Pink Hat Marketing

If you’re faced with learning something new, there are many ways to do it. You could search online for information about the subject. You could look it up in a dictionary or encyclopedia. You could go to your nearest bookstore and look for “how-to” books on that subject. There is so much information available nowadays, that it’s hard to know where to start.

As a writer and researcher, I’ve discovered a wonderful source for learning almost any subject quickly and easily. For instance, a short time ago I was hired to do a series of articles about endangered species. I searched Google and the other major search engines, but there was just too much information to sift through.

I visited my local bookstore and browsed books on the environment and ecology until I realized that I had to narrow my focus or figure out how to absorb all of this information in an easier manner. I decided to go to the library to see if they had any books I could borrow, and also to look for a book on elephants for my young daughter, who is crazy for elephants.

Well, as I browsed the shelves of the children’s section, looking for elephant picture books, it hit me. The children’s section is full of books on thousands of subjects. What if they had a book on endangered species? I talked to the librarian and she led me to two whole shelves filled with books on the environment, ecology and endangered animal and plant species.

Best of all, they were all written for kids, so they were very easy to understand and had many illustrations. I could choose from books aimed at first grade through middle school students, which made my writing task a lot easier. Quickly, I selected an armful and took them home to start my research.

As a side benefit, my daughter and I had plenty of books to read before her bedtime. I found myself actually enjoying my research and learning from it. That was the first of many occasions that I’ve used childrens’ books to do my research. Using childrens’ books makes it much easier for me to understand, organize and report the subject I’m writing about.

Next time you find yourself with a writing project, check the childrens’ section of your library and you may find yourself wrapping it up much sooner. And don’t forget audiobooks, childrens’ videos and the childrens’ reference section. It often has textbooks on subjects like algebra, language arts and science. I once sold an article based on some simple experiments in a science book that my son took out of the library to help with a science fair project.

Even if you don’t have kids, spend some time in the childrens’ section of your library and get to know the resources there. You never know when it will pay to think like a kid.