When you enroll in Writing for Children and Teenagers, an established writer or editor of children’s books, stories, and articles is assigned to you as your personal trainer.  He or she will read and critique every assignment you submit for the course, word-by-word and line-by-line.  Your work will never be passed off to an assistant. 

Your instructor is key to your success.  As we say, “You push, your instructor pulls, and as a result, you learn to write.”

At the same time, you learn how to market and sell your writing to editors and publishers.  Our instructors have all dealt with the children’s market for many years.  They know, from direct experience, the who, where, and how, as well as the do’s and don’ts of getting published. 

In addition, our editorial staff is in continuous contact with the editors and publishers of children’s books, magazines, and websites.  Editors tell us what they want (and what they don’t want), and we publish this up-to-date information as part of your course materials.

In total, our instructors have written or edited more than 26,000 books, stories, and articles for children and teenagers.  Many have written more than 40 books, and others have published hundreds of stories, articles, and columns. 

Nearly a third of our instructors are graduates of the Institute.  Nonetheless, we train all instructors in our method of teaching and closely monitor their performance for 12 months; we continue to review their work, at regular intervals, as long as they teach at the Institute. 

Our dedication to quality is inspired by our own professional standards, and it is fundamental in fulfilling this promise to you:

 If you pass our Aptitude Test for Children’s Writing and decide to enroll in our  course, you will complete at least one manuscript suitable to submit to an editor or publisher by the time you finish the course;  we’ll show you how to sell your work to them; and we’ll teach you how to continue on your own as a freelance writer.

The “proof of the pudding” is that more than 11,000 of our students and graduates have been published; their works have won every major prize in children’s literature, including the prestigious Newbery Award, and been published by every leading publisher. 

The quality of our course and our instruction is further distinguished by the fact that all of our graduates qualify for college credits.  No other such course in children’s writing is so honored.