The Reading Writer
N ovelists are cursed. Where the average reader can approach a book with the willing suspension of disbelief , novelists tend to pick books apart. This is why we pick up a bestselling novel and ask why a publisher would publish that trash when they won’t even look at ours. It is also why we can hand a manuscript to a family member than they believe it’s great, but hand the same manuscript to an agent and she’s already made up her mind to reject it before she reads the first paragraph. Children are much more willing to suspend disbelief while the suspension of disbelief is more difficult for adults and even more so for novelists and agents. Children have no problem reading a somewhat poorly written book and calling it good, while an adult may read a book by a multi-published author and question the sanity of the publisher. Respect The suspension of disbelief is largely a matter of respect. People complain because children don’t respect their elders, but children respect adults more t...