Any Hope for Serious Middle Grade Fiction?

Dear Too Serious?…

Sprinkling in funny bits won’t change the nature of your story. If a playful moment is organic to a scene, then yes, go for it—laughter among tears is great fun. But I advise against trying to make the story what it isn’t. There’s a place for serious, earnest stories for and about middle graders. Consider the quiet success of One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street, with its many awards and starred reviews. Consider the higher profile success of  Wonder and The One and Only Ivan. Consider the two Pam Munoz Ryan books my three 10-year-old boys are reading this week in school and for fun: curriculum staple Esperanza Rising and new bestseller Echo. MG fiction has a broad range. Some stories are super serious, some are super funny, plenty are in between. All should resonate in the hearts of young readers.

Happy writing!
The Editor

4 Comments

    • Thanks so much for sharing your insight. I can’t even imagine the height of your “To Read” pile as a Cybils award panelist!

  1. Excellent answer. For me, Jacqueline Woodson is one of my favorite MG writers. Her humor comes from realistic interaction between characters as they deal with real inner-city situations.

Leave a Reply to The Editor Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

Latest from Teen/Middle Grade Fiction