Children's Books
For youngsters, middle graders, and young adults
What We Deliver
Your book may be a picture book or a novel. It may have illustrations, drawings or callouts (text enclosed in boxes or shapes). We love working on books for children.
BOOK DESIGN: Choose from the original designs that we create just for your book. We send you high-resolution files, prepared according to the specifications of your printer.
We design children’s books of all types, for all ages.
EDITING: We edit to ensure correct and effective writing. We also give informative explanations and suggestions to improve your writing overall. When the editing is done, we send you two Word files. One shows the changes so that you can compare your original with the edited version. The other is a clean file that is easy to read.
Whether you need guidance on best publishing practices or advice on choosing a printer, we can help you every step of the way.
Your Goals
Your goals, your target age group and the level of editing you require are some of our considerations. You may have a wonderful story to tell but need help with the language, grammar, punctuation and style; pace, point of view and character development; or the balance of dialogue, action and narrative. Clear, age-appropriate language is essential for children’s fiction and nonfiction.
“Jill Ronsley exceeded my expectations in her substantive edit of my novel, The Secret Zoo. Jill’s strongest abilities are, I believe, rooted in her unwavering attention to detail. From structuring sentences to suggesting adjustments to plot or characters, her advice and changes to The Secret Zoo always enhanced the readability and strengthened the story. An excellent writer, Jill is in touch with the nuances of language and knows how to tighten writing to have it read more cleanly, effectively, and gracefully. She does all this while maintaining the author’s unique voice. Working with Jill, I sensed that she realized the passion that went into writing The Secret Zoo, and she not only respected that, she honored it. Jill was always available and answered emails more promptly than any other trade professional that I’ve worked with. I would highly recommend Jill’s services to everyone interested in having their work edited. I hold exceptionally high standards and was delighted when Jill surpassed them. I will undoubtedly work with Jill on future projects.” —Bryan Chick, The Secret Zoo Series (HarperCollins)
We keep a sharp eye on all the details to polish the story, while always respecting the voice and writing style of the author.
“I would recommend Jill Ronsley without hesitation. Her design captured the feel of our book project perfectly. She was always timely, even with last-minute requests. Without fail, she delivered just what we needed and was meticulous and thorough. Above all else, Jill was a pleasure to work with. She was always prompt and friendly, and was always willing to go the extra mile. She is a consummate professional.” —Jill Russell, American Cancer Society Publishing
Word Count for Children's Books
Writers often ask us what word count is acceptable for their children’s books. Suggested word counts are not fixed. They change as society, education and the publishing world change.
The most important thing is to be true to your story and to present a well-written, appealing book or ebook. For fiction, you need believable, captivating characters. A popular book may become a trendsetter.
Several categories are listed below with suggested word counts.
| Category | Word Count (approximate) |
| Middle Grade (MG) | 15,000-35,000 |
| Young Adult (YA) | 30,000-60,000 |
| Chapter Books | 6,000-12,000 |
| Picture Books (for young children) | 200-400 |
| Picture Books (for preschoolers) | 500-800 |
| Nonfiction Picture Books | 1,100-2,000 |
| Picture Story Books | 1,000-2,000 |
| Easy Readers | 400-800 |
| Hi-Lo Books | 700-1,000 |
| Board Books | 100 |
After your manuscript is edited:
If you plan to take the route of traditional publishing, be sure to read the submission guidelines of the publishing houses you are interested in before sending your manuscript. If you prefer to self-publish, we can help you make the best choices and answer all your questions.
“Working with Jill is one of the best decisions I’ve made as a self-published author. She was very professional during the entire process, and addressed any questions or concerns that I had in a prompt manner. Jill is also very knowledgeable in the children’s book publishing arena, and her candid advice proved to be invaluable. She reduced the costs of The Shelly’s Adventures Series by providing me with beneficial tips along the way. I highly recommend her services and will be working with her on future titles.” —Kentrell Martin, Shelly’s Adventures Series
Experience
Jill Ronsley has extensive experience with children’s books. She has edited and designed award-winning children’s books for all ages: picture books and chapter books, middle grade novels and books with young adult themes. Her work includes books that educate children about disabilities such as cancer, deafness, nutrition and autism.
She was editor-in-chief of The Blue Review, a monthly online publication for children’s writers, for which she wrote two regular columns. She was on the executive board of BOOST 4 Writers and was a judge in the BOOST Annual Writing Contest for Children’s Writers.
Her experience teaching writing and composition, reading, social studies, history and geography to children further enables her to create books that captivate, entertain and educate young people.
“In this, my first publishing project, Jill was helpful and patient as she professionally lifted me up. Communication is very important to me, and hers was impeccable, timely, consistent and thorough. From editing to interior design and completion, with Jill sending my book files to my printer, the process was seamless. I highly recommend Jill as both an editor and interior designer. She offered great guidance, and I would certainly come to her again for my next book.” —Jennifer Butenas, author, A Moment in Time
Contact us for more information.