Nanny Kendal

By  Camilla Reid Author Supernanny Expert 17/06/2008

I have to be honest and say that I don’t feel that writing for girls of a toddler age is terribly different from writing for boys. My observation is that when they are this young they are fantastically open to being entertained by anything that comes their way and it’s only as they get older that they start to conform to social stereotypes.

Looking back, my daughter’s favourite toddler books were things like Hairy Maclary, The Tiger Who Came to Tea, Mr Magnolia and Yum, Yum, Poppy Cat – all of which work for boys as well as girls. Of course, now that she’s three, the world of fairies, ballet and pink things is starting to be much more interesting to her!

I wrote Lulu’s Shoes because I lost track of the numbers of mothers who told me that their toddler was obsessed with shoes – both boys and girls. I think it’s something to do with all the Velcro and buckles and laces – they’re just fascinating for little fingers. And although the book’s title character is a girl, little boys seem to enjoy the book just as much as the girls.

In terms of writing, while there is no exact formula for a successful toddler book, I’ve realised that there are several principles that I tend to stick to when I’m coming up with a new title.

1. Keep it simple – toddlers can follow only the simplest of stories, so I like to keep the plot pretty linear and straightforward.

2. Be true – the very young love to see a version of their own lives reflected back at them so I often include some or several aspects of a toddler’s daily routine.

3. Give it a bit of quirk – having said that it needs to reflect their lives, toddlers also like to have some fun, whether it’s flaps to lift or surprising events in the plot.

4. Don’t forget the parents – this is something I know very well now that I’m a mum. In my house, the books that we return to again and again are the ones that we both enjoy – that read well and have lovely illustrations.

5. Keep it affordable – as a ‘conceiver’ of novelty books I have great fun thinking up wild and wonderful ideas for books, but I have to be pragmatic: the book has to be affordable and that usually means it has to come in at under a tenner.

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