tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2616410914770011438.post8218247206836713142..comments2024-03-14T02:43:36.453-07:00Comments on Almost True: Written in the StarsKeren Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13121027210783177857noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2616410914770011438.post-61508825722370838732010-10-07T12:03:43.907-07:002010-10-07T12:03:43.907-07:00I know,I always wanted to be just like her...of co...I know,I always wanted to be just like her...of course I was nothing like her at all..Keren Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13121027210783177857noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2616410914770011438.post-88053694703520578062010-10-07T11:31:02.027-07:002010-10-07T11:31:02.027-07:00Keren, I LOVE Antonia Forest's books, and Mira...Keren, I LOVE Antonia Forest's books, and Miranda is a brilliant character - spiky, funny, clever, independent.Katherine Langrishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12529700103932422873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2616410914770011438.post-69656003198926016762010-10-04T03:22:04.507-07:002010-10-04T03:22:04.507-07:00I think fear of getting it wrong puts people off s...I think fear of getting it wrong puts people off straying outside their cultural comfort zone. I'd be wary of writing in detail about a second-generation immigrant, for example, for fear I'd make a total bodge of their home life. But I definitely try to make sure that my characters aren't all whitewashed. Not that it's been an issue that often for the stuff I've got in print so far - Rupert Bear is bright yellow and Thomas the Tank Engine is blue, so beat that for diversity(!)Go away googlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00920753582190379988noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2616410914770011438.post-4700915823070591912010-10-03T13:59:21.554-07:002010-10-03T13:59:21.554-07:00I can't recall many books about little Scottis...I can't recall many books about little Scottish redheads, so I'm all for diversity in childrens' fiction.Madame DeFargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08172239340844485940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2616410914770011438.post-83552846923452745672010-10-01T08:05:20.173-07:002010-10-01T08:05:20.173-07:00I think it's important to write about those wh...I think it's important to write about those white middle class kids - after all, by reading about other peoples' lives we understand them better, and our lives get nearer. I certainly gained a lot from reading about people who went to boarding school, learned Latin and went hunting - all helpful when I met people like that. <br />But I also think it's perfectly possibly to write about a diverse community without being part of it - and I think it's important to reflect our diverse world, even if it's quite subtly done. In When I Was Joe, the most senior policeman is black, in Almost True, the judge is a woman. No special reason why they should be, no special reason why not.Keren Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13121027210783177857noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2616410914770011438.post-36361872624630461862010-10-01T06:33:42.227-07:002010-10-01T06:33:42.227-07:00Wow, I had heard about this song. Very cool!
And ...Wow, I had heard about this song. Very cool!<br /><br />And a very honest, and thought-provoking comment, Nick. I think as writers we can only write what we know and experience. And we should definitely experience as wide a range of things as possible. But we also have to be true to ourselves.Anne M Leonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04547591113801578453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2616410914770011438.post-35712465407823082642010-10-01T05:32:44.933-07:002010-10-01T05:32:44.933-07:00Your comment about not having transformed things i...Your comment about not having transformed things is interesting - I might argue that you're an excellent role model for Jewish teenagers, even if you have yet to write specifically for them.<br /><br />I often feel a disconnect between the sort of books I think should be written and the ones that I actually do. I think part of that may be because those "important" books are much harder to get published - you only have to look at all the controversy over <i>Speak</i> at the moment to see that.<br /><br />The other part of that is cultural experience - I feel very white and very impoverished in terms of meaningful cross-cultural contact. And many of the writers I meet are from a similar ethnic and cultural background. Should I be trying to fix that in my own work? Or should I just be content to share the experience of all the white middle class children reading books? Like you, it's something I worry about without being quite sure how to resolve it.Nick Crosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02571077124165351007noreply@blogger.com