Naima B. Robert – Learn How to Write a Children’s Book Na’ima B. Robert Mistakes to Avoid #2

Yes. It's your sister Naeema b Robert here

back with another video on how to write

for children.

If you've been following the series, you know

that I'm sharing with you some of the

the learnings, some of the the the teachings

that we've been sharing with clients and students

for several years now, mashallah.

And today I want to talk to you

about

the role of Islam and Muslims in your

story.

Now this particular subject applies across the board.

It applies whether you're doing board books, picture

books, chapter books, novels, whatever it is. But

it is important because it helps you to

understand

exactly

what kind of Muslim or Islamic book you

are writing.

So

let's agree, firstly,

that there is a difference between a Muslim

book and an Islamic book.

Okay. You may not agree with me, so

let me hear me out. This is what

I mean about the difference between the two.

A Muslim book is a book that has

Muslim characters.

It has Muslim characters.

It may have a Muslim setting,

but its aims are not to teach Islam.

It may not even mention anything about Islamic

values or Islamic principles.

The Islam of the characters is part of

the cultural backdrop.

They happen to be Muslim and this is

a story about them. I'm sure you can

think of many stories, books,

films, TV shows where it's a Muslim show.

It's a Muslim book. But is it teaching

Islamic principles?

Not quite.

Then on the other hand, you have an

Islamic book. And we can say that an

Islamic book is one where Islamic values

or Islamic knowledge is explicitly or implicitly being

taught.

Okay.

The Islam of the characters

is front and centre. It's a major part

of their character. It's a major part of

the plot. It may be a major part

of the themes.

So in these two examples,

in the Muslim book the Islam is a

backdrop

and in the Islamic book the Islam is

in the foreground.

Now, why should this make a difference?

Well, if you want to put a book

out there, and especially if you want to

work with a publisher,

it's really important to be aware of which

book you're writing

because different these 2 different types of books

appeal to different audiences

and, most importantly,

they appeal to different types of publishers.

Now it may sound obvious to you that

this is the case but you'd be surprised

at how many people

write an Islamic

book and then send it to a mainstream

publisher that is interested in diversity, for example.

So before I get into that, let me

just backtrack because

we know that many, many,

traditional publishers

are now interested in publishing stories,

from a diverse back from diverse backgrounds, from

diverse voices.

We even have some publishers that have established,

a whole imprint specially for Muslim books.

So there is money behind these because there

is a huge demographic of readers, and publishers

are aware of that. Publishers are in the

business of making money.

But,

an Islamic book

that teaches Islam and teaches Islamic principles

is not what those publishers are looking for.

They are looking for a book that will

sit comfortably

in their multicultural

section.

So that book is not going to be

one that is a book of dawah or

a book that is, you know, differentiating

Muslims on the basis of their Islam or

even just too Islamic.

That's not what's going to interest them. And

I'm not saying this to you to to

say, you know, those publishers are good or

bad. It's just that you need to understand

the type of book that you're writing and

the type of publisher that will be interested

in your book. So if the Islam of

your characters is a backdrop,

part of their kind of cultural backdrop, background

and it's, you know, it's not the main

part of the story,

if the story is good enough, if it

would sell, those publishers are an easy audience

for you.

You can also take that book to an

Islamic publisher. However,

just as a, you know, a mainstream publisher

that is interested in, kind of, Muslim stories,

is not interested in stories that are promoting

Islam per se,

An Islamic publisher

is looking for stories that promote and teach

Islam.

So if you are writing an Islamic book,

be aware that you want to be pitching

it for the Islamic audience.

Parents who do not want Islamic literature will

not buy an Islamic book, whether they're Muslim

or not.

On the other hand, parents who are Islamic

will probably buy a book that has Muslim

characters, just for the idea of having Muslim

characters. But it doesn't always work the other

way around.

My point is this,

get very clear on your goals for your

book

because I've worked with many sisters who were

hoping to get a deal from a traditional

publisher and they know that that traditional publisher

is looking for diverse voices, is trying to

be to

that

publisher.

That's

not

what

they're

looking

for.

So

to that publisher.

That's not what they're looking for. So just

be aware of that. If you're writing an

Islamic book and your goal is to teach

Islam and to propagate Islam, you need to

be looking at Islamic publishers, publishers where their

goals align with the goals of your book.

So I hope that that makes a difference,

that it makes some kind of sense to

you and maybe allows you to see kind

of the story that you're working on, you

know, where does it fall?

Remember that just because you are a Muslim

author doesn't mean that you're writing either of

those. You could not be writing a Muslim

or Islamic book. Your book could be a

very general story that appeals to everyone. We

know many, many Muslim authors who have done

this. Some stories are simply universal.

Some information is universal. And we have some

authors who write about Islam

for a general audience. I'm one of those.

Many of my Islamic books or books that

talk about Islam

are there to teach non Muslims about Islam

in a way that is beautiful and makes

sense to them. So just because you are

a Muslim author doesn't mean you have to

write about Islam or Muslims.

Just come up with a fantastic story, do

it really well, and find the right publisher

for that story. And if you are writing

a story with Muslim characters or with an

Islamic theme, be aware of where you fit

in the market and set your sights on

the publishers that are looking for what you

are doing, inshallah. And I hope that that

makes sense. I hope that that's helpful. Hope

it clears up some misconceptions.

And, I would love to hear your thoughts

in the comments.

If you would like us to help you

to figure out your story, to edit your

story, to give you advice on which publisher

you should be going for or which publishing

route is best for you,

simply go to my website, naimarobert.com/services

and send in a form. We'd love to

hear from you. We'd love to be able

to help you and support you and work

with you.

Until the next video,

I guess you've got some thinking to do,

insha'Allah. We'll see you on the next one.

Assalamu Alaikum, Warahmatullahi,

Wa Barakatuh.