it's hard to keep kids focused on reading. It's important that we engage their minds. When the heroes of our stories are presented with problems, we want our readers to be trying to solve them.

Some puzzles will be straightforward: a giant crossword puzzle left for Batman, say. Others will be more abstract: how can Archie take Betty to the dance without hurting Veronica's feelings?

The key is to clearly present the problem, the danger, and the resources available, and then to follow the character's thought process in solving the problem. (Well, originally Reggie wanted to go with Veronica, so...)

There'll be more on problem solving in the last section, but remember that the more practice kids get with critical thinking skills, the better they'll become at it.

1: Sex. Obviously, you don't want anything sexually graphic in a children's story, though it's probably fine to have characters kiss and hug and express their love for one another.

In addition, there are plenty of sex-related topics that are worth touching on. From gender issues to sexually transmitted diseases to pregnancy to sexual abuse, there are a whole host of issues that can impact a child's life. And, yes, they all need to be handled very delicately.

The key is to focus on how these issues might effect the child, and to try to keep the situations as true-to-life as possible. Before you approach a topic like this, you need to be very well-read on the topic yourself. I'd also suggest consulting with experts.
 

2: Language. As a rule, you should probably avoid harsh language in a children's story. That said, there is no hard and fast rule. Maybe it's worth telling a story about how a particular racial slur is used. Maybe not. But if you attempt something like this, again, you must be very delicate.  


3: Social Issues. The world our children will inherit has been scarred by bigotry and terror. Issues like abortion, the death penalty, and homosexuality divide this country. When a writer presents any of these issues to a young audience, I would recommend the following guidelines:

When there are two legitimate sides to an issue, you need to understand and represent both sides well. (You should show kids why some people are pro-life and others are pro-choice, but you don't need to show two sides of the Holocaust.) Rather than exposing one side as right and one side as wrong, try to focus on the real world consequences of people's actions. Don't reward or punish a character arbitrarily to make a point.

("I had an abortion and got into Harvard on the same day! Yay! My life is really turning around now!")

Kids of a certain age will understand that the world is a complex place. Our first instinct is often to simplify things for children, but sometimes the best approach is just to be honest. Show them smart people making tough decisions and living with the consequences, and maybe they'll be better prepared to make the tough decisions when the time comes for them.
 

4: Violence & Problem Solving. Violence is everywhere. Pick up your average superhero comic and you'll tend to find a lot of people hitting each other. Or shooting each other. Or shooting at each other with their fists. Kids see the same thing in the movies and on TV and in their video games.

That's cartoon violence. Unfortunately, we live in a world of real violence. And if we're going to teach our children one single lesson, it should be that violence has consequences. And when two sides fight, victory has nothing to do with "who was right."

Heroes in children's fiction should look for non-violent solutions to their problems first. And not just as an excuse. ("Well, I tried reasoning with him. Now it's time for action!") Writers should structure stories around non-violent resolutions as often as possible.

We talked about solving puzzles earlier. In a way, every conflict that a hero faces is a puzzle. If the only solution to a problem is "hit it until it falls over" then the readers turn their brains off. If the heroes are always searching for alterative solutions, then the readers will be too.