Children's Fiction

For centuries, adults have narrated stories to entertain and relax children, often helping them drift off to sleep and dream of exciting adventures. Stories for children have evolved over the years, and many are adapted into film and television series to thrill and engage young minds from the screen and page. Read on to find out what book examples and types of children's fiction has captivated young readers for years.

Children's Fiction: definition

Children's fiction refers to a genre of literature that is primarily written for and targeted towards children. The content, themes, and language of these works are often age-appropriate and intended to entertain, educate, and stimulate the imaginations of young readers. Children's fiction can cover a wide range of genres and sub-genres, including fantasy, adventure, mystery, fairy tales, and more.

Children's books were originally written with the purpose of education in mind, which included books containing alphabets, numbers, and simple words and objects. The didactic purpose of stories was also developed to teach children moral values and good behaviour. Stories with these characteristics found their way into publication, and adults eventually began to encourage children to read these stories and read them to children themselves.

Children's Fiction: type and examples

There are many types of children's fiction, including classic fiction, picture books, fairy tales and folklore, fantasy fiction, young adult fiction, and children's detective fiction. These are listed below with examples featuring popular children's fiction book characters that are loved across the world.

Classic fiction

'Classic' is a term used for those books that are deemed noteworthy and timeless. These books are universally accepted as being remarkable, and with each reading, they have some new insight to offer to the reader. Children's fiction, too, has its own collection of classics.

Picture books

Who doesn't like pictures and illustrations accompanying a story? Adults today indulge in comic books, graphic novels, and mangas, just as children love a good picture book. Picture books are typically for the younger children who have just begun to learn the alphabet and numbers and add new words and ideas to their repertoire through the context of pictures.

Fairy tales and folklore

One of the most important characteristics of fairy tales and folklore is that they showcase the attributes of a specific culture or place. They are informed by mythical beings or legends from certain cultures. These stories were initially passed orally from generation to generation, but they became so popular and loved over the years that they continue to be published as books and retellings, often accompanied by pictures and illustrations, films, cartoons, and tv series.

Fantasy fiction

Imaginary worlds, amazing superpowers, mystical beasts, and other fantastical elements fuel a child's wild imagination. Children enjoy works of fantasy fiction. Anything is possible in fantasy fiction, and its readers can escape the mundane, everyday life and gain a new perspective of the world around them. Works of fantasy fiction are often heavy with symbolism and contain messages that the author wants to convey to its readers.

Young adult fiction

Young adult fiction is targeted at older children, especially those in their teen years who are on the cusp of adulthood. Young adult novels are typically coming-of-age stories where characters grow to become self-aware and independent. Young adult fiction bridges the gap between children's stories and adult narratives. It allows its readers to explore themes such as friendships, first loves, relationships, and overcoming obstacles.

Children's detective fiction

Detective fiction is a much-loved and widely read genre among adults and children. In the case of children, although there are novels featuring adult detectives, there are also numerous series with a child or children as amateur detectives attempting to solve mysteries. Children detectives make the story more relatable for children and evoke a sense of suspense and enjoyment as the readers solve the mystery alongside the protagonists.

Fig. 1 - Children's fiction fosters imagination, empathy, and life-long reading in children.

Writing Children's Fiction

While there are no shortcuts or easy formulas for writing good fictional narratives for children, here are some general pointers you can keep in mind as you plan the story:

Know your target audience

A story that might fascinate six to eight-year-old children may be dull or too simple for teenagers. If you want to write a story that your readers will enjoy, it is important to learn about who your audience is. If you are writing a story for 12-year-old children, identify what things interest, scare, delight, and fascinate them. What kind of characters and problems do they like to read about? How far can their imagination stretch? Knowing your target audience will help you craft elements of your story, including themes, symbols, characters, conflicts, and settings.

Language

Once you know your audience, it is important to consider language. Ideally, it is best to use language, including dialogues, figures of speech, and symbols, that are easy for children to comprehend. Here, you can also find the opportunity to help your readers build their vocabulary and add more complex words or phrases to their repertoire.

Action

The action in the story needs to start early on to capture your reader's attention. It is inadvisable to spend too much time and too many pages to set the premise of your story.

Length

Keep in mind that different age groups also prefer different lengths when it comes to the books they read. While 14-year-olds may have no trouble with 200 to 250-page novels, that number could intimidate younger children and discourage them from reading your work.

Illustrations

Depending on the age of your target audience, it may be a good idea to include illustrations and pictures in your work, as it captivates young readers and sets off their imagination.

Children's Fiction: influence

Children's fiction has a significant impact on developing the habit of reading among children. It encourages them to start reading at a young age and, consequently, improves their vocabulary. The main benefits of giving children such fiction are:

• Children's fiction sparks the imagination of children and adds to their social and critical thinking skills.
• Children's fiction plays an indispensable role in shaping a child's cognitive, emotional, and moral development.
• Children's fiction exposes children to diverse perspectives, enhances their vocabulary and comprehension skills, and stimulates critical thinking.
• Children's fiction instils important life lessons and values, encourages empathy, and fosters a lifelong passion for learning and literature.

These benefits mean children should be encouraged to start reading at an early age.