Boys Don't Read
I've been working on a new book called "Paradigm." It's a departure for me in that it's YA and is from a boy's POV. I sent it to a couple of agents (changing agents is a pain) and received a response from one today.
She had asked for the first 10 pages, which I sent a little over a month ago. She very politely declined because, "...it’s a hard sell as publishers get hooked on the ‘boys stop reading at 12.'"
Now, I know that it is true that boys tend to lose interest in reading at around that age, but is that any reason to give up on them entirely? My nephew is twelve and loves to read, but it's really difficult to find anything for him when we go to the book store. Parents of boys have told me that they have the same problems. It's one of the reasons I wrote "Paradigm" in the first place.
Has anyone else noticed that there isn't much for older boys to read? If not, what titles/authors do you think really do succeed in keeping the love of reading alive?
She had asked for the first 10 pages, which I sent a little over a month ago. She very politely declined because, "...it’s a hard sell as publishers get hooked on the ‘boys stop reading at 12.'"
Now, I know that it is true that boys tend to lose interest in reading at around that age, but is that any reason to give up on them entirely? My nephew is twelve and loves to read, but it's really difficult to find anything for him when we go to the book store. Parents of boys have told me that they have the same problems. It's one of the reasons I wrote "Paradigm" in the first place.
Has anyone else noticed that there isn't much for older boys to read? If not, what titles/authors do you think really do succeed in keeping the love of reading alive?
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Alexandria wrote: "I have two younger cousins. Jake is 18 and his younger brother Matt is 16. Now, Matt doesn't read a lot, (he's more of a hardcore gamer) but he'd read a book if you gave him something interesting a..."Exactly! It's just a matter of identifying what they want to read, not discounting them entirely just because they won't buy into the same things as everyone else. I love how you're taking the time to identify what your cousins would like to read, rather than what some people might think they should read.
The more adventure the better for me, too! ;)
I've known many boys who have enjoyed reading all through their teen years and into adulthood. The problem most of them complain of is finding well-written books with plot-lines that appeal to them. If publishers aren't willing to publish books for this age group they certainly won't continue to read. And just because a book was written from a boy's POV never kept me or other girls I knew from reading them as long as they were interesting.I think some of the authors and series that they enjoyed have been Christopher Paolini, Tolkein, Orson Scott Card, David Eddings, Dragonriders of Pern some of the Star Wars series, and many more that I can't recall at the moment. They also enjoyed the Abhorsen Trilogy which was mentioned above. I think a lot of boys do tend to prefer a lot more focus on action/adventure with a faster paced plot.
Boys at that age mostly want fantasy or adventure. It depends on the boy I guess. lol They don't really care about romance. The Abhorsen Trilogy by Garth Nix is good as is the Temeraire series by Naomi Novik. Their both a set of books I want to get both of my cousins started on. The Spook's Apprentice by Joseph Delaney is from a boy's POV and is spooky and fun as well as not being heavy on the romance part. The more adventure the better for boys IMO.