Children's Book Tip: Define Your Audience.

Step Two: After settling on your concept, you should define your audience. Ask yourself these questions:

• What age group am I writing for?
• What gender am I writing for?
• What race or ethnic group am I writing for?
• What is my reader's family situation?
• What is my reader's school situation?
• What is my reader's economic situation?

You should almost certainly determine your targeted reader's age—this detail will have the most impact on how you write and the kind of illustrations you use.

The other questions may not seem as relevant. However, if you are writing for boys and girls, make a note of that. And if you are trying to reach across racial and ethnic lines, make a note of that as well. And so on. 

Finally, as you answer these questions, you might use a writer's trick and let the picture of a specific child come into your mind. Give this child a life. Give him or her parents or guardians, pets, a home and school life, friends, and preferred activities. Thinking about this child will make your creative efforts more personal and powerful. The Publishing Pro.

Children's Book Tip: Define Your Concept.

First things first: Before you even start writing (or drawing) your children's book, you need to think it through. This begins with the concept. Answer these questions:

• What is your book about? (e.g., dinosaurs, bananas,
  angels)
• What is its purpose? (e.g., to teach reading skills, to
  change behavior, to support children, to have fun)
• Who is the main character? (e.g., a greyhound, a third-grader)
• What is the tone? (e.g., funny, gentle, crude)
• What is its message? (e.g., you're not alone, do the right
  thing)

Note: Generally, I've switched to advising all book authors to begin the publishing process by deciding on their core reader. (See previous post on memoir writing.) This exception is from my book, How to Publish Your Own Children's Book, which I'm in the process of revising. On review, the exception makes sense. —The Publishing Pro