According to acclaimed British novelist Martin Amis, he would only ever write a children’s book if he suffered brain damage. Okay. Well, the actual quote, delivered to Sebastian Faulks on the BBC, was “If I had a serious brain injury I might well write a children’s book, but otherwise the idea of being conscious of who you’re directing the story to in anathema to me, because, in my view, fiction is freedom and any restraints on that are intolerable… I would never write about someone that forced me to write at a lower register than what I can write.” Oh, come on, Martin Amis.
Ignoring that the whole basis of your argument is that you don’t even know who you’re writing for – and therefore could very well be inadvertently writing for children, or, you know, cattle – don’t you think you sound a little silly? Just say you’re not a children’s book writer. Say it doesn’t interest you as a form, or, heaven forbid, say you don’t think you’d be good at it. You don’t have to cover up your pretension with more pretension. Everyone already knows you’re good at this.
The Guardian spoke to Jane Stemp, a children’s author with cerebral palsy, who said, “I have brain damage … So Amis couldn’t have insulted me harder if he’d sat down and thought about it for a year. Superglueing him to a wheelchair and piping children’s fiction into his auditory canal suddenly seems like a good idea.” We feel a new torture trend coming on, and Amis, who is generally known and accepted to be a bit of a bad boy with a penchant for speaking his mind, seems like the best person to try it out on. If only to hear what he’ll say.
Comments (9)
It always pains me when supposedly smart writers make ridiculous comments. I suppose people just spontaneously start reading when they’re adults now? Just who does Mr. Amis think created his readership? Children’s writers, that’s who. They write great books children love to read, instilling a love of reading in general. Those kids grow up to be adults who just may pick up something by Martin Amis.
[...] Martin Amis Would Need Brain Damage to Write Children’s Books – Flavorwire [...]
[...] Martin Amis Would Need Brain Damage to Write Children’s Books – Flavorwire [...]
This is insulting and silly.
[...] Martin Amis Would Need Brain Damage to Write Children’s BooksFlavorwireWell, the actual quote, delivered to Sebastian Faulks on the BBC, was “If I had a serious brain injury I might well write a children’s book, but otherwise …Martin Amis: Only brain injury could make me write for children The Guardianall 7 news articles » [...]
There’s a good thought every writer must know: the good books for children are those who could be read by adults too… Being a writer who writes for kids too, I couldn’t refrain from posting this, according to my opinion the best quotes one could find in children’s books. So, there’s nothing insane in that to write books for children, remember some of the good thoughts we could find in popular children’s books: It’s our choices, far more than our abilities, that show us who we really are. J.K. Rowling – Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets.
One could fight money only with money. my Tale Of The Rock Pieces.
To die will be an awfully big adventure. Peter Pan.
Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering… master Yoda, The Phantom Menace.
I guess everyone would agree with that? Even Martin Amis?
[...] each other like they used to. Sure, Martin Amis raised some eyebrows when he claimed he would need brain damage to write children’s books, and recent Pulitzer Prize winner Jennifer Egan made waves when she [...]
Oh, lay off him.
I read his statement as an artist explaining that he knows himself and his creative habits and preferences well enough to be able to say with confidence that it would take something quite dramatic and significant to make him change his ways. Something like say, a head injury that would result in altered personality or behavior. I didn’t read it as him saying that all kid’s book authors are brain damaged, and I think it’s absurd to presume that was his his intended statement. Call him a pretentious artist sure, but don’t put words in his mouth.
And Ms. Stemp shouldn’t take things so personally. She chose intemperate a statement as a personal insult and to take offense to it. That’s her problem, not his.
[...] resurfaced video game guide (so it’s okay to write about Space Invaders, but penning children’s books is totally lame?), we got to thinking about other authors and their obsessions, from the literary [...]
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