I've been asked whether Mythil's Secret is for children or adults. Well I wrote it for the pre- to early teen age group because when I was that age I couldn't find any English language books that I could really relate to. Of course there were fantastic books set in Middle Earth or Narnia or England or America... but hardly any set in Sri Lanka for young Sri Lankan readers.
If you are a frequent reader of these types of books you'll know that books written for older children often appeal to adults too. The first three Harry Potter books for instance, or the Hobbit, or so many of Jacquelin Wilson's books. They deal with adult themes because children of that age are aware of them. So many of the books talk about grown up issues but deal with them from the view of a child. This doesn't mean the stories have to be simplistic or watered down.
I think that if you've written a book for older children and you find that adults also enjoy it... then maybe, just maybe your younger audience will get hooked on it too!
At least that's what I think - and I'm no expert.
Christos Tsiolkas
9 years ago
