This is a flashback post from 2006, but it’s about one of the first things I ever wrote for a children’s book class I was taking. About fifty years ago. VERY early Crusie. Warning: It ends in tragedy. Yeah, writing for kids was not a good fit for me.
Jennifer Crusie is the New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author and co-author of twenty-three novels, one book of literary criticism, miscellaneous articles, essays, novellas, and short stories, and the editor of three essay anthologies. She lives in a cottage in Pennsylvania, where she often stares at the ceiling and counts her blessings.
Find out more about Jenny’s published works by visiting JennyCrusie.com
31 Responses
Just the other day I saw a post that bemoaned the lack of 2 types of books:
Books written for kids that read at a higher level than their age, but still need kiddo subject matter (probably not your forte);
Books written for adults who are just learning to read/ learning English, and need kid-level writing with more adult subject matter.
I feel like this would be your jam!
Over the past nine months I’ve bought around 100 books for K-12 readers, some classic but many new, and can attest that there is a very broad spectrum of styles and content. There are excellent nonfiction books and there is amazing fiction – for all ages. Wonderful illustrations and hair-raising charts. There’s a substantial category of hard-core dystopian YA fiction that addresses racism, sexism, bigotry, discrimination, and the patriarchy in really unflinching ways, and nonfiction books for younger readers that do the same.
As with all other reading, finding and acquiring the first book tells the algorithm what you’re interested in, and the algorithm is quite happy to feed you recommendations for similar or related work. I know a lot of people out there post about “oh you can’t find good books about X” but when I see such comments, I always look for the subtext. People who complain about stuff like that often don’t approve of inclusive content.
On topic: Helen is most definitely an embryonic Crusie heroine and I contend there is a place for her in juvenile fiction, just maybe with a solid kick to the face for the bad bunny and a rescue of the downtrodden bunny. 🙂
Hey, in 1977 I had only the year before handed in my doctoral dissertation, final copy typed by me on a *manual typewriter *, indeed the very typewriter that my parents had bought for me, I think in my senior year of HS, with a view toward college. By late in grad school, I used to stuff the thing in my old Boy Scout backpack for the bike ride of a mile or so between my carrel in the library and my dorm, or, later, the apartment I shared with other grad students. I kept using that typewriter at home for at least a couple more years after 1977. By that time I was typing on a computer system at work. I remember explaining to my mother that it was somewhat like the system she could see on Lou Grant. At home, I finally could afford to buy an electric typewriter.
Love it.
thanks for this! A great way to start out my morning!
Happy weekend everyone!
I hadn’t realized how long I have been reading this blog until I saw this. That was twenty years ago and I still remember those rabbits. On a side note, I have to go grocery shopping today, maybe I’ll get some ice cream.
Jane mentioned Ludwig. Season one and two are on U-tube for anybody interested. I enjoyed it.
Just watched the last episode of season 2, which was absolutely back on form, and pulled it together. There’s also going to be a Christmas special, which I look forward to.
Thank you for sharing that–that’s so funny!
Hi everyone!
I mostly wanted to pop in and let you know that I’m alive. Life has been… a lot lately, again. I’ve had lots of trouble keeping up with things but I’ve tried to read the posts and sometimes the comments, just haven’t had any energy to join the discussion. Thanks to everyone who showed concern and asked about me. I got a lot of cat-hairs or whatever in my eye at that exact moment, it was very strange………
With the risk of committing horrible offenses against the universe (please Jenny, forgive me for dropping it in a coment like this), but I REALLY wanted to tell you all before the fact
We’re getting married tomorrow (26th). No, I can’t believe it either. I was gonna mention it SO many times over the past… longest time. I would have invited all of you, if I could.
Sending you all so, so, so much love! I hope I can come back and say a proper hello once I’ve recovered a bit from this weekend’s shenanigans. Not sure when that will happen, but I’ll try my best to check in again soo. Thank you all for thoughts and good vibes sent and love and for being your wonderful you.
Happy to hear from you, and congratulations! May your years together be filled with laughter and love.
Congratulations!!!!!!Although wedding preparations are not fun, I hope you have a Wonderful time celebrating with many happy friends and loved ones.
May this mark the start of a very happy and healthy time for you and Sven!!!!!
My smile is so wide that my face hurts.
Great to hear from you, and wishing you joy!
Congratulations!! so good to hear from you with such good news! Wishing you will have a long and joyous marriage!
Shass, that is amazing news! Huge congratulations, and I hope your day and your future are filled with joy. And stories.
Shass I hope you have a wonderful day as the prelude to a wonderful life together .
Happy wedding day, Shass! Wishing you and Sven a long, happy life together.
Wishing you a long and happy marriage Shass, and that you have a great time on your wedding day too.
Oh, welcome back, Shass. And CONGRATULATIONS.
We will come to the wedding virtually: Send pictures. MANY pictures.
Shass, So good to have you check back in with us. It sounds like things are getting better for you. Congratulations!
Shass, Congratulations and best wishes! It’s good to hear from you again.
Shass, that’s amazing! I hope it was a wonderful and low-stress day for you both.
Mocha Orange Swirl? I want some! Maybe Ben& Jerry’s will hire you as a part time new flavor consultant.
Speaking as a children’s author, this is hilarious. And the voice from your later books comes through so clearly!
Haha! I remember your original post and having an enjoyable analysis/ discussion about it on the old Yahoo group.
In case nobody reads back that far, I just commented under GBTh that this week seems to be bearing out my contention that a new topic on Friday seems to dampen discussion on GBTh. The latter got only 5 comments yesterday, and none at all today so far as of about 9:15 EDT, except for mine commenting on the absence. Total was 86 comments prior to mine, which I think is abnormally low, although I haven’t checked.
Okay, I’ll stop with the flashbacks. Mostly.
Jenny, The problem isn’t the flashbacks. It’s scheduling them on Friday.
It’s the timing. The flashbacks are fun but GBTh needs two days. .
Oh yes, I’d recognize that sassy tone anywhere 😉
OMFG, I wanted to comment so many times while reading Helen! Re typewriters, I started my working life in 1977 on an electric typewriter, and I miss my IBM Selectric to this day. Recently I read an internet story about a typewriter museum here in Albuquerque, so I dropped in. It turned out the museum had closed 20 years ago. It was still a repair shop, and the 83-year-old owner was happy to give a short tour. He had five Selectrics for sale ($500, dammit) which he let me play on! Type quality was terrible compared to modern machines, but the muscle memory experience was marvelous.
And yes, it’s obvious you were never destined to write stories for kids. But you were definitely already the Jenny we adore.