seras

I've noticed an enormous amount of posts by younger writers (12-20) about "How much money will I get?" for writing a book. This saddens me, not only because of the rude awakening they face, but because I never remember being concerned with that as a young writer. I wonder, is this a worsening trend or has it always been so? If so, is this mentality molding new literature, like teaching to the test?

I see a lot of adults, (most of them refer to themselves as 'real writers' on this board) doling down a lot of negative opinions about Twilight. The poster usually concludes with a list of authors they feel the kids *should* be reading. The truth is that most kids in the age bracket among whom Twilight is popular are not going to take to Dickens or Bronte with much enthusiasm. I believe that even if Twilight doesn't carry much literary merit, cultivating a love of reading - and even better, a community of kids who actively read, discuss, analyze - cannot be a bad thing. Reading is for everyone, not just people who plan to major in literature. Even if they evolve into the kind of adults who love to read trashy romance novels, isn't that better than a nation of people who read nothing at all?

I'd like to hear your opinions.

(In 2007 one in four (27%) of Americans did not read a single book. The same poll indicates that people who read saga-type books read more often.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/artic...