BSME committee member and Editor, The Week Junior Science + Nature, Dan Green cheered up the students of the University of Lincoln with his hands-on and empowering insights into print journalism and publishing during his virtual guest lecture as part of the BSME Education Initiative in association with Readly.
Editor Dan Green gave a virtual lecture to students at the University of Lincoln, sharing tips on how to write for children, lessons from his career path, and advice for graduates.
Summarised by Angela Locatelli, Editorial Admin Assistant, APL Media
1. Give readers what they want
In 2015, 20 years after its launch, The Week created its very first brand extension, The Week Junior. The next product, The Week Junior Science + Nature, came only two years later. “Repeatedly, surveys have shown the two most popular sections of the title were the environment and science and technology,” said Dan. “Kids couldn’t seem to get enough of these stories, so we decided to give them what they wanted.”
2. Keep layouts uncluttered — even if they’re for children
There is a tendency to think younger readers want everything to be bright and loud, with jokes, clashing colours, and freebies stuck onto the front cover. “We’ve gone the opposite way, we think this approach is a bit too distracting,” said Dan. “Simplicity of design is one of the keys to our success and it makes the layout more powerful because it gives the reader a chance to explore the page and find stories that interest them.”
3. Don’t write for children
“It’s a disaster if you try to write specifically for children,” said Dan. His advice? Write for a younger audience as if you were writing for adults, but don’t assume any prior knowledge. “Writing for children, and especially science stories, you realise just how much you take for granted,” he continued. “We need to define everything we say very carefully. In many ways, you have to be more rigorous.”
4. Representation matters
“We make a really big effort to show as broad a range of people as possible in science and nature,” Dan said. If all readers ever see are older white men, who can blame for thinking that science is just not cut out for them? “Children need to find their own faces in the pages,” he added. “It’s also important to show diversity in the experts we choose to feature.”
5. Science journalism is essential
In 2020, science dominated the news, and people had to quickly wrap their heads around numbers, metrics and unfamiliar concepts. “Science is the best way we have to understand the world and the wider universe,” said Dan. “It’s an essential part now of this rich world we live in: if 2020 and the pandemic showed anything, it’s hopefully proved beyond doubt how important it is to have a level of knowledge about science and technology.”
6. Children publishing is a world apart
If you’re interested in working in print journalism, children’s publishing is a good place to be. “It doesn’t really matter what happens in the world of adults, we may be glued to our tablets and TV screens, but we still seem to remain absolutely convinced the best thing for children is something physical they can hold in their hands,” said Dan.
7. Success in a pandemic
The Week Science + Nature more than doubled its readership in a year, and this happened for three reasons. “Natural momentum,” Dan said. “Ever since we launched, we were putting numbers out every month.” But, he added, the lockdown also helped. “Parents were trying to juggle home schooling and working from home. Across the board in products for children, subscription went through the roof.” Finally, quality counts. “As more and more people hear of you, they recommend you and you seem to pick up speed that way,” he concluded.
8. Young graduates: always say yes!
“I don’t mean to put anyone off, but this is not exactly what you call a stable job,” said Dan. His advice for graduates is to be adaptable: go with the flow, and always say yes — even when you’re not sure you can do it. “But there are loads of benefits,” he added. “I found it hugely enjoyable as a career. It’s varied, intellectually stimulating and it’s also great to be creative. I still get a massive thrill when I get to hold the new copy of my magazine in my hands.”
9. The future of children’s publishing
Children magazine as an area of publishing is quite conservative, said Dan, and there isn’t much of a call to put things online. “I know in the pandemic, because it was difficult to get hold of physical copies, a lot of companies put out free digital editions, but that wasn’t done to replace a print issue,” he added. Going forward, he predicted podcasts and partnerships with gaming companies could be the next big thing in the field.
10. How to use social media
“You can find us on Facebook and we have a Twitter account, but obviously our young readers aren’t strictly allowed to be on those platforms, we can’t be seen to market towards them,” Dan said. “Our content on social media is to the buyers.” PopJam — a social media app for children — is where its team can talk directly to their readers. “It’s very specially curated and a safe space,” he concluded.
