Greg Soros, Author, on Writing Characters Kids Truly Connect With
Children’s literature has always demanded something more than a good plot. For Greg Soros, author and children’s book writer with more than fifteen years of experience, the real work begins long before a single word hits the page. His focus: building characters that feel genuinely alive to young readers.
Starting With the Right Question
Soros approaches character development by flipping a common assumption. Rather than asking what a character wants, he asks what the character needs to learn. “Young readers are incredibly perceptive,” he explains. “They can sense when a character is just moving through a plot versus when that character is genuinely growing.” That shift in framing, from desire to growth, shapes how he constructs every protagonist.
Children face real pressures in their daily lives anxiety, friendship conflicts, the ache of feeling different. Soros takes those pressures seriously without letting them overwhelm the story. “Children face real struggles,” he notes. “But they also possess remarkable resilience and creativity in problem-solving. Our job as authors is to honor both the difficulty and their capacity to navigate it.” This balance, keeping stakes real while preserving hope, defines his approach to character arcs.
Writing Across Age Groups
One of the trickier aspects of the craft involves understanding developmental stages. A picture book audience processes emotion differently than a child reading their first chapter book. Soros emphasizes that effective character creation requires knowing not just how children read, but how they understand emotional concepts at different points in their development. What resonates with a six-year-old may land flat with a ten-year-old, and the reverse is equally true. For Greg Soros, author of children’s books designed to mirror and expand young readers’ worlds, the goal is always the same: write characters who help children feel less alone, more understood, and better equipped to face whatever comes next. Visit this page, for related information.
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