How to write for children

Have you ever dreamed of writing books for children? From planning an entertaining plot to creating a credible child voice, this one-day workshop will teach you the skills essential to keeping a young audience enthralled by your storytelling. Bestselling children's author Lucy Coats will reveal the archetypes of children's fiction and how to turn them into engaging tales relevant to modern young people. The workshop will also include practical writing sessions and work shopping of participants' compositions.

The aim of the masterclass is for all participants to go away equipped with a wider knowledge of what writing children's (aged 7-12) books is all about, some practical new writing skills (as well as new work and ideas of their own) and a sense of achievement, purpose and determination to succeed in this excitingly vibrant writing field.

Tutor profiles

Lucy Coats worked as a children's editor and bookseller before turning to full-time writing, and is the author of many titles for all ages, including the bestselling Atticus the Storyteller's 100 Greek Myths which was shortlisted for the Blue Peter Book Award. Her latest picture book, Bear's Best Friend, has just been published by Bloomsbury, and she has forthcoming 2014 titles from Nosy Crow and Grosset and Dunlap USA. Lucy lives with her husband, grown-up children and 10,000 books in Northamptonshire. She is also a regular blogger, writes for Mslexia and Publishing Talk, tweets as @lucycoats.

Michelle Lovric is an acclaimed writer of historical fiction for both children and adults. She has particular interests in art, medical history and Venice, where she lives and sets her stories. Her adult novel The Remedy was longlisted for the Orange Prize and The Book of Human Skin was a TV Book Club Summer Read. Her first children's novel, The Undrowned Child, has been followed by The Mourning Emporium and Talina in the Tower and, most recently, The Fate in the Box. For the past three years, Michelle has been a Royal Literary Fund Fellow at the Courtauld Institute of Art. She's also a consultant for The Writers' Workshop, undertaking structural edits for aspiring novelists. Two of her poems have just been shortlisted for The Bridport Prize.

Full course and returns information on the Masterclasses website