tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post2168020170571550373..comments2023-12-25T00:38:19.500-08:00Comments on Finding Wonderland: The WritingYA Weblog (archive): A Few Thoughts on Reading YASarah Stevensonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16534942492714970282noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-77842968673199383812010-08-11T02:05:22.901-07:002010-08-11T02:05:22.901-07:00A pissing match in a teapot, that article... that ...A pissing match in a teapot, that article... that means everyone gets messy and it all stinks.<br /><br />I could get on a soapbox about THAT and stay on for days.tanita✿davishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01671822274852087499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-53825000070444203982010-08-10T11:28:06.236-07:002010-08-10T11:28:06.236-07:00WOW. I also enjoyed the discussion in the comments...WOW. I also enjoyed the discussion in the comments. It was very telling to me that the commenters who felt compelled to leap to the defense of the book being critiqued, were not only missing the point of the review but also making themselves sound just as pompous, dismissive and insufferable as the author of the book. Kudos to you for putting in a comment. I was way too chicken. :) Not to mention speechless.Sarah Stevensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16534942492714970282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-82845401240846897372010-08-10T03:43:33.365-07:002010-08-10T03:43:33.365-07:00I wanted to send you this link the first time I co...I wanted to send you this link the first time I commented, but couldn't find it then--I found it both interesting and amusing!<br /><br />http://evesalexandria.typepad.com/eves_alexandria/2010/07/are-you-reader-enough-for-difficult-fiction.htmlCharlottehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11835101886202235868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-35657755956266564942010-08-08T13:04:05.603-07:002010-08-08T13:04:05.603-07:00Oh my gosh, what a fantastic post and chorus of re...Oh my gosh, what a fantastic post and chorus of respondents. You have made me think a lot about editing (and having written on both sides of this fence (while refusing to actually believe there is a fence)), and I believe that you are onto something.Beth Kepharthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14236487532413398431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-37984185075593882462010-08-08T09:19:13.198-07:002010-08-08T09:19:13.198-07:00Tanita, you put it much better than I did--that YA...Tanita, you put it much better than I did--that YA writers deal with editors as gatekeepers.<br /><br />Melissa, glad you stopped by! <br /><br />I keep coming back to the journey idea, and I can't help thinking that not only is it a good thing to recognize that life is an ongoing journey, but it's also rewarding to be able to recapture and revisit and continue to learn from earlier points in the process. Because, of course, we wouldn't be who we are NOW without who we were along the way. <br /><br />I also realized some of my resentment about being made to feel that YA/children's lit is solely for children is the fact that I really resent being told what I ought to like or dislike, especially when the reasoning is so specious and flimsy. :)Sarah Stevensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16534942492714970282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-21686995916555686622010-08-08T05:53:53.272-07:002010-08-08T05:53:53.272-07:00Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! (I love this community; i...Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! (I love this community; it's so wonderful to know I'm not alone in feeling this way!)<br /><br />I especially liked this sentiment of yours: <br />"I like the fact that YA literature, by contrast, embraces the process, the journey, reminds me that I can still learn and grow regardless of age."<br /><br />So, true. It's wonderful to read these kind of stories. And it's wonderful to know that some of the best people are writing for our kids.Melissahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00217383813263874657noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-56128569264311612052010-08-08T00:13:47.263-07:002010-08-08T00:13:47.263-07:00Agreed -- EDITING is hugely significant between YA...Agreed -- EDITING is hugely significant between YA and adult writing. I struggle with adult novels because there's a loss of ...point, there's so little editing. YA writers deal with editors as gatekeepers, but adult writers dealing with their editors must have a much different relationship. Hm. Something to ponder.<br /><br />The stories are definitely the key... and we had better stories when we were still eager for the journey and imagined what life would be like when we "got there."tanita✿davishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01671822274852087499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-72221601611652457002010-08-07T19:55:35.967-07:002010-08-07T19:55:35.967-07:00I completely agree with you, Charlotte, about the ...I completely agree with you, Charlotte, about the editing thing--I've noticed that numerous times, and it really frustrates me. <br /><br />And, enjoy the Wii! We've got one, although lately it get used primarily to stream Netflix movies. (I have a video game I'm partly finished with staring sadly at me from the shelf...alas, no time!)Sarah Stevensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16534942492714970282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-4968242460443613862010-08-07T19:41:57.503-07:002010-08-07T19:41:57.503-07:00And to add to the list of things grown-up fiction ...And to add to the list of things grown-up fiction is lacking, crisp editing is high on the list. The last few grown up fantasy books drove me absolutly crazy because there was tons of repetition in description and characterization that I don't thing any good YA editor would have tolerated for a second. This might actually be one reason for the verve lack you mention....<br /><br />Viz taking innocent child-like pleasure in life-- I am enjoying my children's new Wii very much. Especially the ping pong.Charlottehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11835101886202235868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-82657205653808781822010-08-07T17:25:57.745-07:002010-08-07T17:25:57.745-07:00I heartily agree with you, Sarah. In fact, the few...I heartily agree with you, Sarah. In fact, the few adult books that I've read and actually loved differ from the standard adult fare by telling actual stories. I include in that my favorite grown-up title in the past decade, <i>The Guernsey Literary and Potato-Peel Pie Society</i>, which is co-written by a kids' author (maybe that's why it's so good!) and which includes fascinating information about the Channel islands during WWII, and about rationing, and it's epistolary and generally wonderful.<br /><br />I agree with Tanita's comments to the extent that they imply that most of us wanted far more (and far better) out of adulthood than what we got, but I find myself agreeing more with you that STORIES are what matter. (Which explains why Stephen King and Neil Gaiman sell craploads of copies - they actually tell stories!)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-20999264521036220952010-08-07T14:01:37.532-07:002010-08-07T14:01:37.532-07:00(This is one of those north-by-northwest thought p...<i>(This is one of those north-by-northwest thought processes where I arrive at a point eventually... so bear with me.)</i><br /><br />This reminds me of ...school. Or, Sunday School. Little kids get to sing and dance and do crafts for years and years and years. Fun stories, movement, color, all in the service of learning your ABC's or your "begets."<br /><br />And then, adulthood. Which means all the fun stuff is gone. And learning is this hard, harsh curve, and a drudgery. And we all accept that, as if that's what adulthood is about, as if that's to what level we strongly wished to climb when we were elven and deeply wished we were seventeen, and able to date, or twenty-one, and able to go out with dangerous boys.<br /><br />I think adults retreating to YA lit are remembering that <i>Once Upon A Time</i> they wanted something better, and something more, and they're backtracking, perhaps, to see where they lost the trail of their lives, and maybe some of them are reaching back and recapturing a bit of their better selves.<br /><br />The YA/kidlit blogosphere is amazingly ...young. No matter how old we are collectively and individually, I was just sort of gobsmacked at how attractive and flexible and bright the lot of us are. It was spooky.<br /><br />It's the books. Reading them and writing them and thinking of them makes us... different.<br /><br />My two pesos, anyway.tanita✿davishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01671822274852087499noreply@blogger.com