Your story and your mission are inspiring. I must admit I haven't read any of your books (though I did just order the three-book hardcover Rebel Girls set and Boys of the Future), but I was first introduced to you when I saw Rebel Girls at a local book store. I was intrigued by the approach to storytelling and inspiration. My wife and I are hoping to start a family very soon and we're hoping to raise them to think differently and forever seek the road less paved just like their mom and dad always have.
I'm also a self-published author, and while my book hasn't garnered any success from a capitalistic standpoint, it was -- and will forever be -- important for me to stay in the realm of the self published for the same reasons you point out.
Anyway, just wanting to let you know I'm already a huge fan and I can't wait to check out these books.
Looking forward to the book. There is one thing that is bothering me, however, that I am interested in hearing you discuss. Why are the heroes here fictional (at least from what I understand) while the heroes of the "Rebel Girls" books are all real people? This post implies that your desire of what to present is the same. To paraphrase what I saw above, in writing the Girls book you noted that girls faced obstacles simply because they are girls and then wanted to show that there were real women who had overcome them. You then asked what were the obstacles boys faced simply because they were boys. However, you didn't write a book about real men that overcame them, you generated fictional stories (presumably about how to overcome them) that also appear to be much longer than the quick stories in the Girls books. What was your reasoning for the change in format?
When Rebel Girls came out, there were a number of copycats published afterwards. One of them replicated the same format of the book and offered kids a gallery of portraits of great men (Obama, the Dalai Lama, etc). I felt that didn’t cut it. That it didn’t add anything new to our understanding of masculinity, because we have been surrounded by the stories of great men, heroes, for our entire life. I realized that while for girls it mattered to have an invitation to go and “conquer” the world, while they needed to know that it was possible for them to add something meaningful to the world, just like other women had done (often without having any recognition) - boys didn’t need to know they could do grand gestures… they needed a different invitation: to “conquer” themselves. Fictional stories gave me the chance to untangle a series of specific toxic messages that are interwoven in our understanding of masculinity, and to explore how the story can change when a male character is given the chance to step out of a role he’s been cast for and has an honest dialogue with himself.
Interesting. I think much of the value of the first book was the format that real people were the heroes allowing them to be referenced (and in a couple of cases, inspiring additional research). I can see the point of not wanting to use "great" men since there are plenty of stories out there and, to me, it would seem that many wouldn't embody the desired "target" (or whatever you want to call it) masculinity. At the same time, I would contend many of the women in the first books are not "great" (maybe they are "locally famous") I wondered how much of it was an inability to find actual men to use because men who would embody the characters are simply too hard to locate. Not because they don't exist, but because these qualities are simply not celebrated or discussed (the men are obscure) or that they would seem too "ordinary" which implies they are more common.
My thought is a bit "meme-ish". It would seem that there are real men that would embody the qualities, but they are more an "everyday hero" type of story and if the concern was they were forgettable (precisely because they aren't "great").
Basically, this gets at your stated issue that the "dogma" is that girls are told to take over the world and men are told its OK to cry (which isn't equivalent). Do we need the lens of "traditional greatness" for us to see a trait as desirable which inherently makes this a one-way path if we start with traditional masculine traits as being part of "traditional greatness"? Another way to put it, can society celebrate you being "you" if it necessarily makes you obscure as opposed to great?
You are absolutely right. A lot of the women in the Rebel Girls books were not very well known to the general public, and part of the value of those books was to allow readers to look at the women in their life and see their potential for greatness. It was a way to tell girls “you may not find many great women in your history books, but know that the world is full of them, and they may be right beside you.” - I absolutely agree with you on the fact that history is full of men who are “everyday heroes” and whose stories could be inspiring for boys. By telling those stories the risk of dragging them back into the hero rhetoric is very high. Rebel Girls was standing on the shoulders of decades of feminist work: an understanding of what the dynamics, what the issues are had become part of the mainstream. In this case, it feels as we are just beginning to talk about masculinity beyond the (quite small) group of academics who have worked on the male side of gender studies. This is another reason why I felt that working with fiction allowed me to explore the underlying dynamics with more freedom. Thank you so much for your very thoughtful comments. I will be very curious to hear what you think about the book!
Hi Allan, I am working on making it available on Ingram, and I understand the skepticism about Amazon. However, out of the options available in the market, from an author perspective, it is the least exploitative. In fact, sales on Amazon are the ones that grants authors the biggest % of the cover price. The exploitation is way worse in all other channels.
“Behave”! Is a terrible strategy in the attempt to inculcate virtue and discipline in boys… it’s a good way to create dispossession and resentment though.
I’m sure you’re a great mother, but you are a miserable father.
Will there be anywhere other than Amazon that we can pre-order or order when it's out? I'm boycotting Amazon right now, so I cancelled my pre-order, but I still want the book.
Your story and your mission are inspiring. I must admit I haven't read any of your books (though I did just order the three-book hardcover Rebel Girls set and Boys of the Future), but I was first introduced to you when I saw Rebel Girls at a local book store. I was intrigued by the approach to storytelling and inspiration. My wife and I are hoping to start a family very soon and we're hoping to raise them to think differently and forever seek the road less paved just like their mom and dad always have.
I'm also a self-published author, and while my book hasn't garnered any success from a capitalistic standpoint, it was -- and will forever be -- important for me to stay in the realm of the self published for the same reasons you point out.
Anyway, just wanting to let you know I'm already a huge fan and I can't wait to check out these books.
This is everything I want to see happen, wow! Independent artists, successful self-publishing, and a gender-bending book for boys? Sign. Me. Up.
Thank you Peter! 🚀
Thank you so much for sharing your story.
Thanks for reading, Arturo!
Looking forward to the book. There is one thing that is bothering me, however, that I am interested in hearing you discuss. Why are the heroes here fictional (at least from what I understand) while the heroes of the "Rebel Girls" books are all real people? This post implies that your desire of what to present is the same. To paraphrase what I saw above, in writing the Girls book you noted that girls faced obstacles simply because they are girls and then wanted to show that there were real women who had overcome them. You then asked what were the obstacles boys faced simply because they were boys. However, you didn't write a book about real men that overcame them, you generated fictional stories (presumably about how to overcome them) that also appear to be much longer than the quick stories in the Girls books. What was your reasoning for the change in format?
When Rebel Girls came out, there were a number of copycats published afterwards. One of them replicated the same format of the book and offered kids a gallery of portraits of great men (Obama, the Dalai Lama, etc). I felt that didn’t cut it. That it didn’t add anything new to our understanding of masculinity, because we have been surrounded by the stories of great men, heroes, for our entire life. I realized that while for girls it mattered to have an invitation to go and “conquer” the world, while they needed to know that it was possible for them to add something meaningful to the world, just like other women had done (often without having any recognition) - boys didn’t need to know they could do grand gestures… they needed a different invitation: to “conquer” themselves. Fictional stories gave me the chance to untangle a series of specific toxic messages that are interwoven in our understanding of masculinity, and to explore how the story can change when a male character is given the chance to step out of a role he’s been cast for and has an honest dialogue with himself.
You say you wish to advocate for boys, and yet it’s clear that all you’re concerned with is “conquering” them. You will fail in that ambition.
Interesting. I think much of the value of the first book was the format that real people were the heroes allowing them to be referenced (and in a couple of cases, inspiring additional research). I can see the point of not wanting to use "great" men since there are plenty of stories out there and, to me, it would seem that many wouldn't embody the desired "target" (or whatever you want to call it) masculinity. At the same time, I would contend many of the women in the first books are not "great" (maybe they are "locally famous") I wondered how much of it was an inability to find actual men to use because men who would embody the characters are simply too hard to locate. Not because they don't exist, but because these qualities are simply not celebrated or discussed (the men are obscure) or that they would seem too "ordinary" which implies they are more common.
My thought is a bit "meme-ish". It would seem that there are real men that would embody the qualities, but they are more an "everyday hero" type of story and if the concern was they were forgettable (precisely because they aren't "great").
Basically, this gets at your stated issue that the "dogma" is that girls are told to take over the world and men are told its OK to cry (which isn't equivalent). Do we need the lens of "traditional greatness" for us to see a trait as desirable which inherently makes this a one-way path if we start with traditional masculine traits as being part of "traditional greatness"? Another way to put it, can society celebrate you being "you" if it necessarily makes you obscure as opposed to great?
You are absolutely right. A lot of the women in the Rebel Girls books were not very well known to the general public, and part of the value of those books was to allow readers to look at the women in their life and see their potential for greatness. It was a way to tell girls “you may not find many great women in your history books, but know that the world is full of them, and they may be right beside you.” - I absolutely agree with you on the fact that history is full of men who are “everyday heroes” and whose stories could be inspiring for boys. By telling those stories the risk of dragging them back into the hero rhetoric is very high. Rebel Girls was standing on the shoulders of decades of feminist work: an understanding of what the dynamics, what the issues are had become part of the mainstream. In this case, it feels as we are just beginning to talk about masculinity beyond the (quite small) group of academics who have worked on the male side of gender studies. This is another reason why I felt that working with fiction allowed me to explore the underlying dynamics with more freedom. Thank you so much for your very thoughtful comments. I will be very curious to hear what you think about the book!
I'd like an option to avoid giving Amazon more profits from exploiting authors. When will Boys of the Future be available from another seller?
Hi Allan, I am working on making it available on Ingram, and I understand the skepticism about Amazon. However, out of the options available in the market, from an author perspective, it is the least exploitative. In fact, sales on Amazon are the ones that grants authors the biggest % of the cover price. The exploitation is way worse in all other channels.
Say no more. I’ll order via Amazon
I just noticed there's another thread for this under the View All Comments fold.
“Behave”! Is a terrible strategy in the attempt to inculcate virtue and discipline in boys… it’s a good way to create dispossession and resentment though.
I’m sure you’re a great mother, but you are a miserable father.
Will there be anywhere other than Amazon that we can pre-order or order when it's out? I'm boycotting Amazon right now, so I cancelled my pre-order, but I still want the book.
Hi Rachel, we are trying to sort out a tech problem with Ingram Spark and when we do, it should also be available in other stores!
Thanks for this wonderful sharing!