With Christmas Day drawing near, it is a perfect time to be with family and friends. And if you are a writer, it is also a perfect time to make a truly meaningful Christmas themed children’s book. Not only is it a perfect time for the genre, it is also a great opportunity to make a lot of kids happy.
But before you get started on writing your Christmas story, it is important that you know what you are doing. You can’t just get started on a Christmas story and think it will be a success right away. In truth, you will need a plan.
Here are 5 tips on making a truly meaningful Christmas themed children’s book:
- Create fun and likeable characters
Seeing as the characters are the focal point of every story, it makes sense that you should make your characters as fun and likeable as possible. Your main characters should be easy to distinguish such as having distinct traits, outfits and lines that will make them easy to remember.
Your characters should also have admirable personality traits that any child would want to emulate. All in all, when you make your characters, write them in a way that every child will consider them a friend.
- Infuse Christmas values into your stories
Seeing as it is a Christmas themed children’s book, it is imperative that you infuse as much Christmas values into your stories. This means that whatever your story may be, it should always have a Christmas theme to it. Your writing should also have inherent Christmas values and moral messages infused into it.
These messages could be about self-sacrifice, friendship or just being thankful for the blessings we got this year. All in all, it is a way for you to teach kids about the true meaning of Christmas.
- Create imaginative and colorful illustrations
Aside from great characters and Christmas values one other thing that you should always remember is to create imaginative and colorful illustrations. This is because kids are usually more susceptible to visual stimulation. Which means, if you want their attentions you should make your illustrations as unique and vibrant as possible.
And seeing as it is Christmas time, it makes sense to use well-loved motifs such as reindeers, snowmen and of course, the ever beloved Santa Clause. The Christmas time is a time of magic and wonder for most kids. So infuse your children’s book with the same magic and make it as beautiful as possible.
- Have your work reviewed
Although it is a good thing that you have confidence in your writing skills, you should still make it a common practice to have your book reviewed by a trusted friend or colleague. Remember that no man is an island. And any advice or criticism is always welcome.
So before you get your work published you should reach out to other people and ask for their take on your work. Who knows? Maybe they have their own Christmas story ideas that will take your book to the next level.
- Strive to make your story truly unique
Seeing as there are a multitude of Christmas themed children’s books out there, you will have to make sure that your work is truly unique. This is the only way that your book will stand out from the crowd. Which means you should stay away from the old tropes and used up clichés.
Instead, you should make it a point to come up with a Christmas story idea no one has ever read yet. Of course, it is easier said than done. There have been a multitude of Christmas books printed through the decades. But this is what makes it so interesting.
So if you are going to write a Christmas Themed Children’s book, don’t take the easy way out. Don’t use old tropes. Instead, you should take your time and come up with something truly unique and unforgettable.