1. Stop being an adult telling a story and become a child living it!
2. Don't expect perfection from your first - or even fifth - draft.
3. Give yourself permission to write badly!
4. Focus on being the best writer YOU can be.
5. Don't worry about being better or more prolific than someone else.
6. Forge a path for yourself, for your own creative journey. Don't feel you need to race against others.
8. Read, read, read
9. Study recent issues of publications that interest you if you want to write for a children's periodical.
10. Study the publishers' current and recent catalogs.
11. Attend a writer's conference.
12. Make connections.
13. Observe children; play with children; listen to children and discover what interests them.
14. Don't preach (intentionally)
15. Don't teach (intentionally)
16. Challenge a child with new vocabulary but make sure you are writing at the correct level.
17. Know your audience
18. Join a writer's group for critiquing and encouragement
19. Write
20. Pray. Pray again.
