What is Kiddy?

Started by Eggie, Sat 13/09/2003 15:19:10

Previous topic - Next topic

Eggie

I've been wondering about this...
How do you tell the difference between a story aimed at kids and somthing aimed at adults?

I mean things aimed at kids don't generally have explisicit sex or violence...but neither do a bunch of things aimed at adults...

Is it the weight of the story?
No...there's a bunch of kids stuff with horribly dark and claustrophobic stories, light, fluffy adult things and vice versa..

Could it just be the style it's told in?
This, I'm not sure about...there are so many different styles of writing stories it's pretty much impossible to catergorise them into just two.

Is it what the reader relates to?
No...there's adult stories starring kids as main characters and (a few) kids stories starring adults as the main characters.

So...basically. I don't know, surely there must BE a difference...

Sylpher

I would say it is the level of maturity and experience required to fully comprehend the overall plot and emotions. It isn't really how old a person is..Take a subject like death. Some people understand, somewhat, and experience death at a very young age. Some don't really lose someone close to them until they are 20, 30...never?

So a story about death will be understood by the person who has experinced it much more then the later. Emotions are a big contributor..Love, Hate, Confusion, Depression, Twiterpation, Diarrhea, Disease...

Some mushy love story might just be annoying to those who haven't experienced an undying love for a person just the same vice versa a story about a depressed person full of hate just might not click well with a happy-go-lucky0nothing-bothers-me type of person.

Not only emotions though concepts also matter. Concepts in the idea that math is a concept. This would be a boring plot I know but try to work with me on my idea...If their was a story about addition. Someone who didn't know how to add would think it was pretty confusing, boring, stupid or might even like it...be curious..even if they don't understand it.

Something aimed at kids would be a story that figures the person has little or no experience in almost anything and that the story will provide an introduction, a guide, or might not even include it at all...

Many people at first didn't like the fact JK Rowling had death in harry potter. Why though? Death is a part of life...Their is no reason to not have death in a kids book just not in the form of massive killing spree hate filled suicide bomber kind of death.

An 'adult' book doesn't assume you don't know anything. The author writes what they want about how detailed and confusing and mature, or immature, as they feel like.

Oh goodie I have rambled on again.

Archangel (aka SoupDragon)

The definition between children's and adult's books has become very blurred. It seems to me also that most of the best authors (and by best I refer to the writing style and quality of language) are choosing to write for children as opposed to adults. Take Tom Clancy as an example. Now his books are definitely adult, but his english is, to be frank, pretty crap, and his characters are often shallow and boring. On the other end of the scale, one of my favourite authors is a man called David Almond. He writes children's fiction and afaik has three books published - Skellig, Kit's Wilderness and Heaven Eyes. Although they are most definitely children's books, due mainly to the lack of gore, the concentration on children and childhood issues and the slightly fairy tale fantasy elements, the emotional concepts they deal with are often complex and dark. Kit's Wilderness especially deals with suicide cults, evil, death, and loss; but not in a corny teenage trying-to-teach-kids-something way, but in a quite unique and thought provoking way.

Timosity

#3
This is an interesting topic and I'm sure there has been plenty of studies done on it. I'm not sure if what I'll add is relevant to what answers you want but,

There is a definate skill in writing for kids and adults within the same story line, and at the same time, entertaining both. The Simpsons is the best example I can think of.

Where the story can be very adult , but it is constucted in a way that is not understood (or obvious) to kids, but gives enough to both sides of the equation, to remain entertaining to both.

Maybe the reality is just that it's hard to tell where the line is where certain kids will begin to get the double meanings.

What is Kiddy??????

it is an undeterminable age between kids and tweens

Ciro Durán

Hey, remember sometimes there are stories which are aimed at both targets, take Spirited Away, for example, it was marketed as a movie for kids, but you take a look at it (I'm 20, physically :)) and you notice it has a much deeper plot that your average kid movie.

Moresco

I think it works like this:

Kids stuff - No violence, no sex, no words that are not acceptable for children. Very easy to understand(smaller words, simple vocab).

Teen stuff - Some violence, very little sex(unless in a positive way to teach something), yadda yadda.

Adults - Everything.

So you just work backwards.  Kids stuff is kids stuff. Adults can read it too, but if it's a level that works for children, you have to assume it was written so that at least children would be able to read it.  Why make a simple book for adults about Jerry the Toybox Man?? Doesn't make sense for adults to read that. :)
::: Mastodon :::

Eggie

Why wouldn't an adult want to read a simple story about Jerry the toybox man.
What if Jerry the Toybox Man (or, JTTM as we shall now call it) had subtle references to things only adults would get.

One of my favourite shows is The Powerpuff Girls. Most certainly somthing for kids BUT there's a great deal of stuff in that show that kids might not find funny or interesting yet this information is NOT encrypted into somthing kids can't understand.
So...adults and kids can both watch it without feeling guilty that they're looking at somthing not intended for them. The kids don't get exposed to mind-destroying ault-stuff and the adults don't feel that they are watching a dumbed-down show.

Basically, what i'm saying is...Just because kids can understand it doesn't mean it's aimed at kids and just because adults are reading/watching somthing intelligence it doesn't mean it's exclusively reserved for them.

Um...this didn't really add much to the topic that hadn't already been said I guess...

Does it disturb you how similar JTTM looks like the logo for 'Johnny the Homocidal Maniac'. There, I've found a pop-culture reference that adults can pick up on already in your Jerry creation!

SMF spam blocked by CleanTalk