Last weekend I had the fun privilege of having a reunion with some friends from college. Way back in the good ole days, we went on a mission trip together during our time at Taylor University.
As we were reminiscing on Facebook about the trip, we realized that four of us live in Michigan within driving distance of one another. So we arranged a dinner in Frankenmuth and brought along our spouses.
Most of us hadn’t seen one another since college, and so we were super excited to catch up on each others’ lives in person. The several hours we spent together flew by.
One really fun thing to discover was that two of my college friends are also big-time readers of Christian fiction (and had read some of my books!). So of course we spent part of the evening talking about books.
At one point in our conversation, my dear friend Allison brought up an interesting point. She said she noticed that most Christian fiction authors are middle-aged women. She was somewhat curious about that phenomenon.
As I thought about most of the authors I know, I realized she was right. The large majority are women about my age. Obviously there are some who are older and those who are much younger. But a huge number fall into that middle range. Is this trend random chance? Discrimination by publishers against younger writers? Or are there simply more middle-aged women who take up writing?
Allison and I chatted about it a little bit, and I came up with a few explanations:
1. Life experience adds richness and depth to an author’s work. Everyone knows that when the pot simmers on the back burner for a while, the flavor is stronger.
That’s not to say young writers can’t have fantastic stories or that older writers will be better simply because of age. It just means when all the other elements are there (craft, practice, etc.), that life experience can be the seasoning that makes one story stand out from another.
2. Middle-aged authors are in a period of life that allows more time and energy to devote to writing. Now again, that’s not true of every middle-aged person. But in my case, before I had kids, I was writing and getting close to publication.
Once I started having babies, I put aside my writing for close to seven years and didn’t type a single word. As my children became more independent, I found that I wasn’t so brain-dead anymore and actually wanted (needed) a creative outlet.
3. It takes time and hard work to become a successful author. In other professions, a young college graduate wouldn’t expect to enter a new job and have the same pay, same responsibilities, and same office size as someone who’s been at the company for several decades.
The same is true in the writing world. Young writers should count overnight success as the rare exception, not the rule. Instead, writers have to start slow and build their readership over time, using perseverance, diligence, and business savvy.
So that’s what I think! How about you? What do you think about the age of an author? Does it matter to you? Why or why not?
Jody Hedlund
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While the age of the author doesn’t matter to me, I agree with you that the youngest of writers probably won’t have the life experiences to write as engaging a work as a more seasoned individual. In my own case, my teaching career, my role as a wife along with raising a special needs child consumed my every waking moment. It was not until my daughter left the nest and I was able to work only part time that I’ve had time to pursue some hobbies and activities. So, I agree that raising children and/or needing to work for a steady income and benefits like insurance prevents many from having the time to become an author.
I so admire those who can write a truly realistic, engaging, and inspiring novel; that is definitely not a gift that I have but one that I appreciate in others.
The age of a author has no problem with me. I feel a older author can give more advice as they lived a longer life. A younger one has fresh and bright ideas. I think a blend of old and young give my reading material a blend of great reading.
I agree with you assessment, Jody. Although, I have noticed that the older I get, they more my main characters seem to lean toward the upper 20’s and lower 30’s and less toward the 18’s and 20’s. I wonder if that’s because my own kids are hitting their late teens and early twenties and they seem soooo young. Ha! Rather hypocritical of me since I got married at the ripe old age of 21.
Your points are very well made. Life experience and time certainly must be significant in an author’s ability to write and create. The age of an author doesn’t matter to me – only the story and writing style.
I don’t think the age of an author is important. We all have stories to share. 🙂 Recently, I learned one of my stories is actually a Young Adult story and I am 59. Who knew I could write YA stories? 🙂
I hope age doesn’t matter! I’m in my 50s writing picture books…I think the quality of the work is what matters, imagination, attention to detail, that sort of thing. Whew!
Jody, I started my career in the general market, and the age thing was just as true in that market back then (early 1980’s) as it is in the Christian market now. I began writing my first book just two months shy of my 30th birthday. It was published a few months shy of my 33rd birthday. I had dabbled in writing at a younger age but didn’t get serious until then. I think for novelists, we need some life experiences under our belts so that we actually have something to write about. Also, when we are really young, life is more about “me.” It takes some living to learn empathy, to be able to put ourselves into the heads and hearts of other people. And empathy is a key requirement for a novelist.
I had to laugh at this quote: “In other professions, a young college graduate wouldn’t expect to enter a new job and have the same pay, same responsibilities, and same office size as someone who’s been at the company for several decades.”
I laughed because we know this as adults who have lived in the world for some time, but I teach teenagers. Many actually have this odd notion that the college degree is what gets them the power and prestige and paycheck, not the experience. I tell these kids that real life is not like that. When I started as a teacher almost 16 years ago, I made $38,000. 16 years later, with the same level of degrees today as I had then, my pay is way more than that. Experience matters big time. You have to earn your power, prestige, and paycheck.
I think that many well-published authors tend to be more middle-aged because middle-aged and older writers have more substance to write with. Yes, younger people can write and get published, but when I think about the fiction written by young authors that I’ve read vs. fiction written by older authors, I am more likely to read the older-aged authors. Younger authors have promise and talent, but seasoned authors have seasoned skill and mastery of the written word. Plus, they just get things better than younger people do. They are more realistic.
Jody, good observation, although some of us are male and didn’t come to writing until long after we’d started on Social Security.
Interesting post! Frankly, I have never thought about an authors age before. I just know I love good stories and always have. What ever age please keep writing.
Most of the middle-aged and older authors that I can think of have already published ten or fifteen books by now. They weren’t middle-aged when they first got published. I am not sure that I can think of anybody who is middle-aged and getting their first book published, except for some non-fiction writers. I’m sure there are, but my mind is blanking. What is middle-aged though? I think of middle-aged as 60. Are you thinking forties? If you are thinking forties, then yes, I can think of some.
I’m 54 and working on getting published for the first time. I believe your observations about time and experience are correct, at least in my case. I didn’t have the time to devote to writing until about seven years ago. Since then, I have invested many hours and am loving it. I just finished my fifth manuscript and am enjoying the learning process. I’m still waiting for that first contract and the chance to hold my own book in my hands. I’m certain the tears will flow when that happens.
Thanks for sharing Jody.
I do think your post is interesting. And I would agree that most are middle age – although you didn’t define middle age. But I do have a question – if most of the authors are middle age, why does it seem that most of the characters are young – almost none are over the age of 30?
While I think the age of an author doesn’t matter, I do think it probably makes an impact on the outcome of the stories and books they write. I agree that a young author may not have much life experience yet and while they have a great story to tell, may not be based on actual life experiences… yet. I would also agree that during the middle age years, we have more time to devote to the things that we want to do. As a 51 year old woman, my 2 daughters are grown now so I don’t have the challenge of young children to care for and run after to games, events and activities anymore. This gives me a bit of time to do some of the things I enjoy doing (reading, quilting, etc.)