Testimonials

"Suzanne is an excellent teacher, and the material in the Core of Three class will be a great foundation as I learn more about becoming a children's writer."

- Jill, workshop student

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Ever wonder why there are so many threes in children's literature - three bears, three pigs, even three Billy Goats Gruff? Then find out what the "Core of Three" is all about and learn to write your own tales for children using this simple story structure.

Week One: The Core of Three: What Is It? Why Is It So Effective?

Week Two: Analyzing Children's Literature Written in the Core of Three

Week Three: Writing in the Core of Three: Creating Your Own Children's Story (we'll brainstorm story ideas, then you'll start outlining your story)

Week Four: Story Critiques (what works and what doesn't work in your story)


Objective:

By the end of this workshop series participants will be able to recognize a simple story structure known as the "Core of Three" and will have developed their own children's story utilizing this structure.


Prerequisites: None

Required Materials: None

Suggested Reading (prior to class): Any good fairy tale book that includes The Three Pigs, The Three Bears, The Three Billy Goats Gruff; any collection of Mother Goose Tales; Pig, Pigger, Piggest (a children's picture book by Rick Walton); A Christmas Carol (by Charles Dickens)

About the Facilitator, Suzanne Lieurance

Suzanne Lieurance is a former teacher, now a fulltime freelance writer in Kansas City, Missouri. She is coauthor of KIDDING AROUND KANSAS CITY, a children's travel guide and activity book (John Muir Publications 1997), and author of SHOELACES, a Rookie Reader, from Grolier/Children's Press (March 2000). Suzanne is also a contributing editor for Tutor House, a children's software company, and she has a regular online column, Tricks of the Trade, for children's writers at Word Museum. Her articles and stories have been published in a variety of newsletters and magazines including FamilyFun, New Moon, The Friend, Instructor, Once Upon a Time, Children's Writer, and KC Weddings.  

Workshop Begins: July 7, 2003
Duration: 4 weeks  
Tuition: $80

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Workshop Terms of Service.

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 Recommended

Books recommended on this page are not required reading for participation in the course. Required materials, if any, are listed in the course syllabus.

You Can Write Children's Books

As a successful writer and experienced editor, Tracey Dils takes the mystery out of the maze of children's book publishing. First-time children's writers will learn to follow the important writing and submission guidelines they need to get their work in print.

Worlds of Childhood: The Art and Craft of Writing for Children

"No kind of writing lodges itself so deeply in our memory," writes William Zinsser in his introduction to Worlds of Childhood, "as the
books that we met in our childhood." Reproduced here are essays by six celebrated children's book authors that came into being as a series of talks at the New York Public Library in 1989. Children's book writing is often deceptively simple, and perhaps the one overriding theme here is the seriousness with which these writers approach their work.