A Big, Happy Pay It Forward Announcement
Tuesday, April 9, 2013 at 5:35PM For those who have been following me for years because you are Pay It Forward fans, I think you're going to like this news a lot.
Most of you know that the book Pay It Forward was written for adults. It never occurred to me that anyone younger than an adult would read it, despite the fact that the major character of Trevor is only twelve when the books begins.
Then the American Library Association chose the book for its Best Books for Young Adults list. I was quite surprised. The Young Adult classification is 12-18. So technically the American Library Association recommended it for kids as young as 12. I was never comfortable doing so. I'm sure it's fine compared to...you know, say, prime time TV. But there was no denying that there's a good bit of adult material in the book.
As a result, when it's used in schools, which I'm pleased to say it often is, it's only in high schools. I suspect very few teachers are handing it to kids much younger than 14.
Now for the big, happy news. Simon & Schuster has agreed to release a new edition of the book for Middle Grade readers, 8-12. It's not going to talk down to them. It's not going to be a different story. It's going to be the Pay It Forward book it's always been, but with a new rating. G.
I'm going to be doing the initial edit of the material, and then of course it will go through the editorial process at the publishing house. But I've had a good first conversation with my new editor, and we are very much on the same page in terms of what needs to be edited out, what needs to be maintained.
Think in terms of Summer of 2014, though of course I'll keep you updated with news.
Remember you always hear it here first!
Reader Comments (8)
Best News Ever. Congratulations!!!
Thanks, Zeyani!
That's GREAT news! Having spent almost four decades working with middle school students, I believe that PAY IT FORWARD is a story that will really "speak" to the hearts and minds of pre and early adolescents. They will love reading about Trevor, who is their age, and makes a huge difference. It will inspire them. I would have loved to teach it!
It's also great news that you will be the person making the edits. You will do it correctly.
If you ever need to talk with someone who knows 7th and 8th graders...I'm an email or phone call away.
I look forward to reading the new edition.
Of course, there will need to be a movie remake too...one that actually aligns with the story you have written and that teachers will be able to show when they have finished reading the book with their students.
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Sue! I got S&S to do the book "remake." You can handle getting a new movie out of Warner Brothers. :)
I'll see what I can do about the movie. Is Warner Brothers the only option?
Excellent news! Are Transworld planning to do something similar for the UK?
Hi Nikki. Good question, Really had to think about that. Complicated. And the answer is...probably not. At one time Simon & Schuster UK had the UK rights to this book, and they let it go out of print. We/they resold it to Transworld. Which means it's now published in the US and UK by publishers who are not exactly...affiliated. Not saying it couldn't happen if Transworld decided they wanted it to. But no indication of that just now...
I think this is a very interesting article