Experimental Children’s Lit
Unheard Voices and Non-Happy Endings: Stories
If, “Kafka for kids,” sounds a bit extreme, imagine the difficulty of writing young adult and children stories that reject the idea of a happy, optimistic, or resolved ending, yet strike an emotional balance—between the non-happy and glimpses of hope— to avoid becoming exercises in children’s nihilism. This challenge took shape during a late night discussion concerning the needs of children caught in dysfunctional and abusive situations and the exasperated comment: “What’s with all these children’s stories? They always have to end happily. My kids can’t find themselves in any of them.”
As this experimental literature project developed around what it means to be a child, an unheard voice, in spaces of the non-happy, it has branched into two parallel tracks.
One is targeted toward young adults and challenges the reader to place herself directly into the emotionally present experiences and point-of-view of the main character. These stories approach harsh life experiences honestly, while avoiding the portrayal of any given character as the villian. It attempts to pull back the curtain between the world of the child and that of the adult to reveal grown-ups who have desires to do right, but are broken and flawed.
The other is to older children; while emotionally honest and non-happy, it blends fantastical elements with the point-of-view of a main character who is more an observer. This provides the younger reader with more emotional distance from which to process the thematic elements of the story.
Young Adult Stories
Mia’s Story
Where do you stand when you can’t really count on those who are supposed to love you?
Andrew’s Story
Dear God, nobody is listening…. Hello?
Older Children’s Stories
Willie’s Story
Why is it that Old Man Snigglegrub, will only sleep in a bed suspended high above a vacant, weed-grown lot in the city?
