#14 Writing Middle Grade: How Do I Start?

This episode on the Middle Grade Made Easy(er) podcast is all about how to start your middle-grade novel. The short–and cheeky–answer to that question would be: at the beginning, of course!

But here’s the thing, you and I may not agree on where the beginning is. In terms of a book, the beginning is always the first page, isn’t it? But that doesn’t really help you know how to start. So, I’m going to put forward another way to answer the question of how to start by saying that the real beginning of your novel actually starts way before you put pen to paper.

For me, the beginning of writing a middle-grade novel is reading middle-grade novels.

So, do you?

No one is going to hear your answer to that question, so there’s no pressure to reply, but stop and think about it for a second. When was the last time you read a book written for 8 to 12-year-olds?

Maybe you read them all the time because you enjoy them, or maybe you read them with your child, and then, maybe you don’t read them at all. If you don’t read them, does that mean that you have no business writing them?

Well, it’s not that simple because you might not read them now but you’re still allowed to want to write a middle-grade novel because when you read them as a child, they made such an impact on you. There’s no shame in that answer and no one is going to judge you, but this podcast episode is going to look at all the reasons why it’s important to read the type of books you’d like to write, especially if you’re writing kidlit… and why it’s important to read them like a writer, not like a reader.

But before we dive right in, I want to let you know that I’ve created a short PDF handout for you that sums up all the information in this episode so you don’t have to write it down while you’re listening. You can download it at loupiccolo.com/read

Read like a writer

We’ve all heard the advice that we need to read the books we want to write because they can serve as mentor texts. If you don’t know what a mentor text is, here’s a casual definition:

A mentor text is a piece of literature you read for specific learning purposes. It can provide you with an example of good writing, or act as a framework for something new you want to try.

But here’s the thing: it’s not enough to just read mentor texts! You also have to study and analyze them. Becoming familiar with how middle-grade novels feel is easy when you simply read them. You can get a sense of how these books work and you’ll quickly know when something doesn’t feel right, but if you don’t analyze the books you’re reading, you won’t be able to actually explain why something doesn’t feel right. If you want to understand the why, you need to read like a writer.

Why analyzing mentor texts is important

If you’re just reading middle grade novels because you enjoy them, then you don’t need to dig any deeper into how a story works, but when you want to write your own book, you need to understand why something isn’t working because it will help you to draft your own story and to revise it once you have it down on paper.

Why is that important?

Because then you’ll be able to write a book that your readers actually want.

In my coaching practice, I’ve seen books with characters who are kids but who don’t act, think or talk like kids. Basically, these are books for adults whose protagonist just happens to be a child, and they don’t interest kids because kids can’t relate to or identify with the protagonist. That means that if you wrote a book like that before realizing that middle-grade novels are different to novels for adults, you’d have to start all over again to make sure that you’re actually writing a middle-grade novel that follows the guidelines for middle-grade novels. If you don’t, you won’t be able to sell it to publishers or to self-publish it.

Analyzing a middle-grade novel will also help you understand fully what makes a powerful beginning, an engaging middle and a satisfying ending. It will teach you the importance of knowing your character’s motivation, or the power of solid cause and effect and growing tension, as well as pacing and so much more.

Basically, once you understand how to build stories for middle-grade, it makes it easier to write them. You’ll be more willing to take risks and try new things. You’ll start wondering things like, “What if I used this strategy instead of that one?”. Mentor texts help you grow as a writer; they help the puzzle pieces of what makes a sellable middle-grade novel slip into place. And in the end, you’ll be a different writer than you were before you started digging deeper into how middle-grade novels work.

What do authors say about reading like a writer?

Whenever I start working with a new coaching client, I always ask them to read and to analyze what they read and so, I thought it might be helpful for you to hear what some of my clients have to say about what analyzing mentor texts taught them or made them feel.

Let’s start with Doreen, who says,

I always struggle with finding the type of kid-friendly language children need to read in their books, and reading and analyzing how other authors find the right voice for their characters helps me to get into a child’s head.

Allen thinks,

It’s important to keep up to date with the market. I like to read newly published books so I can stay current about what is selling and what kids want.

Michelle says that,

Reading kids’ books makes me feel like a kid again, and that’s how we should feel when we’re writing books about and for children.

Silpa’s opinion is,

If we’re going to write good books, we need to learn from the best. When I read, I keep a notebook handy in which I write the title of the book and whether it’s a book that is good, but not my style, or whether it’s the kind of writing I want to do. If it’s the type of book I want to write, I type up some passages on my computer and I study how the words look on the page, and how the author structured their scenes.

Can you remember how it felt to be a child?

While all of these comments have value, and we can learn from these writers’ experience, I want to go back and look more closely at what Doreen said about how analyzing mentor texts can help get her into a child’s head. At the beginning of the episode, I mentioned that today’s episode was going to look at all the reasons why it’s important to read the type of books you’d like to write, especially if you’re writing kidlit.

So, I want to ask you a question: can you remember what it felt like to be a kid between 8 and 12 years old?

If you have young children, it might be easier for you than for the rest of us because you can see the world through their eyes, and how they react to it, every day. But even if you do have young children, you’re still not innocent and inexperienced like them. The thing about adults writing for children is that we have lived for many years and we have had experiences that most kids haven’t, and those experiences have made us who we are.

So, when we write for kids we need to be aware of what it felt like to live in the same world we do now but without the life experience we currently have. The best middle-grade novels get that balance just right, and studying how those authors got into a child’s head by analyzing their books is a great way to learn how to do it ourselves.

To sum up

We’ve covered quite a lot of ground today, so let’s quickly sum up. The best way to start if you want to write a middle-grade novel is to read, but not just like a reader; we need to read like a writer because it will help you:

• learn a lot about guidelines for middle-grade novels
• understand why something isn’t working in your book
• increase your chances of being published
• create a protagonist kids will be able to relate to, and they will then be more likely to enjoy your book
• grow as a writer
• remember what it felt like to be a child

Now, this podcast is all about writing middle grade and how to make it easier–the podcast is literally called Middle Grade Made Easy(er)–so, as the podcast grows, I’ll be covering more specific information on the elements of writing novels and I’ll tie that up to how it relates to writing novels for ages 8 to 12. So, hit the follow button and you’ll be notified whenever I publish a new episode.

I’ve also created a short PDF handout for you that sums up all the information in this episode. You can download it at loupiccolo.com/read

Last, episode #12, titled, “What is Middle Grade Anyway?” and episode #13, titled, “How to Nail Middle-Grade Voice” link up to this episode in that they both give you more information on specific guidelines for writing middle-grade novels for 8 to 12-years-olds. You can find them on your favourite podcast player or head to my website at loupiccolo.com to read the transcripts if you prefer.

Links

• Middle Grade Made Easy(er) Podcast
• PDF Handout: Writing Middle Grade: How Do I Start?