Writing Little Kid Lit course offered online, July 12 – Aug 23

Writing Little Kid Lit

Board Books, Picture Books & Middle Grade Books

Online: Wednesday afternoons, 1 – 3 p.m.
July 12 – Aug 23, 2023.
Offered on Zoom and accessible from anywhere there's internet 

Note: “Exploring Creative Writing” and “Intensive Creative Writing” are also on offer this summer. See details of all summer classes here.

This course is for adults {or teens} interested in writing board books, picture books, Chapter Books, or Middle Grade books. This course is accessible for beginners and meaty enough for advanced writers. Through lectures, in-class assignments, homework, and feedback on your writing, we’ll give you ins and outs of writing for younger readers and set you on course toward writing your own books. We’ll also have a published author as a guest speaker for this course.

Jennifer Mook-Sang is the author of two picture books and a middle grade novel. For this class, she’ll focus on what she’s learned about writing picture books (unlike other classes where she’s mostly talked about her journey as an author), and of course she’ll also be answering whatever questions participants have.

Jennifer grew up in Guyana and moved to Canada when she was fourteen. While reading bedtime stories to her two sons, she fell in love with picture books and decided to write one of her own. In one of Brian Henry's classes, she found the beginnings of a story.  

That story grew into the humorous middle-grade novel, Speechless, published by Scholastic Canada, and since translated into Portuguese for Brazil (Não Cale! Fale!) and Turkish (Bir Konuşabilse).

Speechless won the Surrey Schools Book of the Year Award, was shortlisted for many others, and was recommended by the Ontario Library Association, the Canadian Children’s Book Centre, the CBC, and the TD Summer Reading Club. 

Jennifer has also published a picture book, Captain Monty Takes the Plunge, with Kids Can Press. Captain Monty is the boldest, stinkiest pirate to sail the six or seven seas; in fact, he’s never had a bath. Naturally, the Junior Library Guild immediately selected him for its fall list of recommended books; it was short-listed for the Rainforest of Reading Award; and the Canadian Children’s Book Centre put it on its best books of the year list.

Jennifer’s most recent book was published in April. The Care and Keeping of Grandmas is a picture book published by Tundra Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House Canada. Quill and Quire says, “Jennifer Mook-Sang’s book offers a sweet, gentle primer on how to deal with the sudden arrival of a grandparent into the family midst.” And The Care and Keeping of Grandmas is a Dolly Parton Imagination Library Blue Ribbon Selection – how cool is that! Read more about it {or order your copy} here. 

Instructor Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada's most popular blog for writers, taught creative writing at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Saint John. Brian is the author of a children's version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Tribute Publishing). But his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get published.  

Read reviews of Brian's various courses and workshops here (and scroll down).

Fee: $193.81 plus 13% hst = $219

To reserve your spot, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

See all of Brian’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.