I don’t often confess this, but I was not excited about reading when I was a child. “See Spot run!” just didn’t do it for me. I needed a little more humor and fun in the stories in order to hold my attention. As a children’s author, I write many devotional books for kids, picture books, Bible story books, and books for beginning readers. I have written over two dozen books in the I Can Read! line for Zonderkidz. Many of the I Can Read! books are rewritten Bible stories, but I have also written several fictional books for the brand.

Writing for beginning readers is challenging since the writer has to strictly adhere to the guidelines. Word count, page count, line length, and limited vocabulary are necessities when writing stories for this genre. The challenge is to write a fun and creative store within the tight “formula.”

One of my I Can Read! books is Otter and Owl and the Big Ah-choo.  It’s a silly story about two best friends with opposite personalities. Otter’s constant sneezing annoys his friend, Owl, who desperately tries to figure out what is making Otter sneeze. Owl finally comes to the conclusion that Otter is allergic to him and they can no longer be friends. Of course, in the end, Otter is not allergic to Owl and kids will enjoy the surprise twist that leads to the end of the story. It’s the kind of story I would have enjoyed reading when I was a beginning reader–which is probably why I wrote it.

If you have a beginning reader in your life, check out the Otter and Owl 4-book series, now available as e-books. The illustrations by Kevin Zimmer are adorable and funny. Whether your reader is book worm, or a reluctant reader, this story will hold his or her attention. And it is okay for reading to be fun!

Here’s to happy reading!

Crystal