THE YOUNG AUTHOR PROJECT

The journey begins by helping each young writer understand what authors do and how an idea becomes a real book.Children explore different kinds of stories, discuss what makes a book memorable and begin developing an original idea suited to their age, interests and writing level.By the end of the class, the young writer will have chosen a story direction, created the basic book concept and set their first author goal.

Young writers develop the main character and any important supporting characters who will bring their story to life.They explore personality, appearance, strengths, fears, goals and the problem their character may need to overcome. They also begin thinking about how the character speaks, behaves and reacts.By the end of the class, the child will have a detailed character profile and a strong character description ready to use in the book.

This class focuses on creating the world in which the story takes place.Young writers learn how to use the senses, atmosphere, mood and carefully chosen details to make a setting feel real and interesting. The setting could be an ordinary home, a mysterious forest, a futuristic city or an entirely imagined world.By the end of the class, the child will have created a vivid setting description and useful visual notes for future book illustrations.

Young writers learn how to organise their story so that it has a clear beginning, an interesting problem, a developing middle, an exciting climax and a satisfying ending.Using a structured story map, they decide what happens in each important part of the book and how the character will change or solve the central problem.By the end of the class, the child will have a complete plot plan and a clear sequence of scenes to guide the writing process.

This class helps young writers turn their plan into scenes that are vivid, active and enjoyable to read.They practise writing strong openings, action, emotion and natural dialogue. They are also introduced to techniques such as showing rather than simply telling the reader what a character feels.By the end of the class, the child will have written the opening and completed substantial drafted sections of the story.

Young writers continue building their manuscript and complete any missing parts of the story.They check that events happen in a sensible order, strengthen weaker sections and work carefully on the ending so that the story feels complete rather than rushed.By the end of the class, the child will have a complete rough draft of their original book.

Young writers learn that professional authors do not produce a perfect book in one attempt — they improve their work through thoughtful editing.With personalised guidance, the child reviews clarity, word choice, dialogue, punctuation, repeated ideas and story logic. The aim is to strengthen the manuscript without taking away the child’s individual voice or confidence.By the end of the class, the young writer will have a carefully improved final manuscript draft.

The final teaching class focuses on the details that transform a manuscript into a complete author project.Young writers choose or confirm their book title, dedication, blurb and author biography. They also discuss the cover direction, possible illustrations and how they would like the finished book to look.The child then selects and practises a short passage to read during the Young Author Celebration. By the end of the class, the main creative and author details are ready for the book design and publication process.

The Young Author Celebration is the special finale of the programme and is provided in addition to the eight teaching classes.This is the moment the entire journey has been building towards. The young writer is recognised not simply for attending lessons, but for imagining, planning, writing, editing and completing an original book.Parents, grandparents and other close family members can be invited to join the online celebration. The young author has the opportunity to present their book, read a short chosen passage and speak briefly about their experience creating it.Each child receives a Young Author certificate, and the occasion is designed to feel like a genuine author launch moment — proud, memorable and worth celebrating as a family.Where publication has been approved by the parent, the finished book is prepared for Amazon KDP. Amazon review timelines can vary, but the celebration honours the child’s completed work and their achievement as a young author.