Justine Larbalestier points out what too many people fail to see as obvious: novelists are not their characters, nor do they necessarily condone their characters’ choices. Novels are not advice columns. If I was writing about how I think young men and women should behave, I’d write self-help books. Justine says it best here:
Many of my characters do things I disapprove of and make decisions I think are deeply unwise. But if they didn’t they wouldn’t be themselves and I wouldn’t have a story to tell. Without conflict there is no story. There’s a reason that dishonesty, misunderstandings, and villiany are so frequent in novels: They create conflict which creates story.
I see my duty of care in writing for people who are not yet adults like this:
- Entertain
- Do not condescend
- Be honest.
Good stuff. Read it all. I have a lot of thoughts on this subject, myself, but I haven’t organized them all yet.
6 Responses to our responsibility