Children six to nine still love to cozy up to a parent or grandparent and hear a story. But they’re also starting to formulate their own reading likes and dislikes and to choose their reading material. They’re more sophisticated about content than many would think, but still new enough readers that format has to be just so.

“Writing for this age is truly an art form,” says Hilary Bain, Editor in Chief of chickaDEE, part of the OWL Group of Children’s magazines. “It is difficult to write for a child who is just learning to put words together in print, yet make the material interesting enough that the child wants to read it.”

The effort has a strong payoff for children’s writers: an appreciative audience and many opportunities at magazines. Easy reader stories are always in demand.

Distinct Needs

Children in early years of reading have distinct needs. “Beginning readers need a layout that won’t overwhelm them, text that invites them in, with art and short captions,” says Highlights for Children Senior Editor Marileta Robinson. “Our stories for beginning readers are set in larger type than stories for older readers - 13 or 16 point versus 10 point - and are shorter - a 500-word maximum versus 800 words.”

While writers don’t need to worry about type size, they should consider layout. According to Robinson, “A story for beginning readers should have several opportunities for different illustrations.” It should also be divided into short, simple paragraphs. These “chunk up” the text, for easier reading.

Bain also advises, “Use short words in short, simple, and direct sentences. A story or article should have a single concept, just one focus or layer.”

Heather A. Delabre, Assistant Editor at Cricket Magazine Group’s Spider, explains, “Since children this age are new readers, they need to be entertained and challenged by the material they read.”

Writers don’t have long to engage children at this age: “I think it’s especially crucial with beginning readers to capture their attention in the first paragraph,” says Terry Harshman, Editor at Children’s Playmate, one of the Children’s Better Health Institute (CBHI) publications. “A story should be lively and fun, carrying the reader along on this magic carpet to journey’s end.”

Bain explains that part of the challenge in writing for this age is in not assuming too much. Often, kids are familiar with a word when they hear it, but it’s quite different when they read it. For example, exceptional is a word most children know. But when they read a line of text and come to this word, it might slow down their reading as they try to sound it out. It has too many syllables, and as young readers concentrate on sounding out, they lose their train of thought and forget what they’re reading about.

Beginning readers also need to be able to identify with the characters, but not be bored with too much similarity. Delabre cites “An Ordinary Boy,” by Kate DiCamillo (Spider, August 2001). “In this story, kids read about a boy their age who is followed everywhere he goes by rain. There’s enough of the familiar to give young readers the identification they crave, yet enough of the unfamiliar to keep them intrigued and having fun with what they’re reading.”

Robinson reminds writers that “playful use of language and stories with built-in repetition are appealing to beginning readers.”

Tried & True & New

Magazines for easy readers are breaking into two camps: Those responding to changes in popular culture and those not interested in reinventing the wheel. But all want material that works, and they want it fresh.

Highlights isn’t changing its approach. “We still strive to provide materials for a wide range of reading abilities, while keeping a wide age-range appeal for all of the material in the magazine,” says Robinson.

While many magazines that publish easy reader stories seem to focus much more on popular culture - musicians, television, video games - than in the past, Cricket Magazine Group publications don’t follow these trends, says Delabre. “We look for fresh, innovative stories that stimulate young minds without the use of media trends.”

Aileen Andres Sox, Editor of Our Little Friend and Primary Treasure, two Seventh-day Adventist children’s publications, says, “Following a formula that has worked for more than 100 years, we will continue to focus on true, Christian stories.”

But, as the world changes, some easy reader publications are changing, too. “Our focus at the Children’s Better Health Institute is expanding somewhat,” says Harshman. “We have begun to introduce French and Spanish in our publications. We feel that if children are reached at an early age, it is easier for them to become bilingual.”

“We realize that pop culture is part of kids’ lives today,” says chickaDEE’s Bain, “so we try to bring pop culture into the magazine; otherwise, we aren’t appealing to the needs of our readers. But, we bring in pop

Today’s busy lifestyles and the ever-increasing role of technology in children’s lives have brought about a new publication that appeals to beginning readers. Jennifer Reed and her husband, Jeff, decided to create Wee Ones, an online-only magazine for kids and their parents. Reed says, “Often, children aren’t getting the attention they deserve and that means many are not getting read to. We are trying to fulfill that need by incorporating technology with good literature for both children and adults. Children are gravitating toward computers and the Internet at alarming rates. Wee Ones wants to make sure there is something good and wholesome out there for parents and kids.”

Missing the Mark

Writers unfortunately often continue to make the same mistakes in beginning reader submissions.

Robinson still sees too many “stories that tell rather than show. Beginning readers need stories that appeal to all the senses. Stories that have appealing characters, action, and dialogue, and that use humor and suspense, and have a voice.”

At Spider, editors see too many stories that condescend to the child reader. Delabre advises, “Don’t use baby talk or oversimplify your ideas. Respect your audience. Spider doesn’t want stories that are too preachy, didactic, or message-driven.”

Inappropriate anthropomorphism is something else to avoid. “Only use talking animals if they are integral to the plot,” warns Delabre. “Too many times, these animals are merely children with fur. If you were to shift your talking animals into children, would you still have a strong plot? Or, is the novelty of your story tied up in the animals alone?”

Editors also don’t want stories that disregard word limits, but writers do just this - often. “These word limits aren’t just arbitrary numbers,” says Delabre. “Since we have only about 30 pages in which to present the stories, poems, and activities in the body of Spider, we want to be able to give readers as many stories as we can, which means strict adherence to word limits.”

Publications from the Children’s Better Health Institute have a specific mission. “Often submissions are not in keeping with our mission,” says Harshman. “It’s obvious that the author has not looked at our publication. Since we are health and fitness magazines, we have a particular focus.”

Another common mistake writers make is to assume easy reader stories don’t need to be just as well written as stories for older children. “Some writers seem to think that with less words, there doesn’t need to be a plot. Many stories I see lack structure, plot, and theme,” says Reed.

Breaking In

It’s more difficult to break in at some easy reader magazines than others. All fiction at chickaDEE is assigned. It sets up articles and stories for each themed issue about a year in advance. The best way to break in at chickaDEE is for writers to become familiar with the scheduled themes, which may be requested, and submit a story on a theme far in advance of the scheduled publication date.

A rebus story of about 120 words is the best way to break in at Highlights. “But the author should study several issues worth to see what makes them tick,” advises Robinson.

Although you’ve heard it before, studying the market is still excellent advice for any writer wanting to break in at a particular publication. “Read back issues of the publications you’d like to submit to, in order to familiarize yourself with the styles, genres, and age ranges of the magazines. Also, be sure to use a publication’s writers’ guidelines. “These guidelines will make you aware of length and topic restrictions,” says Delabre. Many publications have their guidelines available online.

Fiction and nonfiction for the beginning reader must be easy to read, but that doesn’t mean they’re easy to write. Yet, consider the distinct needs of both the young readers and the editors who cater to these beginning readers, and you just might make an easy sale.

Websites for Some Easy Reader Publications

Children’s Playmate, Humpty Dumpy
www.cbhi.org

Highlights for Children
www.highlights.com

Our Little Friend; Primary Treasure
www.pacificpress.com

Spider, Ladybug (Cricket Magazine Group)
www.cricketmag.com

Wee Ones Magazine
www.weeonesmag.com

(Originally published in CHILDREN’S WRITER, the Newsletter of Writing and Publishing Trends, November 2001)

Suzanne Lieurance is a freelance writer and owner of the Three Angels Gourmet Co. She also teaches children’s writing for the Institute of Children’s Literature based in West Redding, Connecticut. Ms. Lieurance has twelve published books for children. She has written articles for a variety of publications including FamilyFun, KC Weddings, New Moon for Girls, Children’s Writer, The Wednesday Magazine, Woman’s Life, and Hearth and Home. She offers daily food tips online at http://www.threeangelsgourmet.blogspot.com

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