I am working on a children’s story about pirates. 
I think the story will probably target ages 7-10, maybe. I don’t really want to give too much away, but it will be about a pirate who makes the mistake of opening a cursed chest and unleashes “The Curse of the Fly”.
My question is: is it acceptable to have the pirates drinking grog (aka a watery rum) in a book for kids? I mean, they are pirates after all. But I don’t want to push the boundaries so far as to make people upset. It would mean a lot of rewriting, though.
I really just don’t know, which is why I’m asking you all.
19 Likes
Idk I’m kinda not between 7-10 so 
8 Likes
Yeah, I don’t expect anyone on here to be that young, but I thought maybe someone might have some opinions/insight on the matter anyway. Like, if they have younger siblings, or thinking back to when they were that age.
Edit: I always read really advanced stuff, so I can’t really use my experience, lol (I started reading Stephen King at 12)
11 Likes
Ya personally I think it’s fine (I’m 13) I’ve also always read stuff advanced for my age like when I was 11 or something my reading age was 16 and a bit. But as a 7-10 yr old I think it would be fine
7 Likes
You could always say that grog is something else like a grumbly frog drink, or use something else unique or made up like coconut crab punch, pineapple jimmy jam, or fruity tooty lemon juicy. The imaginations of children are vast and wondering. Giving them something to imagine on their own is always entertaining. But yeah, using the word grog, they might not know what that is for a long while, but removing the alcoholic connotation from a children’s book removes a lot of negative assumptions/possible education of alcoholic beverages at such a young age especially since we cant control what age is exposed to a book or reads a book. If its aimed toward young kids, I’d make it as appropriate and either imaginative or educational/relatable as possible for kids as young as 4 or 5. Juices and fruits, animals and foods, games and adventure, family and friends, silly words and real words, morals and imagery. Good luck with the writing and decision making!
8 Likes
I’m 11, and I’m also an advanced reader, and my Opinion is that I think most kids, That age have no idea what that is!! (Mostly, just saying that because I have no idea what it is, you said it in the post but I meant like before I read it (the post))
Oookayy I need to stop talking/writing!! 
5 Likes
I don’t really think that is age appropriate for 7-10 year olds. Only because a lot of things like that can be seen and then made normalized. And that is not a good thing to normalize. You could call it a beverage and just not say what kind of Beverage it is. But I do not think that it is very age appropriate, no.
3 Likes
It wouldn’t have concerned me had grog been mentioned in one of my kids’ books at that age. They’ve likely seen ads for beer by age 7. 
6 Likes
thing is, most peoples parents drink, theres beer ads litterally everwhere (at least in state lol), i personally don’t see an issue with it. To be fair, i also knew (in not such an age appropreite way) what wine/beer/alcohol in general was then. I had a really high reading level then (reading at highschool levels when i was 8 or so), but i think that if the parent doesn’t want their kid to know what it is in such simplicity (they (the person writing) also don’t have to say its alcohol, the name of the drink in itself is fine imo), they also will be a parent that hyper manages whatever else their kids exposed to.
6 Likes
I still think what I said in my post earlier but if you’re really concerned I like the idea about changing the name to something else that was mentioned above by @ChristianCrafter
But I also didn’t know what grog was until you mentioned that it was alcohol, though if a parent is reading it they probably would and might have to clarify it to their child if asked.
3 Likes
I do see what you were saying. And I do agree that a lot of people’s parents drink. I don’t really like the fact that kids are being raised up that it’s normalized. She can put it in her book if she would like. I was just saying I don’t like that’s being normalized in kids lives. I 100% see we are coming from and I agree with you. I was just giving a little bit of my opinion. Thank you for telling me what you thought! I thought this was very eye-opening and helpful!
5 Likes
Yeah!! I dont think it shiuld be normalized, though i do think kids should have a (age appropriate) sense of ehat it is :>
5 Likes
I am glad we can agree on it ;)
4 Likes
Yeah! sorry if i came off as aggressive earlier, wasn’t my intention <3
4 Likes
Sorry, y’all. I wasn’t trying to make anyone uncomfortable or cause any debates. 
4 Likes
nono you’re all good!! i feel like this was fairly civil :>
3 Likes
Edit: Yes, you are completely fine. You weren’t causing anyone discomfort or making anyone debate against anything. We were just having a conversation about what we thought was right and we were trying to see eye to eye on it. You did nothing wrong.
2 Likes
