JESSE
FLOREA

Senior Editorial Director, Youth Publications​ | Focus on the Family

Biography

Jesse Florea has worked at Focus on the Family for more than 26 years. Currently, he oversees Clubhouse and Clubhouse Jr. magazines. He also co-hosts the biweekly “Official Adventures in Odyssey” podcast and the weekly “Official Average Boy” podcast. He has written or co-written more than 40 books (including the Defend Your Faith Apologetics Bible for kids, The Case for Miracles for Kids, The Case for Grace for Kids, and numerous Christian sports biographies). He lives with his wife, Stephanie, in Colorado Springs, and enjoys hanging out with his two adult children, their spouses, and his two grandchildren. 

Workshop

Title

Description

​1:1 Appointment

In order to make the most of your 1:1 appointment, we recommend that you carefully review the faculty members' areas of expertise, needs and requests to identify those best suited for your goals as a writer. ​​​

Acquiring: 
​Children's fiction and non-fiction:

• Bible stories for 3- to 7-year-olds. Fun, creative and short (400 words or less).
• Rebus stories for same age group with solid takeaway (200 words or less). 
• Poetry—fun, short (100 words or less) and interactive.
• Personality stories of ordinary child (9 years or younger) doing something extraordinary with faith angle (400 words or less). 
• Fiction—900 words or less—could be historic, animal, modern-day, sci-fi, choose-your-own-adventure (geared for kids 3-7).
• Fiction—2,000 words or less—could be historic, animal, modern-day, sci-fi, choose-your-own-adventure (geared for kids 8-12).
• Biblical archaeology or apologetics stories for 8- to 12-year olds (1,000 words or less) for Truth Pursuer section of magazine. Stories must be insightful, fun writing. Needs to take a heady subject and make it kid-like and engaging. 
• Personality stories of kids 13 or younger with faith angle (900 words or less). 
• Crafts or recipes geared toward holidays or specific times of year. 
• Quizzes (400 or 800 words). Could be multiple choice, True or False, arrow quiz. Use humor to engage and make your point.

Not interested in: Stories where parents, other adults or grandparents solve all the problems. Let the children think, wrestle and overcome their conflicts. We also don't need puzzles.
Pre-qualifications: None, except a passion for the subject matter, a love for children, and a desire to see kids grow closer to Christ.