Behind the Scenes: “What’s the Big Idea?” by Donna McKinney

In today’s post, Donna McKinney hits one of my favorite topics—structure. I’m fascinated by the way playing with structure can open up your thinking and writing. Her book LIGHTS ON! started with a list of fascinating undersea creatures, but then she needed to find a way to shape the information to be engaging for kids.

“What’s the Big Idea?” – Finding the Story in a List of Bioluminescent Sea Creatures

by Donna McKinney

I did not start to write for children until after I had worked for dozens of...