Isn't that something you do with wine?
Jun. 24th, 2005 08:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
threemonkeysI have been mulling over this general area of juvenile SF some more. One thing I just keep coming back to is the definition of "juvenile". I think it is clear that you cannot simply use fixed age ranges. In my own case I was reading adult (but not Adult) fiction while I was still in primary school. Any definition has to be behavioural or skill based, not age based. Where I am at a loss is how to characterise those behaviours, skill sets, developmental characteristics or whatever it is we decide to use.
Where this takes me to is an interesting segment of the population. There are a lot of people who are past the physical symptoms of youth but who are in some way still at a developmental level that we might think of as juvenile - I'm talking here just about reading, not other life skills. I think any consideration of juvenile fiction has to include this population segment. For example, although much has been made about how much Harry potter has "got kids excited about reading again", much less is made about how it has impacted on an older audience - including many who had not read anything more detailed than a glossy magazine for years. To me, that older audience of people who had given up reading is perhaps the most remarkable of all.
Where this takes me to is an interesting segment of the population. There are a lot of people who are past the physical symptoms of youth but who are in some way still at a developmental level that we might think of as juvenile - I'm talking here just about reading, not other life skills. I think any consideration of juvenile fiction has to include this population segment. For example, although much has been made about how much Harry potter has "got kids excited about reading again", much less is made about how it has impacted on an older audience - including many who had not read anything more detailed than a glossy magazine for years. To me, that older audience of people who had given up reading is perhaps the most remarkable of all.
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Date: 2005-06-29 10:27 pm (UTC)The Phoenix Science Fiction Society (http://www.phoenixsf.blogspot.com/) meets on the second wednesday of every month at Turnbull house, Bowen St, 7.30pm. The topic for the August meeting (10th Aug) is "Juvenile SF" or some title like that. It will be a panel discussion which I'm chairing - hence my musings.
Visitors are always welcome, hence my invitation. Steph and Mundens are members - ask them if you want more info as I see them on your friends list.
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Date: 2005-06-30 02:39 am (UTC)Star Wars coming up this month eh? Are you guys like the SFMC in auckland?
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Date: 2005-06-30 02:57 am (UTC)Phoenix and Stella Nova have very similar structures actually. There is a main monthly meeting and then, through the month, special interest groups for writers, board gamers, social animals, video watching etc get together. Phoenix has a monthly news magazine as well which has some reviews and maybe a bit of short fiction.
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Date: 2005-06-30 03:10 am (UTC)All your stuff happen on a wednesday?
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Date: 2005-06-30 03:29 am (UTC)Board gaming is on a friday evening - I think its the friday of the week after the main meeting.
The social gathering ("PIG") is on a saturday night - usually the last of the month.
If we have a video eveniong, it will be on a Saturday - usually the 3rd of the month
The Writers group meet on Saturday afternoons.
If we have a group cinema outing, these are early evening screenings on Sunday.
Most of these events apart from the main meeting and cinema happen at somebodies house - Dates & venues for each meeting are in the magazine and on the blog site.