Children's books are brave and bold

I was reminded this week of the resilience of children. My step grandson had a massive operation. We were all terrified by it, he was pragmatic. It was something that needed to be done as far as he was concerned. This wasn't a case of ignorance on his part. He knew exactly what was going to be done to him and could explain to you in graphic detail if you were willing to listen. He was brave beyond belief.

His attitude made me think of the post written by the DGA agent, Kirsty McLachlan, on the Golden Egg website. If you have any involvement in writing for children you should read this post. It is inspired. OK, maybe I am biased, her approach to children's literature is the same as mine. Children's books can be challenging. They can take children to places where as adults we might fear they should go. As Kirsty says 'Children's books are brave and bold. They are fearless.' Just like children and so they should be. As I have said before Philip Pullman in his Carnegie Award Medal acceptance speech spoke about how there are some ideas just too big for adult stories but children's fiction is exactly where they should be dealt with. While Melvin Burgess also suggested that children (I am including young adults in all this too) can cope with anything if it is put in context. This has all been mentioned fairly recently anyway with the whole 'sick-lit' argument, which you all know my thoughts on.

The important thing to remember when writing for children is that they have this insatiable thirst for knowledge. And books are a great place for them to ask questions of the text but also of themselves. Books can help them work out who they are and to make the connections in their own lives. As Kirsty also said 'Children always defy our expectations,' and so should their books. Somebody said to me the other day 'Oh I think I am going to write a children's book because it must be easy.' You can imagine my reaction. But more importantly, and regardless of the fact that writing a children''s book is not easy, is the fact that we should not demean children's books like that. Are they not entitled to the best written stories ever? More so, I think, than adults. I was convinced to do my MA in Writing for Children because I was told if you can write for children you can write for anyone because it is so hard.

There have also been some interesting articles flitting through the ether talking about how the gap between girls and boys reading is closing. It is believed as a direct result of the ebook. In other articles it was suggested that children still want 'proper' books as well as ebooks. They are embracing the technology and moving with it. We must make sure we move with it as writers. Thinking how our stories can be multi-platform, being open and flexible to all opportunities.

I am going to end on a quote from Kirsty again, which I think just sums up the importance of good books: 'A child that reads is not alone; they are with a best friend.'

And here is a beautiful piece of music composed and played by Shin Suzuma, brother of my friend Tabitha Suzuma. A gentle something for a Saturday full of marking and work....remind me again, what is a weekend for? ;-)

Honing your writing craft is never easy!

Coming out of the shadow

A good friend recently sent me a message saying how much she had loved my most recent blog post, in particular, the voice I used, which I was very flattered by. My aim had only been to share my practices. Combine this with the knowledge that an article I submitted to a journal has been accepted (more info when I can link you to it) made me start to think. Those of you who are regular readers know that I have been concerned about stepping out of the shadow of my PhD. It is so daunting. Doing a PhD is like having a hug, you feel protected. Once it is done, it is time to be a grown up! It is tough even if you have the support that I do. It is scary. Well, I think I am finally doing it and I wanted to share. I have interest in my creative piece and a lot more confidence in my critical voice. Neither of which has come easily. I have had to work really hard at it. But isn't that what makes it worth while?

As far as I am concerned, and even with a PhD in creative writing, I am still honing my craft. I am a writer but not a complacent one I hope. I know I still have lots of learn. I lecture in creative writing but I wouldn't consider that I can teach writing. What I think I do is give my students guidance and the tools with which which to hone their own writing. They get the space and time to to try out different voices. But it all comes down to practise, the more you do it, the better you will get. You could say that it is no different to a painter or a musician. Watch the clip below which is Shin Suzuma, the brother of another great friend of mine. He is 22 and an extraordinary pianist but he puts in hours and hours of practice every day. See, you don't get anywhere without putting in hard graft and that is the same with writing, I believe. It is not easy and don't let anyone tell you it is. Or rather, the first draft might be but then comes the rewrites....