--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I never thought I was writing for kids at…" description: "\"I never thought I was writing for kids at all. It really shocked and unsettled me to hear kids were buying the books. If I'd known I was writing for ki..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c6/jeff-kinney-4064_actually_i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-a_2564326.png" --- # I never thought I was writing for kids at all. It really… ![“I never thought I was writing for kids at all. It really shocked and unsettled me to hear kids were buying the books. If I'd known I was writing for kids, I might actually have spelt things out a bit more, and that would probably have killed the appeal.” quote by Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c6/jeff-kinney-4064_actually_i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-a_2564326.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c6/jeff-kinney-4064_actually_i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-a_2564326.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c6/jeff-kinney-4064_actually_i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-a_2564326.png) > “I never thought I was writing for kids at all. It really shocked and unsettled me to hear kids were buying the books. If I'd known I was writing for kids, I might actually have spelt things out a bit more, and that would probably have killed the appeal.” [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author realized his work unintentionally appealed to children, and over‑explaining could diminish its charm. **In simple terms:** Writing for kids can happen unintentionally; too much explanation may hurt appeal. Key Takeaway Balance clarity with mystery. Themes authorship audience perception creative intent Mood reflective thoughtful Type advice creative process When to use this quote - book marketing - author interviews - writing workshops Key Concepts literary market reader expectations Questions to Reflect On - How do you gauge the right level of detail for a target audience? - What risks arise from assuming an audience’s age? A Different Perspective Over‑explaining can reduce intrigue for younger readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Buying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buying/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) [Unsettled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unsettled/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“Somewhere between buying 25 friendship bands and passing by the shop with a smile looking at kids buying the bands, we grew up”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anamika-mishra/somewhere-between-buying-25-friendship-bands-and-passing-by-the-shop/) [Anamika mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anamika-mishra/) > [There's a lot of spaces that care about what kids are buying. There are a lot of spaces that care about what kids are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daveed-diggs/there-s-a-lot-of-spaces-that-care-about-what-kids-are-buying-there/) [Daveed Diggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daveed-diggs/) > [I've learned a lot from my own kids. Actually, my son was the reason why I got involved in other things outside of basketball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/metta-world-peace/i-ve-learned-a-lot-from-my-own-kids-actually-my-son-was-the-reason/) [Metta World Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/metta-world-peace/) > [“The best part about having kids is not actually having to have kids. Thank you, women.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/the-best-part-about-having-kids-is-not-actually-having-to-have-kids/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Our kids are actually doing what we told them to do when they sit in front of that TV all day or in front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-louv/our-kids-are-actually-doing-what-we-told-them-to-do-when-they-sit-in/) [Richard Louv](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-louv/) > [Unless you have kids, you actually have no idea what kids are watching on TV these days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-selick/unless-you-have-kids-you-actually-have-no-idea-what-kids-are-watching/) [Henry Selick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-selick/) > [I don't think there's ever a right time to have kids. I'm actually pretty glad it's happened quite young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-stevens/i-don-t-think-there-s-ever-a-right-time-to-have-kids-i-m-actually/) [Dan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-stevens/) > [They're a great audience, kids. They actually respond. They don't have the references that adults have, so everything is immediate. It's always interesting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-cornell/they-re-a-great-audience-kids-they-actually-respond-they-don-t-have/) [Chris Cornell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-cornell/) > [There are so few books for little kids that actually mention the word transgender and explain what it is in simple terms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jazz-jennings/there-are-so-few-books-for-little-kids-that-actually-mention-the-word/) [Jazz Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jazz-jennings/) > [I've seen a lot in my life and nothing really shocked me, just being where I'm from. But this was unexpected. It just hit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-jacobs/i-ve-seen-a-lot-in-my-life-and-nothing-really-shocked-me-just-being/) [Daniel Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-jacobs/) > [It really shocked me just to hear of the fans' response to 'St. Anger' not having guitar solos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-hammett/it-really-shocked-me-just-to-hear-of-the-fans-response-to-st-anger/) [Kirk Hammett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-hammett/) > [In retrospect, I'm really shocked at how far I put my heart out there on the line with 'Prima Donna'. I seem to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rufus-wainwright/in-retrospect-i-m-really-shocked-at-how-far-i-put-my-heart-out-there/) [Rufus Wainwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rufus-wainwright/) > [I was really shocked after all of this talk about coal miners and all of this talk about Buy America, the Republicans and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-mccaskill/i-was-really-shocked-after-all-of-this-talk-about-coal-miners-and-all/) [Claire McCaskill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-mccaskill/) > [When I was exposed to the history and the cultural background of why women whose husbands die, why they have to become ascetic or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepa-mehta/when-i-was-exposed-to-the-history-and-the-cultural-background-of-why/) [Deepa Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepa-mehta/) > [You all would be really shocked, if you were dropped back down into when I went to college, by the narrowness of the opinions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kristol/you-all-would-be-really-shocked-if-you-were-dropped-back-down-into/) [William Kristol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kristol/) ## More by Jeff Kinney > [Kids can sniff out when they are being preached to, and they don't like it. So while my books aren't amoral, they are not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/kids-can-sniff-out-when-they-are-being-preached-to-and-they-don-t/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [hope your birthday is hot hot hot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/hope-your-birthday-is-hot-hot-hot/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [In middle school, I started to draw, and my pencil sketches were huge. They were these 4ft by 3ft drawings, and I got a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/in-middle-school-i-started-to-draw-and-my-pencil-sketches-were-huge/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [Well, the problem is, it's not easy for me to think of ways to improve myself, because I'm pretty much one of the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/well-the-problem-is-it-s-not-easy-for-me-to-think-of-ways-to-improve/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [“There was this book Dad used to read to me every night called "The Giving Tree." It was a really good book, but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/there-was-this-book-dad-used-to-read-to-me-every-night-called-the/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [I work in the house next to where I live. We bought a smaller house that I use as my office and the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-work-in-the-house-next-to-where-i-live-we-bought-a-smaller-house/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [Many of Judy Blume's books - which I devoured when I was growing up and where I found characters that were believable because they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/many-of-judy-blume-s-books-which-i-devoured-when-i-was-growing-up-and/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [The only reason I get out of bed at all on weekends is because eventually I can't stand the taste of my own breath…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/the-only-reason-i-get-out-of-bed-at-all-on-weekends-is-because/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [I had a very normal, very typical American childhood. My father worked for the government at the Pentagon and my mother was an educator,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-had-a-very-normal-very-typical-american-childhood-my-father-worked/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [I've never run into a person who yearns for their middle school days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-ve-never-run-into-a-person-who-yearns-for-their-middle-school-days/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [I think goodreads is the best place to look for books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-think-goodreads-is-the-best-place-to-look-for-books/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [I don't know if this makes me a bad person or whatever, but it's hard for me to get interested in other people's vacations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-don-t-know-if-this-makes-me-a-bad-person-or-whatever-but-it-s-hard/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [I can tell you that the book 'The Ugly Truth' is about puberty and all the awfulness that comes with that time in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-can-tell-you-that-the-book-the-ugly-truth-is-about-puberty-and-all/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [When I was on the swim team as a kid, I used to hide out from my coach by going into the bathroom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/when-i-was-on-the-swim-team-as-a-kid-i-used-to-hide-out-from-my-coach/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) > [Holly is the fourth-prettiest girl in the class, but the top 3 all have boyfriends. So a lot of guys like me are doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/holly-is-the-fourth-prettiest-girl-in-the-class-but-the-top-3-all/) [Jeff Kinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) [Explore all 112 Jeff Kinney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/) ## More Actually quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [I just think my own ambition would not allow me to sit on the gifts that my creator had given me. And so that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/i-just-think-my-own-ambition-would-not-allow-me-to-sit-on-the-gifts/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [I actually like getting out of my comfort zone. It shakes me up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-sheehy/i-actually-like-getting-out-of-my-comfort-zone-it-shakes-me-up/) [Gail Sheehy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-sheehy/) > [You have to talk about why things happened the way they did. You can't actually explain my political life except by a series of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lange/you-have-to-talk-about-why-things-happened-the-way-they-did-you-can-t/) [David Lange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lange/) > [Failure actually makes you strong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neha-sharma/failure-actually-makes-you-strong/) [Neha Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neha-sharma/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. Weatherly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-a-weatherly/) > [I'm from Europe, England, and I actually lived in Italy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adewale-akinnuoye-agbaje/i-m-from-europe-england-and-i-actually-lived-in-italy/) [Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adewale-akinnuoye-agbaje/) > [The alternative comedy scene is actually pretty small, I guess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-wilson/the-alternative-comedy-scene-is-actually-pretty-small-i-guess/) [Casey Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-wilson/) > [I was a very good student. Procrastinating gives me anxiety, and getting a B really ticked me off. Sure, I didn't always want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josie-loren/i-was-a-very-good-student-procrastinating-gives-me-anxiety-and/) [Josie Loren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josie-loren/) > [The shelves of many evangelicals are full of books that point out the flaws in evolution, discuss it only as a theory, and almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/the-shelves-of-many-evangelicals-are-full-of-books-that-point-out-the/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) > [Somebody said that part of my reaction to British cinema is actually, paradoxically, a patriotic one. I'm so disappointed that we're not better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-brownlow/somebody-said-that-part-of-my-reaction-to-british-cinema-is-actually/) [Kevin Brownlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-brownlow/) > [I actually do sing sometimes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morten-harket/i-actually-do-sing-sometimes/) [Morten Harket](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morten-harket/) > [I've actually got quite a good memory. I've good recall. It's often things which other people might not notice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-frame/i-ve-actually-got-quite-a-good-memory-i-ve-good-recall-it-s-often/) [Ronald Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-frame/) > [Because there is actually something very interesting in Goodfellas, how the style of the film changes as time goes by and based on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-cox/because-there-is-actually-something-very-interesting-in-goodfellas/) [Alex Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-cox/) > ['Inequality' has become the political theme/slogan of our time in both Europe and the U.S., yet political leaders do not even bother to consider…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-singer/inequality-has-become-the-political-theme-slogan-of-our-time-in-both/) [Paul Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-singer/) Browse all 4,248 Actually quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I never thought I was writing for kids at all. It really shocked and unsettled me to hear kids were buying the books. If I'd known I was writing for kids, I might actually have spelt things out a bit more, and that would probably have killed the appeal.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jeff Kinney" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-at-all-it-really-shocked-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Actually" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-at-all-it-really-shocked-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c6/jeff-kinney-4064_actually_i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-a_2564326.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c6/jeff-kinney-4064_actually_i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-a_2564326.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c6/jeff-kinney-4064_actually_i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-a_2564326.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I never thought I was writing for kids at all. It really shocked and unsettled me to hear kids were buying…” — Jeff Kinney", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jeff Kinney", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-kinney/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I never thought I was writing...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-at-all-it-really-shocked-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-kinney/i-never-thought-i-was-writing-for-kids-at-all-it-really-shocked-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```