In my last article, I shared how authors can (and should) use mentor texts to improve their manuscripts. Go and read that article about mentor texts if you haven't already to learn the basics and how to use them. It's important. Today I am sharing specific ways mentor texts shaped my writing.
I'm including three of my traditionally published books here that were helped immensely by me studying mentor texts, plus a bonus at the end. FYI, you might be like me--using mentor texts without knowing the term. That was me for a couple of years early in my writing career!
Whooo Knew? The Truth About Owls
When I was writing my owl book, I wanted to include ALL the awesome owl facts I could. I was writing a middle grade nonfiction book. I was 20 drafts in before I took a break. It wasn't bad writing, but the manuscript lacked the zap needed to get a book contract.
During that break, I read a lot of kids' books--especially nonfiction. And it led me to make some major changes in my manuscript. The biggest thing mentor texts did for me was helping me to realize I needed humor and back matter in my book.
Major changes:
• Was middle grade, became picture book
• Structure
• Added humor
• Added sidebars
Once I made these changes, I still had a fact-filled owl book. But it was dramatically different. I knew right away that it had good potential to sell to a publisher. And it did! Whooo Knew? The Truth About Owls was published with Reycraft Books in 2020.
This book became a series! As of today, there are seven books in The Truth About series. They all use the same format as Whooo Knew? The Truth About Owls. That book became the mentor text for the series.
(More books are coming! I'll share the animals first with my newsletter subscribers once the contract is finalized! It's a monthly newsletter, and it's free!)
The Laura Ingalls Wilder Companion: A Chapter-by-Chapter Guide
For my book The Laura Ingalls Wilder Companion: A Chapter-by-Chapter Guide, I used Roar! by Heather and David Kopp, a book about the world of Narnia, as my mentor text. It showed me ideas to include in my book, but I also added even more when I was inspired by additional (and more recently published) books.
Because of mentor texts, I included
• Book/chapter introductions
• Historical context
• Fact or Fiction sidebars
• Additional sidebars
• Discussion questions
• Historical and modern photographs
• 75 activities
• Back matter (even though this book acts like back matter to all of the Little House books)
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The Laura Ingalls Wilder Companion was published in 2020 with Chicago Review Press.
Quirky Critter Devotions: 52 Wild Wonders for Kids
This book had a wild amount of major overhauls (not just revisions) from the initial idea. The first idea was in 2018. It was published in 2024! You can read about all of those manuscript transformations!
Typing out a few of the devotions, I came up with a word count ranch for each of the devotions for my own book. This mentor text helped me to include
• Appropriate length for kids
• A light tone
• Quick stats
• Subtitle for each devo
• A bonus fact
• Journaling (though I didn't initially include it)
Based on other books, I knew I also wanted to include
• A hands-on activity
• A Bible verse and prayer (all devotionals should include these)
(FYI, a devotional is a collection of many devotions. The terms are not interchangeable.)
Another use of mentor texts
For those writers looking for work-for-hire projects, especially with the educational market, using a previously published book as a mentor text. My clients who do this are the most likely to get writing assignments! Want to know more? These links will help.
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