In this webinar Marzieh will breakdown the children’s book market—discussing the different age categories (board books to YA), genres, and word counts. She will discuss the difference between fiction and nonfiction, popular trends, common themes, and general strategies and considerations for how to embark on writing any type of book for children. Marzieh will also touch upon the different routes to getting published (traditional vs educational vs self-publishing). Lastly, as she shares her writing journey (writing board books through middle grade) Marzieh will inspire you to embark on your own kidlit writing journey.

In this webinar Marzieh will share her idea generation process along with prompts and resources that help her be mindful and alert to new story ideas. She will then guide you through her process using examples from several of her own books, of how to decide which idea is worth developing, or if you have several ideas, she will discuss how to prioritize and focus on your projects. You will learn how to decide which age category your idea fits and subsequently how to develop the idea into an outline, how to format your manuscript, and how to get it submission ready.

In this webinar we’ll discuss who literary agents are, where to find them and whether you need one! Marzieh will go over the details of a ‘query/submission package’ and will share her unconventional experience of querying kidlit agents, what questions to ask an agent on ‘The Call’ and how to organize your agent search. She will also share her learnings

In this webinar we’ll discuss how to approach revision in a fresh way. Just like a doctor (you) checks a patient’s (your manuscript) vitals, we’ll be looking at each aspect of our story (plot, structure, character, pacing, page turns, tension, and arc) objectively. And just like we go for second (and third) opinions when we get a diagnosis, we’ll talk about reaching out to critique partners and subsequently weighing feedback and navigating our way through conflicting comments. You’ll walk away with a prescription i.e. strategies to tick items off your revision checklist and give yourself the best shot at querying and ultimately publishing success.

In this webinar we’ll learn the difference between comp titles and mentor texts and how we can use them as we craft our stories. Marzieh will share how she uses picture books as references and how she keeps a detailed log of mentor texts so she can use them as she works through revisions. She will then walk you through the different picture book structures, using recent examples. Lastly, Marzieh will inspire you to apply the knowledge to your own revisions.

In this webinar Marzieh will share how to decide if your subject is book-worthy, how to do the research and how to organize your researched facts before you start writing. She will also share how she used mentor texts while writing her published and upcoming narrative nonfiction picture books. You will learn how to weave a story using facts ad how to utilize page turns, language devices and POV (point of view) to craft a story that will inform, engage, and inspire the youngest of readers.