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Writing for Children
Make 'Em Laugh -- Using Humor 1744 was a good year for children's literature. John Newbery produced "A
Little Pretty Pocket-Book," the first book written exclusively for
children. It was also about this time that Mother Goose arrived on the
scene with her now famous nursery rhymes.
But these first examples of writing for children were more didactic than
entertaining. They were based on adults' assumptions of what childhood
should be like, and were meant educate or impart a moral lesson. Lewis
Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, published in 1865, is often
cited as the first example of nonsense in a children's book (though it
contains plenty of morals), and Mark Twain's subtly humorous take on the
nature of mankind caused his books to be banned in schools for many years.
Fortunately, editors, parents and teachers have come to realize the
importance of humor in children's literature (thanks largely to Dr. Seuss),
and children's books in the last 45 years have reflected this change.
Childhood is now seen as a stage of development in its own right, not just
a training ground for adulthood. Books can make children dream, think, and
laugh without having to teach them a lesson on every page.
Child development experts generally break humor into four categories:
physical humor; humor of situation; humor involving play of language; humor
of character. The order of this grouping suggests that the first two
categories are less sophisticated than the last two. But all four can be
used in children's books for all ages. The most successful children's books
lead the reader through the steps of the joke. It's the punch line that's
important; the more subtle and sophisticated the joke, the older the reader.
Physical humor can be anything from slapstick for younger readers (a clumsy
duck or nearsighted dog), to a character who dresses outrageously in middle
grade novels. Physical humor is used in picture books and early readers
more than upper middle grade and young adult novels -- the older children
appreciate more cerebral humor. Humor of situation can be blatantly
obvious, as in Space Dog by Natalie Standiford, a book for 7-10 year olds
about a dog
from outer space who crashes his spaceship into a suburban boy's backyard.
The book is funny because the situation is so absurd. In books for older
children, the humor is more true to life and closer to their own
experiences, such as a fourteen-year-old girl running into a boy she has a
crush on when she's at the movies with her parents.
Humor involving play of language transcends every age group. It starts out
as rhyming words in children's poetry (often with nonsense words thrown
in), evolves to puns for 7-10 year olds, and develops into allusion for
young adults, where the jokes often involve references to popular
television shows, songs, or events that occurred earlier in the book.
Humor of character is probably the most difficult form of humor for the
author to develop. In an article written for Horn Book in 1982, author
Beverly Cleary
wrote that children "enjoy feeling superior to their younger selves
(represented by a character in the book) and are relieved to know they have
grown." Funny characters in books act in ways children aren't allowed to
in real life. The main thing that changes with the age of the book's
audience is the situation in which the character finds himself. In Space
Dog, the dog
from outer space eats pizza in bed and refuses to associate with other
canines. A book for an older child may have a character talking back to a
teacher or parent.
How do you know exactly what children will find funny? Author James Thurber
said, "Not many adults have the kind of total recall that lets them
remember what was funny to them as children."
The best way is to observe children talking among themselves. If you don't
have children of your own, spend some time at park or playground, or ask a
teacher if you can observe her class for a day or two. Ask your local
librarian which books children check out most often, and read them
yourself. When in doubt, make the humor in your story more complex rather
than simple. Children's grasp of humor develops faster than most adults
realize, and
there's nothing more insulting to a twelve-year-old than to litter your
text with knock-knock jokes.
Laura Backes is the publisher of Children's Book Insider - the newsletter
for children's writers - and the founder of The CBI Collection, the
first-ever catalog just for children's writers. The CBI Collection includes
exclusive books, disks and writers tools for every level of children's
writing, from complete beginners to experienced pros. There's even a
complete beginning children's writing course available for under $20. For a
free copy of The CBI Collection, write to Children's Book Insider, P.O. Box
1030, Fairplay, CO 80440-1030, call 1-719-836-0394 or
e-mail children@mailback.com Also, visit the Children's Writing Resource Center
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