tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post1070568126778135470..comments2024-03-15T09:26:02.796-05:00Comments on PROJECT MAYHEM: Duality of Tone in MG, by Matthew MacNishProject Mayhemhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05154342399869089664noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-6640898162145982382013-08-07T05:05:51.520-05:002013-08-07T05:05:51.520-05:00I completely agree. Thanks, WW!I completely agree. Thanks, WW!Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-64219337277035272332013-08-06T16:59:35.209-05:002013-08-06T16:59:35.209-05:00Love this post - it's so true. Children want a...Love this post - it's so true. Children want and need to know about everything, whether funny, exciting, frightening or sad. Good MG fiction should give them the chance to explore every aspect of humanity within 'safe' boundaries. Some of my favourite books to this day are MG books (and I've read a LOT of books!) and I'm doing my best to create this duality of tone in my books too.Dawnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12645203950206910915noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-86168717856987707842013-08-06T05:19:31.113-05:002013-08-06T05:19:31.113-05:00Agreed. Thanks, James!Agreed. Thanks, James!Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-78940722610970745022013-08-06T05:19:19.101-05:002013-08-06T05:19:19.101-05:00Thanks, Gina!Thanks, Gina!Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-72336109523762481322013-08-05T18:36:37.470-05:002013-08-05T18:36:37.470-05:00Great post! Very profound. I think it's some...Great post! Very profound. I think it's something we all need to keep in mind.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15958657151960409700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-26486256752444940812013-08-05T16:06:14.383-05:002013-08-05T16:06:14.383-05:00This is a really great post! I enjoyed reading thi...This is a really great post! I enjoyed reading this very much.<br /><br />www.modernworld4.blogspot.comGina Gaohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09032273127593718883noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-75498259788146894472013-08-05T09:25:33.915-05:002013-08-05T09:25:33.915-05:00I'm not sure I'd put A Monster Calls in th...I'm not sure I'd put A Monster Calls in this category. It's a brilliant book, to be sure, and there is a message of hope within it, I suppose, but the tone was pretty much all dark, as far as I recall.<br /><br />And The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making, and it's sequel, are on my shelf to be read soon. I actually won them from the editor at MacMillan (Feiwel and Friends), Liz Szalba, on Facebook. Pretty awesome.Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-54868259424348875942013-08-05T09:09:08.054-05:002013-08-05T09:09:08.054-05:00Bryan! My kid loves The Girl Who Circumnavigated F...Bryan! My kid loves The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making - it's wildly literary, but so whimsical too. Susan Kaye Quinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07348197999397141067noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-9231345684512964322013-08-05T08:55:54.914-05:002013-08-05T08:55:54.914-05:00Agreed. There's a few MG books I think of when...Agreed. There's a few MG books I think of when it comes to this.<br /><br />The Prydain Chronicles, by Lloyd Alexander. I love this series, though much like Harry Potter it veers into YA territory as the series goes one. But it's a great story about growing up, about the magic of life and the pitfalls, and the importance of courage in facing not only danger but responsibility.<br /><br />A Monster Calls. I hardly know even how to categorize this book, but it's beautiful, dark, and deep, and yet written with such clarity and simplicity that I think it can move just about anyone.<br /><br />I'm also reading a book to my daughter right now that made me think of this: The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making, by Catherynne M. Valente. It's sort of a post-modern fairytale that charts both the light and dark of the genre.Bryan Russellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09555071335245492790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-39686499727993238562013-08-05T08:55:08.366-05:002013-08-05T08:55:08.366-05:00The Dark Knight is a great example. I remember rea...The Dark Knight is a great example. I remember reading an article about how it got a PG-13 rating, and specifically thinking about that in the one scene where the Joker damages the thug in the same way he was damaged. The actual violence is not put on camera, but it is clearly implied.Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-55550791309486477342013-08-05T08:51:02.916-05:002013-08-05T08:51:02.916-05:00When it comes to fiction, children are just little...When it comes to fiction, children are just little adults. Hell, when I was a kid, murder mysteries were some of my favorite books.<br /><br />CONTENT isn't what matters -- it's how you convey that content. It's got to be exciting, it's got to be interesting, it's got to be sincere and it's got to speak for itself, because children aren't going to be familiar with outside references, "commentaries on the genre", etc. It's got to have a kind of PG filter, but even then, that's a matter of conveyance rather than content. <br /><br />Take the movie Dark Knight -- would anyone argue against the fact that that's got some dark, disturbing content? Yet it's portrayed in a way that pre-teens can watch, not be totally shell-shocked by (as they might if they were watching somebody get his fingers broken in a Scorcese movie), and still get a good superhero movie out of it.<br /><br />Every emotion an adult feels, a child feels. Every kind of fiction an adult can like, a kid can like. Writing for kids is just a matter of writing a tad better, a tad less cynical, and going easy on the bad words and sex scenes.<br /><br />Basically writing for a kid is the same as writing for your grandma.teknoarcanisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16477667089148330907noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-19678358738890745152013-08-05T08:42:26.786-05:002013-08-05T08:42:26.786-05:00Absolutely. And fear/fight or flight is such an im...Absolutely. And fear/fight or flight is such an important aspect of the human condition to explore. Thankfully, we've evolved to the point where we can first encounter it in books, rather than on our first hunt outside the cave.Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-24215365617971995142013-08-05T08:32:03.726-05:002013-08-05T08:32:03.726-05:00Love this post! So nails it.
In my very first mid...Love this post! So nails it.<br /><br />In my very first middle grade book (one of the first three books I had ever written), I was reading it chapter-by-chapter to my three boys (at the time, ages 5-9). I was worried about one chapter where the kids in the story are captured by space pirates and threatened by some really not-nice characters. I was afraid it would be too scary. I was afraid they might not get all the nuances of body language. Boy, did I underestimate my little readers. It was their favorite chapter so far and they were glued to their seats the entire time.<br /><br />It was a very clear, object lesson to me about kids and how they absorb story.Susan Kaye Quinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07348197999397141067noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-424699396224370552013-08-05T05:14:01.569-05:002013-08-05T05:14:01.569-05:00Thanks, Tracy!Thanks, Tracy!Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-46544757812044417272013-08-05T05:13:50.240-05:002013-08-05T05:13:50.240-05:00LOL. I hear that. Thanks, Elizabeth!LOL. I hear that. Thanks, Elizabeth!Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-10803810315162709282013-08-05T05:13:25.000-05:002013-08-05T05:13:25.000-05:00Thanks, Donna.Thanks, Donna.Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-18523822374229567462013-08-05T05:12:56.365-05:002013-08-05T05:12:56.365-05:00So true, Theresa!So true, Theresa!Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-5165586614632512292013-08-05T05:12:34.620-05:002013-08-05T05:12:34.620-05:00I haven't read that one. I'll have to chec...I haven't read that one. I'll have to check it out. Thanks, Alexia!Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-61328024955713552072013-08-05T05:11:57.341-05:002013-08-05T05:11:57.341-05:00It most certainly is.It most certainly is.Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-86553980656876255542013-08-05T05:11:13.132-05:002013-08-05T05:11:13.132-05:00Well said. Thanks, Suzanne.Well said. Thanks, Suzanne.Matthew MacNishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03264738483763244969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-78048249664605494422013-08-04T22:35:24.515-05:002013-08-04T22:35:24.515-05:00So true, Matt. Great post! So true, Matt. Great post! Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05514067724256745623noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-19445165613845247952013-08-04T15:32:50.484-05:002013-08-04T15:32:50.484-05:00I have JK in my mind a lot at the moment. I want t...I have JK in my mind a lot at the moment. I want to know how she delivers that perfect blend of humor and sinister. Actually I want to know NOW because without it my latest project is about to spiral out of control :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11737889720275599055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-34535026419080466962013-08-04T15:31:27.057-05:002013-08-04T15:31:27.057-05:00I have JK in my mind a lot at the moment. I want t...I have JK in my mind a lot at the moment. I want to know how she delivers that perfect blend of humor and sinister. Actually I want to know NOW because without it my latest project is about to spiral out of control :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11737889720275599055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-62770464961126570762013-08-03T15:57:37.708-05:002013-08-03T15:57:37.708-05:00I don't read MG much, but I do understand the ...I don't read MG much, but I do understand the concept. I try to write it into my adult novels too. The world isn't just light or dark, but a bit of wonder and humor is genuine for life. My kids surprise me sometimes with the gems of wisdom they inject in their conversations, all mixed with their unique sense of humor. You'd think they never take anything seriously, but they are learning and listening. It eventually shows in their manners and attitudes.<br /><br />Excellent post Matt.<br /><br />......dholedolorahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08715849844092553699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2173408054965817352.post-87759874014966449652013-08-02T20:54:03.773-05:002013-08-02T20:54:03.773-05:00Honestly, the best middle grade books have duality...Honestly, the best middle grade books have duality of tone. Even Charlotte's Web. Isn't that death hanging over Wilbur early on in the story? Yes, I agree about Gregor the Overlander. Collins tackles war, its pointlessness, and repercussions better than in The Hunger Games, I think. Theresa Milsteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03477761307315565259noreply@blogger.com