The 3 R's for Writers: Read, Read, Read
By Dianne Ochiltree

Writers write. But as we write (and re-write) in order to improve our writing, we shouldn't forget to keep reading-because that, too, will help us strengthen and broaden our work.

In addition to reading "how to" books on the craft and business of children's writing, professional journals and market newsletters, make sure your reading list includes a liberal dose of newly-released children's books.

The memories of the children's books that we read (and loved) when we were kids ourselves play a large role in motivating us to write stories for today's children. However, for instruction on ways to improve our writing, we need to look at what is being published, here and now. Today's child lives in a very different world than we did, and children's literature today reflects those changes.

So ask your friendly, local librarian, "What books are kids checking out most often?" Ask your local bookseller, "What books are shoppers looking for in the children's section?"

And most important, when you have that rare opportunity to meet a real, live children's book editor, be sure to ask, ãWhat is the best book you have read in the last six months?ä The answers you gather will help you determine what's selling in the children's market right now, and how your work fits within the big picture. It will also help you determine which books you should be reading yourself.

If you're working in a particular format (such as picture books) or genre (such as historical fiction), you'll want to read a sampling of the most popular titles in those areas.

Reading, for a writer, is a bit different process than for "pleasure readers". Writers tend to read analytically. With every book you read, be sure to take note of how that particular author used the basic literary elements we all work with (plot, characterization, language, etc.) to achieve an overall effect and to express a universal theme.

Read books you like. But also read "just-published" books you aren't naturally attracted to-and which might not directly relate to your own writing style or current writing project. You may discover a new idea or two in these unfamiliar territories which will enrich your own writing immeasurably. Even if a reading selection turns out to be less than successful in its execution, you can learn valuable lessons to apply in your own writing by trying to determine "what went wrong" as you read along.

Your search for an expanded reading list will not only lead to new ways to approach your own writing. Exposure to "what's new" in children's publishing will help you better market your work to editors·as well as being able to better connect with the ever-changing needs of your young readers. And in our business, that's the "bottom line" that truly matters!