4.14.2014

Keeping Up With the Racing Rules

"Instant gratification is not soon enough"
- Meryl Streep
 
I was reading an article about how some boat makers are researching ways to replace the baby-boomers who are aging out of the pastime of sailing, and in the course of their research once such company came across the following information:  If a child between the ages of ten and fifteen cannot learn a game in less than fifteen minutes, they lose interest in it. 

Wow. 

have the racing rules changed?
I have known for a long while that we've become a society accustomed to instant gratification and I have worried for a long while that we're all, as a result, becoming far too impatient. I worry about this most within the scope of the work I do as an editor and publishing consultant, wherein I'm advising authors and illustrators to take their time and slow down to truly learn and hone their craft before they start submitting, querying, and publishing. (My friend, agent Tracey Adams recently wrote a great piece on this very subject, which is worth slowing down to read: http://pubsmartcon.com/dont-rush-your-writing-with-literary-agent-tracey-adams/

So now here's this piece of information about children who have no patience for taking time to learn a new game--and we can easily make the leap to assume that if they won't spend more than fifteen minutes learning a new game, they'll certainly not be willing to spend more than fifteen minutes learning something that seems more challenging, complicated, or complex than a game. So what's going to happen to these kids as they get older? Will they become so accustomed to the quick fix, the instant answer, and the make-it-easy-for-me-or-don't-make-it-at-all that they won't have the basic skill set of thinking, evaluating, exploration, and experimentation to bring into adulthood? And what will become of nurturing relationships, the subtleties of negotiation, the complexities of decision-making? The people will certainly be able to move quickly through our fast-paced world, but at what cost? I worry.

Here's what I know: We need to recognize that these same kids we're talking about are our readers. So is it any wonder we keep hearing "If the first line of the book doesn't grab the reader, they won't read it," or "If the story doesn't start right in the action, kids won't be interested" or "Use fewer words; parents and kids don't want to read so much text"? Here's what I also know: Just as there are lots of different kinds of adults out there, many of whom are taking their time to learn, finesse, and refine their craft, there are lots of different kinds of kids out there, many of whom are willing to take more time to experience a story, develop a relationship, weigh options and make good choices, and so on. So it's these kids for whom we need to write stories, but it's also the kids who want the instant gratification for whom we need to write stories as well. Which means there's still a need for as wide a variety of stories as we can possibly produce. And what I believe this means, too, is that we still need to take time to produce the best quality stories we can, even if they're going to be gobbled up and digested in under the proverbial (or literal!) fifteen minutes!

It's critical as writers and illustrators working today to understand what kids are doing and how they're doing it--because our stories need to reach kids where they are. We can't wish away the fact kids are growing up fast, doing everything fast, wanting everything fast, and getting everything fast. The leaps and bounds we've made in technology are supporting, enhancing, and encouraging this behavior among kids and among us adults as well, so it is what it is. Let's face it, kids have always grown up fast--certainly a lot faster than the previous generation wished they would--so we're not necessarily dealing with something brand new here, and maybe my worries about "kids today" are similar to the worries my grandparents or parents had. I can't say. I do find it helpful to be reminded now and again, though, how kids are behaving in today's world so I can be a more mindful children's book editor and guide to authors and illustrators creating books for young readers. Even if that means every now and again I get caught by surprise and just have to say "Wow."

(c) emma d dryden, drydenbks LLC

31 comments:

  1. I love the "need to reach kids where they are."
    Great article!

    Cheers

    Craig

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  2. Yes! Great post. Encouraging to read there's still room for "quiet" stories.

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    1. There's a way for quiet stories to absolutely roar with thunder - and there are readers out there who need these stories more than ever.

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  3. Such a thoughtful post. I worry about the same things. And I am a lover of those quiet books - both as a reader and a writer. I hope there will always be a place for them. Kids need time to slow down.

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  4. Can you provide some examples of very recently published stories that roar quietly?

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    1. Look at Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo (or any other of Kate's work); Kira-Kira or Cynthia Kadohata's other work; Karen Hesse's Out the Dust; Katherine Applegate's The One and Only Ivan; Clare Vanderpool's Moon Over Manifest -- indeed, most of the Newbery winning titles can often be categorized as "quiet" books and yet they pack powerful emotional punches and resonate loudly with readers on different levels.

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    2. Awesome, thank you! Still putting your 'voice" worksheet to work--for non-fiction. The interview is the most applicable in this case.

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    3. Great! I'm so glad the voice worksheet is helpful. It's absolutely a tool as useful for nonfiction as it would be for fiction. Enjoy the surprises that result!

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  5. Thanks for the post.
    Does the 15 minute rule apply to video games?
    Sincerely,
    All Thumbs

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  6. Thanks for this post. I find myself being incredibly impatient too--except when I sit in front of my computer and labor over word choice. Sentences. Dialogue. Maybe if there;s hope for me then there's hope for kids too! And yes, I know many kids who aren't instant gratification geeks. Off to read Tracey's post. And thanks for the list above.

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  7. Sangeeta4/14/2014

    Wonderful reminder for all of us to slow down! Also enjoyed your list of "quiet" books. The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate and Where the Mountain Meets the Moon might be added to this list. Action-packed books are great sometimes, but these quiet books are often more powerful.

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    1. We could add more and more titles to this list, absolutely! Thanks, Sangeeta!

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  8. It occurs to me that the people who tell us kids have no attention span and need to be grabbed fast are the same ones telling us that brown people on covers don't sell books, that POC or the disabled or the queer are amply represented (and don't have areas of overlap; that a story with a protagonist who is a black transwoman in a wheelchair would be prima facie absurd) the important demographic is able cishet white males, that nobody wants to read about this, that, or the other subject matter that five minutes on Tumblr, Facebook, or any random fanfic site would find fueling reams of discussion and passionately engaged imaginations.

    These are the forces to be overcome, not the gurus to follow. The kinds of stories we need are unlimited. The kinds we can maneuver from our heads to the audience are limited by the state of the market in combination with our capacity to finesse the gatekeepers and their self-fulfilling prophecies.

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    1. Great points, Peni! Thanks for your comments.

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  9. Those first 15 min, heck 15 seconds, with a book have to grab the reader....be it an emotional connection to the character, to the setting, the concept, the situation, etc. It needs to be an emotional connection that makes the reader need to turn the page and find out what is going to happen next. This does not mean a gun firing or a fight between 2 lovers but an author-created essence that engulfs and enmeshes the reader into a world they do not want to leave.

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  10. wow is right, Thanks Emma, I ad to tweet this! yay, Kit

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  11. I love that you included "Out of the Dust" in your list. And I maintain that books in verse (I happen to be partial to them!) seem custom-made for those readers who want to zip through to that instant gratification. Great post, Emma.

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    1. What I love about verse novels is that while they can indeed be read quickly, they also pack emotional punches and the white spaces around the verse give readers what they need to breathe and pause - so the reading of poetry can be a fast experience as well as a more thoughtful, contemplative experience at the same time. Speaking of white space: http://emmaddryden.blogspot.com/2010/02/finding-our-white-space.html

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  12. I recently had a long conversation w/ a group of teachers about the new requirements that kids engage their reading in much more depth. The teachers found that many of the popular fast-paced books just don't stand up to the kind of analysis kids are being asked to do in school. So they are looking, not so much for the quiet book, but the one with rich language and well thought out character interactions and a powerful setting and a plot worthy of discussion. Action is a plus but it's no substitute for substance.

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    1. Terrific to know these conversations are going on. Wonderful news for books as well as for young readers. Thanks, Rosanne.

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  13. Let's hear it for stories that hook, then quiet us down. These stories provide refuge from a busy, fast-paced world. Even better if the protagonist is struggling to master something, like chess. Thanks for your thoughtful post, Emma!

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    1. Thanks, Sarah!Protagonists are ALWAYS struggling to master something. That's a key reason for any of us to read books at all - to witness the main character's journey to find what they want, achieve what they need, and master what they need to master, be in something tangible or emotional and internal.

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    2. And why we relate to and therefore learn from the best of them!

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  14. I love quiet books too. My husband and I are shopping a 'quiet one' right now. You are so right, and so quick to the point here, Emma. I sighed happily reading, "Here's what I also know: Just as there are lots of different kinds of adults out there, many of whom are taking their time to learn, finesse, and refine their craft, there are lots of different kinds of kids out there, many of whom are willing to take more time ..." Thank you!

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  15. This is a great article, Emma. It's something we need to be cognizant of but not allow it to derail us (or depress us) as writers and artists.

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