A lot of stuff was happening when I wrote Not That Long. It was 1994, probably the greatest and most turbulent year of the 90's. The story is a first person narrative spoken by a sixteen year old boy named Long Peterson. I wrote it when I was sixteen, during August to December 1994. It was almost written in `real time', the `first day' in the novel being a week after I had started to write it. I've never written so freely, so fluently and so truthfully as I did when I wrote this novel, and it's a quality I've never quite been able to capture again.
The narrative begins on Long's seventeenth birthday
and the story is an extended flashback of the events of August 22nd to
September 5th (the `present'), concerning such things as his relationship
with his best friends Gil and Bethel, his family, and the band in which
he is lead singer. It was inspired both by a (then) recent trip to America
and my own paranoia regarding my place in the world. I especially wanted
to capture the `in between' or transitory times of our lives which bridge
events together - change is the main theme of the story. Other themes include
the traversal from childhood to adulthood, the mass media and popular culture
vs. nature, the blurring of the boundaries between `alternative' and `mainstream',
the Baby Boomers vs. Generation X, as well as more conventional topics
such as friendship, sex and love, and mental and physical escape. Obviously, I had an insider's knowledge of the young adult market at the time, and aimed to included the things I and others have found lacking in most contemporary fiction and enhancing the aspects of it I do find satisfying. It's always annoyed me that, even today (or especially today), teenage fiction is essentially divided into two categories: those which have to address depressing topics to justify their own existence, and the completely lightweight. To me, teenagers are an authentically marginalised subculture in our society. Teenagers are sent hugely mixed messages by adults. Why are they told they are so important but are not allowed an authentic voice in society? Why are teenagers only significant when they are looked upon as a target market or as a victim? Is it any wonder that the process of complete metamorphosis is so difficult when they are given so little help by adults? In both NOT THAT LONG and AM I YOUR DREAM I aimed to create an authentic teenage voice which spoke of issues important to the average teenager. Not AIDS or pregnancy or whatever - but things like fighting with your best friend, or having a crush on someone. I wanted to show that teenage experiences are valid and valuable, and very important to those experiencing them.
I'm still very proud of this novel. Its publishing history is chequered with a number of very, very near misses. I sent out sample chapters to six publishers, and Pan Macmillan's letter was the first I got back - saying they were interested! I was in negotiations with Pan Macmillan for over a year before they dropped out at the very last stage. God, I can't tell you how heartbreaking it was. As the publisher wrote `This is one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make'. It could have been my dream fulfilled, but it didn't happen. HarperCollins also expressed interest but dipped out after around six months. Since then I have not made any further attempts to have it published, but I still believe something could come of it, one day.
The narrative begins on Long's seventeenth birthday
and the story is an extended flashback of the events of August 22nd to
September 5th (the `present'), concerning such things as his relationship
with his best friends Gil and Bethel, his family, and the band in which
he is lead singer. It was inspired both by a (then) recent trip to America
and my own paranoia regarding my place in the world. I especially wanted
to capture the `in between' or transitory times of our lives which bridge
events together - change is the main theme of the story. Other themes include
the traversal from childhood to adulthood, the mass media and popular culture
vs. nature, the blurring of the boundaries between `alternative' and `mainstream',
the Baby Boomers vs. Generation X, as well as more conventional topics
such as friendship, sex and love, and mental and physical escape. Obviously, I had an insider's knowledge of the young adult market at the time, and aimed to included the things I and others have found lacking in most contemporary fiction and enhancing the aspects of it I do find satisfying. It's always annoyed me that, even today (or especially today), teenage fiction is essentially divided into two categories: those which have to address depressing topics to justify their own existence, and the completely lightweight. To me, teenagers are an authentically marginalised subculture in our society. Teenagers are sent hugely mixed messages by adults. Why are they told they are so important but are not allowed an authentic voice in society? Why are teenagers only significant when they are looked upon as a target market or as a victim? Is it any wonder that the process of complete metamorphosis is so difficult when they are given so little help by adults? In both NOT THAT LONG and AM I YOUR DREAM I aimed to create an authentic teenage voice which spoke of issues important to the average teenager. Not AIDS or pregnancy or whatever - but things like fighting with your best friend, or having a crush on someone. I wanted to show that teenage experiences are valid and valuable, and very important to those experiencing them.
