Posts by Sophie Masson
Or, How Young Readers Keep You in Line!
I’ve been told many times by publishing professionals that authors who write for children and young adults are generally easier to work with, and more modest, less inclined to have big egos, than their counterparts in the adult literary world. Partly, that might be because, as any children’s or YA author will know, people often don’t take you seriously—the idea being that if you write for kids, you must be an overgrown kid yourself, and your books therefore are not worthy of the same attention as ‘real books’ (and yes, people do actually say to you—When are you going to write a real book?) But another reason is the fact that if your ego ever stood any chance of taking off, you’d be brought back to earth and pretty damn fast too, by your readership.
Children and teenagers are honest. If they aren’t hooked into your book in the first couple of pages, they will simply close it. It doesn’t matter how many prizes it’s won, how well regarded you are by the literary world, they simply don’t care if your book doesn’t grab them.
If they like your book, they will tell you with excitement and enthusiasm. And if they don’t, well, they will say so, without any dissembling, or indeed sparing of your feelings.
Read MoreI write mainly for young adults and children, though I’ve also written several adult novels. Most of my books have been fantasy novels, though I’ve also written some realistic fiction. Fantasy is a genre I’ve always felt at ease in—a genre that expresses well the way in which I see the world—and also, it formed a good deal of my own childhood reading. Plus, in practical terms, it’s a genre that’s been good to me. Fantasy is a global genre—no matter whether you live in a little rural settlement in Australia, like I do, or in deepest Manhattan, you have a lot more chance of getting an international audience than in many other genres. That’s an important consideration for an Australian writer, because although we have great readers, our home market is small. Practically all Australian books for young people that have made it into the international market are in the fantasy genre. Partly that’s because fantasy is traditionally the dominant genre in children’s and young adult fiction, of course, but also because fantasy is so portable. (The photo above is of my grandfather Robert-Rene Masson and his grandmother, Madame Chase-Casgrain, 1929)
But I love trying out new things. I love to challenge myself. And recently I decided I wanted to branch out, and start to explore another beloved genre: mystery/crime. Like fantasy, mystery/crime is one of the world’s most popular genres. And like fantasy, it’s something I have an instinctive feel and love for.
Read More- « Previous
- 1
- …
- 8
- 9
- 10
