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It can be a bit challenging to write a book that will appeal to both – the young and the mature readers. Nonetheless, we said that things were challenging but not impossible, which means that it is quite doable to write a story that appeals to the young and the old alike.
We know that different genres appeal to different age groups. For instance, your children who fall in the age group of 1-3 are typically fond of reading picture books. On the other hand, adult readers prefer novels and fiction, both genres that wouldn’t appeal to young children.
There are exceptions, though, where books such as the Harry Potter series appeal to young and mature readers alike. Books like “Harry Potter” and “The Hobbit” have the potential to appeal to all age groups as they have their readers hooked to the books from the beginning to the end.
Though you might be aiming to write a children’s book that is intentionally intended for the younger audience, you will still want to know that the children’s book needs to appeal to adult readers first, as they will be the ones buying the book for the younger readers.
Before your book reaches the designated children’s audience, it will certainly be read by adults – including the children’s parents, literary agents, editors, and publishers.
You get the point – while you might be doing your research on how to publish a children’s book, you will also want to do your research on how to write a book that appeals to adult readers and the intended young readers simultaneously. To make the writing process easier for you, we have made a list of rules for you to follow that will help you write the best book for both – young and mature minds.
Here is what you will want to do:
Don’t Adopt a Condescending Narrative
While working on your draft or manuscript, you will want to ensure that you don’t adopt a condescending tone, as the last thing you want to do is talk down to them.
Suppose you were working on a book solely intended for an adult audience – in this case, the last thing you would be worried about would come off as if you were preaching or talking down the readers.
The underlying reason is that while writing a book for adults, you will be operating at the same level. You will want to keep the same thing in your mind when writing for the younger audience. Children or young adults might be less experienced than adults. However, you will want to treat them as equals and refrain from oversimplifying things.
Suppose you make the mistake of oversimplifying things. In that case, you will be making the mature audience cringe – but – to the children, this might come off as if you are talking down upon them, and resultantly, the children won’t feel interested in reading your book either.
You will want to keep in mind both aspects while writing the draft – don’t make the adults frown or make the children feel like you are talking down to them.
Incorporate the Power of Children’s Characters
If you want to write a book that appeals to kids and adults alike, you will want to see what other successful writers have done. If we were to take the example of Harry Potter, we would see the magic of children.
That said, you will want to integrate the power of children and create children protagonists. The underlying reason is that the adult readers will feel sympathy, so they will easily root for the child characters actively dealing with life struggles and trying to solve complex things.
On the other hand, the younger children will find the young characters quite relatable, which will make them enjoy the adventure as they see the story unfold through the eyes of the young characters. Of course, you don’t necessarily have to craft a book where all characters are children.
You will want to ensure that your book has all sorts of characters, including adult characters and young adults, whereas the primary focus throughout the story will be the children’s protagonists. The adult characters come in the form of different roles, such as friends, caretakers, parents, and antagonists.
Incorporate a Magical Perspective/ Child’s Perspective
We all know that a child’s perspective differs greatly from an adult’s. That said, the world of children is quite magical, and to appeal to a wide target audience, you will want to incorporate a magical world into your story.
Now this aspect doesn’t necessarily mean that you will have to incorporate witches and wizards from Hogwarts – but – you can make things magical and outwardly by making your readers see and read things from a child’s perspective.
The world of children is more colorful, and there are endless possibilities within that world because children aren’t afraid to turn their world upside down. Adults are more about order and discipline, whereas adults also find it challenging to see the world with endless possibilities.
Sometimes, it takes the help of a child for adults to see the world through a different and essentially more colorful else. So, you will want to ensure that the world is magical here and there so your children can easily connect with the characters, and the adults will feel happy while reliving what it feels like to be a child again.
Focus on Character Development & Relationships
To write a book that appeals to the younger and more mature target audience, you will want to focus on character portrayal and on their relationships. You will want to ensure that you have brave characters in your story – so – allow bad things to happen to your characters.
Make sure that your children’s characters are brave and strong enough to overcome challenges. You will also want to focus on the children’s relationships with other characters – especially the older characters.
Throughout the story, you will want to show how the relationship becomes stronger or progresses as the story develops.
