For Jennifer Longman, writing children’s books grew naturally out of years spent reading, learning, and working with children.
As an aunt, godmother, and great-aunt, she has been surrounded by young readers within her own family, while her experience babysitting, working as a nanny, and tutoring children has given her plenty of opportunities to see which stories capture their attention.
“Many of my ideas come from the children in my life,” Jennifer says.
That connection is reflected in her books, which combine playful storytelling with literacy, learning, and social-emotional themes. Rather than treating education and entertainment as separate goals, Jennifer sees stories as a way to bring the two together.
Combining stories with lessons, rhymes, or activities, she explains, can help children stay engaged, remember what they have learned and, perhaps most importantly, develop curiosity and a love of literacy and learning.
Building Literacy with ABC Rhyming Fun!
Jennifer’s interest in language goes back well beyond her work as an author. She studied language development in college and later worked as a literacy and ESL tutor, where phonics became part of her everyday teaching.
That experience led naturally to ABC Rhyming Fun!
The alphabet, Jennifer says, remains one of the foundations of learning to read — and therefore a timeless subject for a children’s book. She wanted to create something entertaining enough to enjoy while also being useful with some of her own students.
The combination appears to work particularly well with young audiences. One of Jennifer’s favourite responses to the book came when her brother brought copies of ABC Rhyming Fun! to a preschool class. He and the mother of one of the children read the book to the group, and the children immediately engaged with its illustrations and rhymes.
Jennifer later received a group selfie of the children and adults holding their books and smiling — a particularly memorable moment for an author whose work began with reading to children herself.
Learning That “Practice Makes Progress”
A very different real-life moment inspired Miss Phoebe Goes to Clown School.
Phoebe is Jennifer’s niece’s dog, and the idea began with a silly photograph: her niece had used a photo app to give Phoebe a virtual clown wig.
But beneath the playful premise is something Jennifer had noticed in children many times. Children can become frustrated when they cannot immediately perform as well as they would like — whether they are struggling with schoolwork, sports, or a favourite hobby.
That became the basis for the book’s “practice makes progress” message: improvement matters more than immediate perfection.
Looking Beyond “What Do You Want to Be?”
Jennifer’s first book, Sweetie’s Talk with Mama, approaches childhood from another direction.
Its central concern is not phonics or practising a new skill, but how children learn to think about themselves and other people.
Jennifer hopes young readers will learn to value themselves and others for “their goodness in heart and their character.” For parents, she hopes the story offers a reminder that helping a child imagine adulthood should involve more than asking what occupation they will eventually choose.
That interest in children’s emotional development is also connected to Jennifer’s professional background. Her career in counselling, she says, helped prepare her to write about social and emotional development for children.
Characters Come First
Despite the educational ideas running through her books, Jennifer does not normally begin a new story by deciding what lesson she wants to teach.
She starts with the characters.
From there, she creates an outline and begins developing a story that she hopes will be both educational and fun. The story continues to grow and change as she works until she is satisfied with the result.
So far, Jennifer has primarily written for children aged three to nine, although she hopes her books can be enjoyed by readers outside that age range too.
Illustrations are an important part of that process. Jennifer sees pictures as an integral part of storytelling, particularly for children who are still learning to read. They attract a child’s interest while also helping young readers understand what is happening in the story.
A Creative, Educational, and Surprising Journey
Asked to sum up her publishing journey in just three words, Jennifer chose:
Creative. Educational. Surprising.
Those three words also describe her books rather well. From alphabet rhymes to a dog attending clown school and conversations about what really matters as children grow up, each story takes a different route while keeping children’s learning and development at its heart.
Jennifer also has some encouragement for other aspiring children’s authors considering turning their own ideas into a book:
“BookBildr made my dream a reality! It is a wonderful resource that allows you to create your book with all the support you need, no matter your publishing experience!”
For Jennifer, the journey began with reading books to the children around her. Now she is creating stories for other families to read together — and perhaps inspiring a little more curiosity, confidence, and love of learning along the way.
She says:
The thing I like most about writing for children is being able to incorporate fantasy and silliness with education. I hope to be a part of kids’ happy childhood memories!
Visti Jennifer’s Facebook page to learn more about her creative journey.