Though only in his mid-fifties, Bart Moeyaert began his writing career over forty years ago, when at age thirteen. In the course of almost four decades as a published
author, Moeyaert’s views and writing practices have inevitably evolved. These developments can be attributed to personal experiences from living
through adolescence, young adulthood, and middle age, which include his increased independence from his family, influential encounters, and the development of his
career as an author and teacher. As a writer, he had the chance to experiment with new genres, topics, and writing styles, gradually growing into Belgium’s most acclaimed
children’s author and gaining international fame. In this article, I highlight four crucial experiences that transformed Bart Moeyaert’s views on children’s literature
and had an impact on his subsequent books: the influence of Aidan Chambers and his distinction between author and writer; the experience of writing primers with
specific, target-audience restraints; the pleasure of performing for a dual audience; and his mandate as Antwerp’s city poet, which provoked a reflection on the writer as a
public figure. What these experiences have in common is that they produced a tension between Moeyaert’s personal and artistic desires on the one hand and considerations for
his readership and broader social needs on the other. As such, this article seeks to contribute to a better understanding of Moeyaert’s developing poetics and diverse oeuvre, and to consider how an author’s growing age and concomitant experiences can influence their views and work.