Advanced writing for children: editing your novel - part 1

What is the course about?

This course will cover editing the ‘bigger picture’, macro or structural aspects of a novel for children or young adults.

What will we cover?

The course will cover editing for plot, story arc, character arc, tension, strong opening, strong ending, clear theme etc. We will focus on the story as a whole and chapter by chapter. The course can be taken on its own or with the Part 2 Editing course, or as a whole year course starting with ‘Finishing Your Children’s Novel’ in the autumn term followed by two terms of editing. It is also an option to take this course alongside the Writing for Children Workshop on the same day. Ideally you will have a first or second draft of a novel ready for editing,.

What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...

- describe and understand variety of editing techniques.
- identify areas of your novel that need further work.
- recognise how to address issues in your novel.
- apply techniques learnt and edit and improve your novel.

What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?

You'll need a good level of spoken and written English. You will ideally have done at least a beginner’s course in writing for children. You need a draft of a novel you have written to work with.

How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?

The course will involve discussion, small group/pair work, practise tasks, demonstrations and tasks to try on your draft novel. You will continue to edit your novel in between classes using the techniques learnt. You will have a chance for feedback on an outline of your novel and also the opportunity for individual support from the tutor.

All writing courses at City Lit will involve an element of workshop. This means that students will produce work which
will be discussed in an open and constructive environment with the tutor and other students. The college operates a
policy of constructive criticism, and all feedback on another student’s work by the tutor and other students should be
delivered in that spirit.

For classes longer than one day regular reading and writing exercises will be set for completion at home to set
deadlines.

All writing courses at City Lit will involve an element of workshop. This means that students will produce work which will be discussed in an open and constructive environment with the tutor and other students. The college operates a policy of constructive criticism, and all feedback on another student’s work by the tutor and other students should be delivered in that spirit.

For classes longer than one day regular reading and writing exercises will be set for completion at home to set deadlines.

City Lit Writing endeavours to create a safe and welcoming space for all and we strongly support the use of content notes in our classes. This means that learners are encouraged to make their tutor and classmates aware in advance if any writing they wish to share contains material that may be deemed sensitive. If you are unsure about what might constitute sensitive content, please ask your tutor for further clarification and read our expectations for participating in writing courses at City Lit.

Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?

You will need access to your draft novel so you may want to bring a print out or a laptop/ tablet with your work on it. If working with a print-out I suggest you also bring different coloured highlighters and post-it notes.

When I've finished, what course can I do next?

Advanced Writing for Children: Editing Your Children’s Novel Park 2 in April (HW133) is one possibility, where you will learn about ‘micro-editing’ paragraph and sentence level editing. If unsure, speak to your teacher about
alternative progression routes.


All students are invited to join us at Late Lines, our regular performance night for City Lit writers. Students are also encouraged to submit their work to Between the Lines, our annual anthology of creative writing. For the latest news, courses and events, stay in touch with the Department on Facebook and Twitter.