It takes time for a manuscript to mature and I feel I have learnt this not so much the hard way but certainly the long way ! A book’s real magic often happens after the big rewrites and for that reason I will always stick to my new rule ! Resist from sending my very first draft to the best friend to read ! It will no doubt be littered with flaws, ramblings of my idea and a thousand unnecessary filler words within sentences . When I scribbled the first draft and stupidly did the above , I was dealt enough honest negativity to give up on the idea of ever writing a children’s chapter book . I’m glad I didn’t (although I completely agreed with my bestie and felt guilty and quite useless that I had even thought it was ready to read). I’m sharing this, as today I have finally finished another edit and hopefully my last, of this manuscript and I have rewritten huge chunks more times than I wish to admit ! I honestly thought I had finished it to the best of my ability weeks ago . However I have spent the last three nights burning the candle while the world sleeps spotting and removing filler words, using stronger verbs to reinforce the sentences and igniting even more magic into my story. I hadn’t read my manuscript for some time and doing so with fresh eyes enabled me to see everything that was wrong with it and enjoy putting it right. It has taken input from a great team to get FLEA & The Sapphire Spell as shiny as I now believe it can be. If I am qualified to give any advice on manuscripts it would be this …….. I have learnt you cannot rush a story, it takes time to evolve and mature and maybe I have also done that alongside FLEA as a potential writer? Who knows ?

Good morning, beautiful souls — how’s everyone doing today? 💜 Writing for kids really is magical ✨ You get to spark imagination and build little worlds full of wonder. But let’s be real — it’s not always easy 🙃 Some people say the hardest bit is just coming up with fresh ideas, because it feels like everything’s already been done. Others struggle to keep the language simple but still fun, so kids stay hooked without it sounding flat. And then there’s the challenge of finding your own voice — something that feels authentic and speaks to children. How about you? What do you find trickiest right now? 💜

This is the place to ask questions, share excerpts, and get support with your writing. 👉 Post your tricky lines, rhymes, or pacing questions here. 👉 Comment on others’ work with constructive, encouraging feedback. We’re all here to help each other tell the best stories possible!