Perpetually 29

I mark my upcoming birthday with a post at the Guardian Books Blog on why I'm somewhat dissatisfied with heroines in novels who happen to be age 29. There are a number of them in crime novels, too, but space meant I couldn't mention them all, but still I wonder what's so appealing about that particular age...

Comments

[Christa Miller]

Strange. Especially since I've found my 30's to be way more fun and interesting.

[JDRhoades]

Young enough to get in trouble, experienced enough so that getting out of it isn't totally unbelievable? Or maybe, for male writers, old enough to be interesting, but young enough to still be hot? (Disclaimer: I don't believe that 30 is too old to be hot, but I'm betting there are some who have that attitude).

[Clea Simon]

Because we are a stupid, age-ist culture? My heroine is 33 because a friend once referred to that as the "Jesus year," and I like that. But next book, if there is a next book, she's going to turn 34. Because it is time.

[Wilda Williams]

Sarah, a Happy 29th Birthday to you. Just one more year of youthful bliss, and then you will have to pull a Logan's Run! As my little gift to you, here's another 29-year-old heroine. Coming in March 2008 is The Book of Dahlia by Elisa Albert, which tells the story of Dahlia Finger, "a whip-smart, impertinent, dperressed, emphaticall single 29-year-old who has just found out that she has terminal brain cancer." According the the publisher, this is a "courageous and hilarious take on terminal illness."

[Wilda Williams]

Sarah, a Happy 29th Birthday to you. Just one more year of youthful bliss, and then you will have to pull a Logan's Run! As my little gift to you, here's another 29-year-old heroine. Coming in March 2008 is The Book of Dahlia by Elisa Albert, which tells the story of Dahlia Finger, "a whip-smart, impertinent, dperressed, emphaticall single 29-year-old who has just found out that she has terminal brain cancer." According the the publisher (Free Press), this is a "courageous and hilarious take on terminal illness."

[Michael Haskins]

Sarah, I think 29 is a popular age/number for those who fear turning 30 is the beginning of the end. Trust me (love people who say that, don't you?)fearing 30 is foolish since life continues to get better with age, if one uses aging well. Making the best of today, whatever age, is the secret of enjoying life, no matter what age. But try explaining that to someone who is unable to use their imagination because they fear the future, turning 30 or 40 or, God forbid, 50! Hell, getting older is not only fun, it beats the alternative!

[Cornelia Read]

I think it's an homage to Jack Benny. Oh wait, that was thirty nine.

Happy upcoming birthday!

[Laura Benedict]

Guilty, yes, for my first book, and close to guilty for my next one. I don't remember where the advice came from--probably an early writing class. But it was to write about a character who is both younger and dumber than one's self. For me, it made a lot of sense because 1)I used to be younger and so have some experience 2) I'm probably not as smart as I think I am, anyway, so it's not a stretch.

Thirty is now about the age where, in real life, children and long-term relationships or marriages happen--and, really, children and spouses and such tend to complicate things in the thriller world. There's less time for sex, less time for adventure, travel, navel-gazing, looking hot, etc. And so those years immediately preceding thirty feel like free, fertile ground for fiction.

It's not that I want to get out of my own life (which I love very much), but writing fiction is enjoyable fantasy. At 45, my life is more about fending off menopause, property taxes, raising children, and keeping track of the Roomba. Hardly sexy stuff. There are folks who write beautifully about such things, and, while I enjoy their books, it's not what I enjoy writing. (Well, except on myspace. Occasionally.)

I totally agree that writing young is a dangerous game for an aging writer. We won't always get it right, and need to be exceptionally careful about not transferring our own, mature concerns to a younger character. What about YA writers? Few of them are actually teenagers--they really have it tough because, unless they have teenagers of their own or work with them frequently, their work could very soon become age-inappropriate!

In some future books, I'll probably skip 30-somethings and jump right to 40 or 45. Somehow, the forties seem sexier to me. Don't know why....

Thanks for the heads-up, Sarah!

[Laura Benedict]

"...need to be exceptionally careful about not transferring our own, mature concerns to a younger character."

I meant "mature" in that AARP/Mature Americans way. I don't mean to imply that age has much to do with actual maturity!

[Cara]

Just pop a champagne cork and enjoy. Happy birthday!

[Felicia Donovan]

Sarah, a very Happy Birthday and I couldn't agree more. I find it rather annoying and a disservice to all women to perpetuate the myth of eternal youth. I specifically created characters from their late 20's to their early 60's in THE BLACK WIDOW AGENCY because I think it's important to see how their age effects their relationships. Thus the 20-something doesn't get how debilitating the 60-year old's hot flashes are, thereby leading to some interesting discord. The main character pushing 40 is acutely aware of her youth slipping away and hates it. Another character is completely comfortable with being "Big, Black and Beautiful."

Get real, I say.

Felicia Donovan
THE BLACK WIDOW AGENCY Series
www.feliciadonovan.com
www.blackwidowagency.com