Your child makes a book by answering five questions with pictures and then pressing "Make it". They open the book maker from "Make a new book" on their home screen, or from "Make" in their menu. Nothing needs typing unless they choose to write their own beginning.
The five questions
Five dots at the top of the screen show how far your child has got, and "Next" and "Back" move between the steps.
| Step | The question on screen | What your child picks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Who is in your story?" | Up to three of 16 characters, such as "Dragon", "Fox", "Robot" or "Mermaid" |
| 2 | "Where does it happen?" | One of 14 places, such as "Forest", "Castle", "Space" or "Underwater" |
| 3 | "What is it about?" | One of 10 themes, such as "Friendship", "Bravery", "Kindness" or "Adventure" |
| 4 | "How should it feel?" | One of six moods: "Funny", "Gentle", "Exciting", "Cosy", "Silly" or "Brave" |
| 5 | "How long shall it be?" | "Short", "A bit longer" or "Nice and long" |
The length is a wish within the range for your child's age group. It does not change the kind of book: readers in the two younger groups (2 to 5 and 5 to 7) always get a picture book, and readers in the two older groups (7 to 9 and 9 to 12) always get a chapter book. The four age groups shows what each group gets.
Some choices may carry a star. A star is a suggestion based on what your child has picked or enjoyed before, or on what you have told us they like. Nothing is chosen for them, and they can tap whatever they like. What your child likes explains where suggestions come from.
Extra choices on the first step
The first step can also offer these.
- "Write your own beginning." This opens a page that asks "How does your story start?". Your child can type up to 400 characters, or, on a device that can record, hold down "Hold and say it" and say it. "Hear it" reads back what they wrote, and "Carry on" takes them to the five questions with their beginning shown at the top. Their sentences become the first page of the book, with only the spelling corrected, and they are not held to the reading level of the rest of the book. When your child speaks, the recording is turned into words and is not kept. What your child can type explains the checks on what they write.
- "Your drawing: [name]." If you have sent in a photo of a character your child drew and it is ready to use, it appears here, above the other characters. It counts as one of the three, so your child still picks one or two more from the list. See Turning your child's drawing into a hero.
- A seasonal story. While a season is on for your child's age, a button such as "A winter story" appears. It stays off unless your child presses it. See Seasonal books.
- "Bring back [name]." When your child has a series, the book maker can offer to bring one of its characters back in a new story. See Series and weekly episodes.
Pressing "Make it"
When your child presses "Make it", the book starts straight away and takes its books at that moment: from your monthly allowance first, then from any books you bought. While a payment on your plan has failed, only books you bought can be used. A picture book uses 1 and a chapter book uses 2. If the book cannot be finished, or our automatic checks stop it, those books are given back to you; When a book cannot be made explains how.
Sometimes the book maker answers with a message instead of starting a book, for example when there are no books left or a daily limit has been reached. When the book maker says not now lists each message and what to do about it.
While the book is made
The waiting screen shows no timer, no countdown and no percentage. Instead, your child usually gets a first page to read straight away, with their name in it and an outline of one of the characters they chose beside it. That page is a short opening we wrote in advance, so there is something to read at once. Beside Pip, a line of words says what is happening, such as "Writing the words" or "Painting the pictures". These lines are shown on the screen, not spoken.
Your child can stay on that screen, which takes them to the book as soon as it is ready, or press "Back to your books" and find it later. The book keeps being made either way. How long a book takes covers what happens if the wait is long, and Making your first book walks through a first book from start to finish.