Fun fiction, fascinating facts, and helpful how-to

Welcome to my ever-growing Writing for Children website!
It’s for adults who wish to write and illustrate for children, for enjoyment or publication…
…and for children and all people who love books, writing, art, and being creative.

Yes, I have hand puppets of all the characters in my picture book
Once a Creepy Crocodile

I collect books, read books, smell books, create artists books (sometimes even making the paper by hand), write books for publication and for fun—picture books, science, stories for children of all ages, and craft books. I illustrate some of them, give talks, puppet performances, workshops, masterclasses, provide exhibitions, work in residencies, and love helping people whenever possible.

This site is being rebuilt and modernised from the original one that had 74 pages and was started in 2002. It was showing its age and had to go! This new version will rapidly increase in size with sections on the history of books; tips for writing, editing, creating illustrations and handcrafted books, and more. 

Its aims:

• To help children and adults develop a passion for the written word and books of every kind, and to encourage people of all ages to read, write and be creative.
• To be a fun and useful site.
• To provide information and tips for adults and children, beginners and experts, to help develop their writing, illustrating and art and craft-work skills for pleasure or publication.
• To showcase my own books, ideas and techniques, plus a taste some of the things I discuss and teach in visits and workshops. 
  …It would also be wonderful if it encouraged a literary agent to offer new representation. My former agent for ten years, Margaret Kennedy, founder of the Margaret Kennedy Agency in Australia, has retired.

In the reconstruction I have recently added 

a gallery of my published and experimental art

LINK

…but until I gain more WordPress expertise, you need to right click on images and open them in a new tab for an enlarged view.

Latest books…

September 2024 – a 48 page book included in a craft set, published for ages 9+ by Hinkler Books
(including content by fellow expert Joanna Chia). 

But this is actually the 16th spin-off product from my book ‘Practical Calligraphy’ that Hinkler published in 2010.

–ooOoo–

Yay – ‘Once a Creepy Crocodile’, illustrated by Nina Rycroft was shortlisted by Speech Pathology Australia for their Book of the Year Award! 

Artist’s Books

Sometimes words can be a stimulus for developing a special artist’s book structure to house them…or a structure can be created with no words in mind, but it gives rise to a story, poem, or collection of facts.

World Expo’88 commissioned me to create, write and illuminate a small book as part of its gift to Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and Northern Ireland when she opened the event. It describes the relevance of the silver gum-nut decoration Georgina Elms added to her black porcelain pot. They were named after botanist Joseph Banks, who accompanied Capt James Cook on his first voyage to Australia, and I added stamens from banksia flowers into the paper I made for the cover.

 

Books in progress…
…that may never be published, but I have hopes!!

My former Australian literary agent may have retired, but I’ve remained productive, so I’m seeking a new one, probably in America, Britain or Australia. I look forward to collaborating and gaining their professional advice before these works are submitted to publishers, whose editors, no doubt, will suggest changes. 

‘The Giant Book of Small Things’ – for ages 10+

It’s currently planned as a compendium of tiny objects and the fascinating stories behind them—things children’s parents, grandparents and earlier ancestors may have owned and used. It will include a few record holders for the smallest of their kind. Three sections have been completed, and I have plans for eight or nine more. …But I guess they could be a series of smaller books.

 

‘The Sketchbook’ – an Upper Middle Grade novel for ages 11-13

‘Friendship that matters comes with a cost, but the price is worth it and the enemy is not always as you imagine them to be.’

Emma, 13, with taxidermy and clock repairing hobbies that are deemed weird by other kids, struggles to fit in at a new Australian school. When her English WWII veteran great-great-uncle visits, he tries to help her develop resilience by sharing his sketchbook of his voyage to Singapore on an American convoy; his capture; work as a prisoner of war alongside men from many nations on the Burma Railway and coal mining in Japan; and repatriation through the US and Canada. This resilience is needed when assisting one unpopular classmate could lead to Emma being ostracised by those she believes are becoming buddies.

It’s based on my own English uncle’s written and verbal reminiscences. These included feeling sorry for some Japanese guards who were abused by their superiors almost as harshly as prisoners were, and a guard probably risking his life by being kind.

It is not all gloom! It contains jokes, funny school happenings and natural history facts—Emma’s father manages a nature reserve (as I once did, as well as being a high school science, art and photography teacher).

Some of the WWII facts are little known. On their return to civilian life, the British ex-prisoners were given this document to discourage them from describing their experiences. And many of those people who they did tell didn’t believe them, and thought they were joking and exaggerating. So sad. Lest we forget.

 

‘Mrs Moody’s Eggs’ – a humorous picture book for ages 3-6

Mrs Moody (the goose) charges around the neighbourhood to find who broke her precious eggs. What a crotchety,  cross and cranky grouchy goose! 

Of course, there’s a happy ending, as there always should be in books for the young (and at least ‘hope’ in the ending for older children—but my stories always have the main character being happy).

STEM facts are included for possible Teacher Notes on a website, or as an appendix. Did you know…

•    Geese mate for life. If one partner dies, they will not mate with another. When there is danger, a male (gander) will choose to die protecting his female partner, rather than escape by running or flying away. Both parents look after their goslings.

•    When a gaggle (group) of geese are all flying, they are called a wedge, or a skein. Geese have a top flying speed of 40 miles per hour.

•    Geese often fly in a ‘V’ formation to save energy. When the leading bird tires, it will move to the back and another takes its place. If one bird has to land, other geese will also leave the formation and stay with it until it’s able to fly again, or it dies.

•    Some species of geese migrate each year. They can fly up to 3,000 miles from home to a special place…and then back to their original home.

These cut and torn paper pictures were created purely for fun, as an experiment. Art doesn’t always have to be for publication or display, and I’ll be delighted if a different artist is employed by a publisher to illustrate the story.

I’ll happily provide artwork and images for all my non-fiction books, but I’ve never spent time sketching animals or people, so I’d need help if any publisher wanted me to illustrate this story.

…And there are more picture book stories in various stages of completion saved as computer files.

 

Tip – writing a picture book

If you are writing a picture book, it helps if you create a dummy, even if you will not be the illustrator (which you probably won’t be, especially if you’ve not had picture books published before. The chances are, a publisher will choose and pay an artist with a reputation for sales and a vivid imagination. If you are an accomplished artist, you’ll first be selected to illustrate the work of an established author, so one name on the cover is well-known.) Your author’s dummy will not be shown to anyone.

I create a concertina zig-zag of card (A4 or Letter size) and paper-clip on exceedingly rough ideas for pictures, even stick figures, for what I envisage someone might possibly draw. And I add the text of the draft on removable Post-it notes.

This makes it easy to stretch out the zig-zag to check the fit and flow of the story, and make sure neither the beginning or any other part is too long, for example, and that it is actually possible to illustrate it. This way, I’ve made discoveries such as, it would probably be too hard and ineffective to show Mum in the lounge, the goat trying to eat the washing outside, and the kids making a billycart…all on one spread. The words needed to be changed and the billycart no longer exists in the story.

The stretching-out also instantly shows if the words suggest an interesting mix of illustrations, with visual hooks: close-ups to show emotion; mid-range for action; and more distant zoomed-out views to show setting, atmosphere, and perhaps build anticipation—no consecutive pages of people just talking (talking heads).

I hope you enjoy exploring the site!

As well as being a former teacher, I’ve also been a museum curator, committee member of the Children’s Book Council of Australia, and held the position of Coordinator (now called the Assistant Regional Advisor, ARA) of the state of Queensland’s Chapter of the 25,000 international member strong Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators – the world’s premier organisation for children’s book creators.

If you really want to find out more about me, try About Peter …and about my unconventional ancestors who have shaped me as a creator: My Family and Other Lunatics.  

And I’d love to hear from you via the contact page!

Best wishes,

Peter Taylor

 

 

This image was used by a charity that sold cards to raise funds for communities affected by devastating bushfires in Australia, particularly for providing children with new books.

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