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PUBLISHING I - BWR107 (SELF PUBLISHING CHILDREN'S BOOKS)

Duration (approx) 100 hours
Qualification To obtain formal documentation the optional exam(s) must be completed which will incur an additional fee of £30. Alternatively, a letter of completion may be requested.
Publishing Children and Young Adult Fiction

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to work in a more creative industry? Publishing books for children and young adults? Well wonder no more. 

Learn:

  • How the industry works.
  • The creative and artistic skills of the trade.
  • How to market your work.
  • Develop an understanding of the ethical issues and laws relating to the field.

You will also have a chance to undertake a stimulating publishing project and implement the skills you have learned.

This course provides an excellent start for anyone considering self publishing or seeking employment in publishing. It is equally relevant to electronic or print publishing.

It's easy to enrol...

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Please note, choosing offline (USB stick) will attract a 5% surcharge on top of the course fee

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Publish books for children and young adults

The aim of this course is to develop skills and knowledge of the book publishing processes and industry standards with a focus on children’s and young adult’s books and self-publishing.

The course is studied by distance learning. It requires around 100 hours of study.

You can start at any time to suit you and work at your own pace.

COURSE STRUCTURE AND CONTENT

There are ten lessons in this course, each requiring approximately 10 hours of work including reading, additional research, completing the set tasks and assignments.

The content of each of the ten lessons is as outlined below:

Lesson 1. The Publishing World (Writing for Children)

Children’s book genres
Self-publishing and the educational market
Developmental landmarks and their relationship to children’s publishing
Reading level assessments and their relationship to children’s publishing

Lesson 2. Publishing Procedures and Techniques

Stages of traditional publishing
Steps to finalising a manuscript
Types of editing
Illustrations and working with external illustrators
Page design
Picture book design
Typography

Lesson 3. Desktop Publishing (Print Versions of Children’s Books)

Defining desktop publishing
Layout and design for different book types: board books, picture books, chapter books and novels
Use of colour
Test runs for printing
Creating a dummy version of an illustrated text

Lesson 4. Defining e-publishing
Apps vs ebooks
Layout of Illustrated ebooks or Text-based ebooks
Working with audiobooks
Audiobooks for children
Accessibility and ebooks
Ebook file types

Lesson 5. Illustration 1: Introduction to Graphics in Children’s Fiction

The purpose of illustrations and graphics
Selecting a graphic or illustration design style
Types of books with graphics
Formatting textual elements
Working with a designer or illustrator: Preparing a brief and keeping the contract clear
Graphics and marketing

Lesson 6. Illustration 2: Introduction to Photography in Children’s Books

Working with photographs: Non-fiction, fiction and covers
What makes a good photo
Designing with photos
Principles of photographic composition
Creating effects

Lesson 7. Researching Material for Children’s & Young Adult’s Books

Researching for fiction: world building and time period, and gathering resources
Types of non-fiction texts for children and young adults
How to plan research
How to note take effectively
Author notes

Lesson 8. Marketing in Publishing (Children’s Books)

Book distributors
Marketing toward retailers
Theme marketing and special sales
Website and author platforms
Marketing toward the consumer: Reviews and interviews, book launches and talks, lectures, and readings

Lesson 9. Publishing: Ethics and the Law (Children’s Books)

Ethics and content creation
Sensitivity, cultural, and linguistic diversity
Content and ratings advisories
Plagiarism
Censorship and book banning
Copyright: Copyright notices, what does copyright protect and when a work can be legally used
Codes of ethics

Lesson 10. Problem Based Learning (PBL)

Plan the publication of a children’s book
Answer set discussion questions
Present a final report

 

 

Finding and Managing Intellectual Property

Publishers need content to publish - writing and illustrations.

It is easy to find people who want their work published, but it can be challenge to find content worth publishing, will make a profit, and which you can get rights to publish at a reasonable cost.

Publishers will sometimes only pay the writer or illustrator, after the work has been published and sales have been made. Sometimes writers will write for free; just for the honor of being published. If you want the best work from the best illustrators and writers though; you will need to pay, and you may need to pay a premium price, before publication.

Writers and illustrators might not be very good business people, though of course there are exceptions. Even those that have good business skills might not achieve the same quality of work if they are preoccupied with the business aspects of publishing, and are unable to focus on their work. Therefore, publishers and agents can be very helpful to writers and illustrators by taking over routine business and organisational tasks, freeing up writers to concentrate on producing better work.

If you want to publish books for children and adults, Publishing I is an excellent course to develop the skills and knowledge you need.

 

 
Courses can be started anytime from anywhere in the world!

Meet some of our academics

Jade SciasciaBiologist, Business Coordinator, Government Environmental Dept, Secondary School teacher (Biology); Recruitment Consultant, Senior Supervisor in Youth Welfare, Horse Riding Instructor (part-completed) and Boarding Kennel Manager. Jade has a B.Sc.Biol, Dip.Professional Education, Cert IV TESOL, Cert Food Hygiene.
Maggi BrownMaggi is regarded as an expert in organic growing throughout the UK, having worked for two decades as Education Officer at the world renowned Henry Doubleday Research Association. She has been active in education, environmental management and horticulture across the UK for more than three decades. Some of Maggi's qualifications include RHS Cert. Hort. Cert. Ed. Member RHS Life Member Garden Organic (HDRA) .
Tracey Jones (writing)Tracey has enjoyed creative writing since she was a child. She has had several short stories published and a novella. She is also a keen writer of children's stories and poetry. She has also written many academic and non-fiction books in the fields of psychology, sociology, child development, writing and marketing.


Check out our eBooks

How to be a Successful EditorThere are plenty of books that show you the processes involved in editing; but knowing the process is in itself not enough to be a successful editor. This book not only covers aspects of the process; but it also goes beyond the process; showing you things that may help you to become better than the “average” editor.
English GrammarThe English Grammar ebook can be a great reference for students, people who are learning English and anybody who writes anything- ever. The English Grammar ebook takes grammar back to basics to help confirm correct use of grammar. Topics that are covered within this course include 1/ Introduction- the components of language, 2/ Types of words, 3/ Punctuation, 4/ Upper and lower case, abbreviations, numbers, bullet points and 5/ Using words together.
Professional WritingProfessional writing is any writing that you are being paid for. It can include fiction writing, a best-selling book, articles in a magazine, articles in a newspaper, blogs for companies, technical manuals or procedure manuals, copy for catalogues, newsletters, text books and other academic material and so on.
Creative WritingThe Creative Writing ebook can be useful for writing students or even professional writers to help improve their writing techniques and skills. The Creative Writing ebook is a fabulous starting point for budding writers. The topics that are covered within this book are an introduction to creative writing, Methodology and technique- the building blocks of writing, Genres, Creative non-fiction, creative writing techniques, developing your skill, building your career and a Glossary.