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Does Age Matter?
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Just my opinion, but I wouldn't broadcast my age unless there is some reason you think marketing yourself as older will help you sell books. I belong to the "WriterUnboxed" Facebook page. That is a good place to pose questions like this because many of it's members are published or work in the field. It is a closed group, you have to ask to join. Here is their blog. Maybe you can find something there. http://writerunboxed.com/
Your never too young or old. But there's really no reason to broadcast your age, either.
Chronology is merely a technical method of measurement.Mental capacity, attitude, confidence, knowledge, skill-set, capability and ability are the factors that determine a person's achievement limitations.
My personal life experiences have occasionally brought me into contact with 16 year-old adults and 60 year-old adolescents - humble genuises and incompetent braggarts.
In other words, Ken; go for it!
One of my favorite quotes:
"The past may dictate who we are, but we get to determine what we become." (Steven Spielberg)
Young, old, middle-aged, I don't think it matters. For every young success story (S.E. Hinton was only 17 and Christopher Paolini was only 15) there is someone who was first published much older. Laura Ingalls Wilder was in her 60's and Richard Adams was in his 50's.
A good story is a good story no matter how old you are.
Hi, Ken. I hope this discussion is still open (I notice no one's posted for a few weeks). I just joined Goodreads today. Since I'm your age, your post immediately caught my attention! Another boomer writer! All right! ANYWAY -- my take on whether age matters, is that it's a positive more than a negative. Because we've been children, teens, young adults, middle-aged adults and seniors, we ought to be able to create believable characters of any age. And we've had more life experiences than younger people. And let's not forget the benefit of having Uncle Sam be our patron! Social Security frees a person up to spend more hours writing. A good thing, too, since we have fewer years now in which to get it done! :-)My husband (who at nearly 78 still skis and plays racquetball) is fond of saying, "Keep riding the wave until it hits the shore!" Good attitude for writers, too.
Good comment, Laurel. Actually, I precede the boomers by a couple of months, but I was part of the wave anyway. I'm not bothered by my writing skill at my age, because I think you're right; we can write good characters of all ages (and I have a close friend who's 95, so I'm familiar with the previous gen, too). I was wondering more about how others accepted new work from little-known older writers.
It's funny that one of the characters in the book I'm currently working on is a teenage boy, and when I'm writing that character, and get into it, I can remember the muddled thought processes I had at that age, the way of thinking, the attitude, and the hormones. It all comes back as if it were yesterday. Culture also plays a part, and if I haven't lived the culture I'm writing about, most likely I've read about it--and in my case, with Science Fiction, I can make it up.
It's funny that one of the characters in the book I'm currently working on is a teenage boy, and when I'm writing that character, and get into it, I can remember the muddled thought processes I had at that age, the way of thinking, the attitude, and the hormones. It all comes back as if it were yesterday. Culture also plays a part, and if I haven't lived the culture I'm writing about, most likely I've read about it--and in my case, with Science Fiction, I can make it up.
I think (hope) that age isn't an issue. When you look for a good book to read, do you pay any attention to the age of the writer? I don't. I don't know anyone who does. I suppose it's possible that a publisher or agent might be less likely to take a chance on an older writer, but I can't think it would make one iota of difference with independently published books. That's the only route I'm interested in. I decided I don't have the time (or the temperament) to go through the years of rejections that most successful traditionally published authors had to endure. And the indie route looks like it will be a lot more fun!
I've never bothered being specific about my age, but that's mostly because as a 30-something white male writer living in London, I'm about as generic an author as you could possibly hope to imagine.I'd let the author photo do the talking and not worry too much about broadcasting your age.
Ken wrote: "Good comment, Laurel. Actually, I precede the boomers by a couple of months, but I was part of the wave anyway. I'm not bothered by my writing skill at my age, because I think you're right; we ca..."I agree. I have no idea how old authors are when I read a book. I do look writers up when reading for the lit mag if I suspect I am reading a submission by a very young author who thinks spell-check and grammar rules are a waste of time. :)
While we're on the subject of age, what about novels with primarily older characters? I don't find many mysteries, for example, with primarily older characters. Some years ago I read a comment by an editor or agent (wish I could remember the name) who said he thought there was going to be a growing market for books starring older characters simply because the population was aging. While there are some mysteries starring older females, most of the ones I find are along the lines of Miss Marple or Jessica Fletcher. Nothing wrong with those, of course, but in real life, senior citizens are having sex, committing murder, selling drugs, going to prison, starting new relationships, even publishing books for the first time. :-) In other words, they're doing a lot of the same things younger people are doing. The question is, do people want to read about it in fiction?
Laurel wrote: "While we're on the subject of age, what about novels with primarily older characters? I don't find many mysteries, for example, with primarily older characters. Some years ago I read a comment by a..."
The main character in my current novel is over a 100 years old when the story starts. Of course, in Science Fiction there's this rejuvenation deal...
The main character in my current novel is over a 100 years old when the story starts. Of course, in Science Fiction there's this rejuvenation deal...
Emphasize your experience rather than your age. Saying I spent 21 years in the CIA helps me sell my books. Saying I'm a 56-year-old woman definitely would not.
I don't think age matters so go ahead and enjoy yourself.
Ken wrote: "(I hope I'm posting this correctly)I posted this question on another website, and it got a lot of response and over 600 views, so it might be a relevant question to a lot of people.
About 20 years..." Hi Ken. You made me smile, that's because I'm older than you, and have three books on Amazon. Sometimes I think we need to grow older in order to have something of significance to say. I believe it's still true that with age comes wisdom. Also, with such high-tech advantages we have today I think it helps to compensate for our aging. I wrote a poem titled "Old People," which I might post.
I'd say age is irrelevant as far as writing, it is the book which matters.
Hi. New to Goodreads and this discussion group. Like the idea of framing our age as experience (#15 Susan). I also think with improving health care and the boomers attention and access to healthy living strategies, age is being redefined. Also, believe as we age, we hopefully see things as gray and not either/or. Interesting discussion group. Looking forward to learning much. Thank you.
I have my sixth book coming out this Sept 16th "Behind the Gates of Gomorrah, a Year with the Criminally Insane," and I can say without question it is by far the best written of my books. My craft has only gotten better with age. Either that or I am an extremely slow learner. But at age 64 I will be doing an international book tour, beginning with The Today Show on Sept 16th. So here's a tip I learned this year (from a blog post by Stephen King) and it helped a lot: Get rid of all your adverbs. Works for me. Keep learning. Keep writing...
Hi Laurel. Really good point about demographics. I also think Alexandria's and Susan's comment about a reader's sense of a writer is solid, too. I don't think I've ever not read or read a particular book because of an author's age. Universal themes and timeless social issues with a twist are probably more important. Also presenting us with an expertise tied to our story is probably key, too. Sure are a lot of factors contributing to a writer's success, aren't there?
I published my first book at the humble little age of 12. It was the best and worst decision of my life (I'm near 15 now), and not because I was 12, but because I had little experience in writing (I'd only been writing for about 4 years at the time, and I had yet to discover some of my greatest mentors such as Stephen King) and I didn't know the consequences that would have come with me not doing the proper work to make the book good; now, anyone who reads it either a) dosen't get beyond the first 100 pages or b) finishes it and says 'meh' plus it's been described as a great book for "Boys who like a good action packed thriller," per the fact it was written b a boy who had been in contact with mostly action movies and the books of Rick Riordan and to some extent was tryi to recreate both of them. At the time, I think that it would have been a bad idea to mention my age, and even then, I think it may have been obvious. But even so, I don't think age really matters when writing, it's the words that count. I'm sure someone has already mentioned him, but Cormac McCarthy is friggin' 81 (and has a little boy too!) and he's still writing some excellent fiction that's won him the Pulitzer and eventually, and possibly the Nobel Prize for Literature; his books adapted into award winning films and his books praised endlessly by this reviewer and that; and he rarely does interviews, yet the mention of his name could well cause a frenzy. Sometimes, your words will speak a lot louder than your stature: I think that, when I wrote my first book, that there was some kind of misconception between writing and the person behind it: "Aw shoot, I'm only a little squirt my writing ain't never gonna be no better than trash; I'll never be good as Stephen K(a)ing, not ever-ever-ever! Not until I get old as em' at least," but that's not true: had I known a little more about writing at the time, and had I refined my skill a bit more, maybe the book would have come out better; in recent times, big things ahev changed, I'd say my writing style and my literary taste has grown tremendously and I've written some pretty good works, and I've been able to see my growth. But, the point is, as I said before, the words will speak louder than your stature.
Too often, the chronological age of a person is referenced to determine maturity; an ill-advised and inaccurate methodology. There are 16 year-old adults and 60 year-old children.Some writers, regardless of age, refuse to expend the time and energy required to learn and develop the technical writing and narration skills needed to create a literary work worthy of the title.
As with any product, a book can be only as good as the knowledge, skills, and work ethic of its creator. The age of the author has very little bearing on the quality of his/her work.
It's really all about the book. Don't race, just write. Publishers may be concerned about age, because they might be worried about how many books they can get out of you. And they might be concerned about how to market you. But as an indie, you don't have that issue. You make your own world. If you're fretting about a photo not looking "hip" find a way to animate it. This is a concern of all of us "seasoned" writers. But as we all know, writing and learning new writing tools keeps the mind sharp. So have fun.
Hi Charles. Well I'm working on the second draft of my novel and having a tough time and contemplating issues referenced in your email. Thank you for your comments. Every once and awhile, we all need a bit of encouragement to boost our spirits. I love writing and my slow pace frustrates me but it is part of the process. I wish you well. Thanks.Marianne Perry
Author of The Inheritance
Writing inspired by genealogical research to solve family mysteries.
http://www.marianneperry.ca
It's all about the storytelling. If it grabs me, it grabs me. If it doesn't, it doesn't. I couldn't care less how old the author is! Good luck and keep writing!
Much appreciated, Angela. May I ask what stories have grabbed your attention?
Yesterday on another thread, I mentioned that I think about Fingersmith (the story, characters, etc) frequently, despite the fact that it has been awhile since I read it. I have no ideas how old the author is.
I have no idea how old any of the authors I love are. I could probably ballpark it if I tried, but it has never been important.
As a matter of fact, it doesn't seem to. A year after getting back into writing, I just released a new novel and it's doing very well.
Joining in a bit late here! Sorry.A poster near the beginning, Laurel perhaps, mentioned that older people have the experience of having lived through different ages so I don't think you need to worry. I'm more inclined to be wary of a young writer than an old one. This is one occupation where age is probably helpful.
I think it's not a good idea as a writer to have a pic that was taken 20 years ago or so (mine's coming up for four years old) and that is as much as I'm prepared to say - my actual age is irrelevant, you can see I'm old enough to have lived!
I posted this question on another website, and it got a lot of response and over 600 views, so it might be a relevant question to a lot of people.
About 20 years ago, after being in the game for 18 years, I stopped writing. I had published some stories in a few limited-circulation magazines, but getting published was still an uphill battle, and I was burned out from trying. Then, last year, I bought a Kindle. I saw all those books on display, and saw how easy getting published was nowadays, and I thought, "I can do that." So now I have a novel and two short-story collections listed, and I'm working on another novel. Trouble is, I'm old. I'm retired, on Social Security and Medicare, and in less than two years I'll hit the big (and I mean big) seven oh. I'm not yet senile (but what senile person knows he's senile?), and after years of composing on a typewriter in the "old days," I've discovered that my writing method has changed with the advent of computers. However, I still seem to write as well as ever, probably better, and I've become a much, much better editor of my own work, which is the key to writing well. I don't expect to start any long, involved series, but I'm healthy and I might write a sequel or two. My question is: Can you be too old to be accepted as a "new" writer? Should you reveal your age at all?--or is that a disadvantage in selling your work these days? Would love opinions.