Even before J. K. Rowling's tremendous success with her Harry Potter
series, publishers were frantically searching for fantasy and horror fiction
for children and teenagers that they hoped would top the bestseller list.
Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it does not insure success
as a writer.
Tip One: You don’t need to copy current market trends.
Teens have varied tastes in fiction. Not every teen or juvenile book
needs to feature werewolves, vampires, witches, goblins, etc. Witness the huge
success of such realistic teen novels as THE FAULT IN OUR STARS. Note that ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE by Anthony Doerr which won
the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction could easily be read and understood by
teens as well as adults since the novel is suited to both. Here we have a book
which is historical in nature. Teens are as curious about the past as they are
about the present and the future.
Books set in the "real" world do
have appeal for teenagers. Teens are not necessarily trying to read books that
provide a total escape from reality. Even fantasy books need to be believable,
providing an element of reality through character development to which readers
can relate. In the crossover novel THE THIRD EYE: A PINE BARRENS MYSTERY, the
real world is seen through the eyes of a teenage boy while his mother
experiences it through an alternate reality.
Dystopian novels are still popular at the
current time. But trends change rapidly.
My advice, don't write for the market; write the story you need and want to
write. We are all writers. We all have within us an important, wonderful story
to share. Get in touch with your inner teen self. Strive for authenticity.
Tip Two: Develop a unique voice.
This is one of the most important things in writing a successful young
adult novel. This does not mean that you must write only from a first person point of
view. However, teenage readers often respond well to a first person narrative. But "voice" has to do with choice of vocabulary and style as well.
Tip Three: Character identification is significant.
It is important to create a central character that young readers can
both sympathize and identify with. Whether writing realistic or fantasy fiction,
if the reader can't care about or relate to the main character, then he or she
won't believe or accept what follows. A
main character needs to be well-rounded, think and feel the way adolescents do.
Tip Four: Know teenagers.
If you are going to write about teens, you need to know them. Do some
research. Besides raising two teenagers, I taught English and later Library
Science. I taught at all levels: the university, high school, middle school and
elementary. But most of my years were in the high school. I am accustomed to
the way teenagers think, talk and behave. If you are not a teen yourself, talk
to teenagers, read their magazines, watch their favorite TV programs, observe
how they behave at malls, amusement parks, movie theaters etc. Listen to them.
Tip Five: Recall your own teenage memories.
Dig deep into your psyche. How did you feel as a teenager? Were you
confused about certain things? What made you happy? What troubled you? What are
your most vivid memories of those times? Did you keep a diary or journal? If
so, reread some of what you wrote.
My latest YA novel, THE DEVIL AND DANNA WEBSTER, published by Clean
Reads in all e-book formats and now in print as well, is the story of a girl
who has identity issues. She is also faced with peer pressure and conflicting
values. Most of us have gone through similar problems as adolescents.
Tip Six: Get input from your own children.
Ask your teenagers to read your writing and critique it. Consider
collaborating with your children on the writing of your fiction. I wrote WHERE
IS ROBERT?, a YA mystery novel, with
help from both of my sons who were teenagers at the time. Both boys contributed
to the scenes of high school wrestling, since they both engaged in the sport. I
couldn't have written the book without them. My son, Andrew, co-authored THE
THIRD EYE: A PINE BARRENS MYSTERY published by Five Star/Gale/Cengage. He gave
the teenage boy narrator an authentic “voice”.
Tip Seven: Make it dramatic.
Think like a cinematographer. Create vivid scenes. Dramatize your story.
Don't just tell your story, show it. I'm certain you've heard that advice
before! How to do this? Create meaningful, realistic dialogue for your
characters. Each character should be an individual, talking in a certain
distinct way to reflect a personal point of view, a unique way of thinking.
Good dialogue leads to action and conflict between people with different
viewpoints and goals.
Also, settings need to be described so that
they seem real. In fact, there's nothing wrong with using real places for
background setting. My five published YA’s are all set in Central New
Jersey , an area very much like the one in which I lived and worked.
Tip Eight: Begin with an outline.
Outlines can be rough. They don’t need to be detailed. But you should
have some idea about arranging the events of the plot line. This will be
something to consult when writing your first draft with your key characters and
scenes.
Tip Nine: When you develop your book, look for depth.
Although books for teens are
usually shorter than those for adults, that doesn't mean they require less
creative thought. Respect your readers; give them quality.
Tip Ten: Provide an element of mystery.
Teens as well as younger children enjoy a mystery. Every good work of
fiction should have a plot that keeps the reader turning the pages, wanting to
discover what is going to happen next. It's important to set up some sort of a
question that can't be easily or immediately answered, a secret of the human
heart that must be delved into.
Tip Eleven: Develop key themes in your YA fiction.
Teen novels are generally about coming-of-age, of finding personal
identity, making sense of the adult world, relating to it and fitting into
it—or not.
THE DEVIL AND DANNA WEBSTER is about a teenager growing up in 1985. She
comes from a poor family and wants more out of life than her parents are able
to provide. She also senses there are secrets that her mother is keeping,
secrets that involve her. Danna is troubled and confused. She has artistic
talent and would like to be a professional artist. She has hopes, dreams and aspirations. She
also feels that her parents are too strict. Enter into this a boy who pursues
her but has a bad reputation. Danna is attracted to him in spite of the
warnings she receives about Kevin’s bad character. THE DEVIL AND DANNA WEBSTER
is a coming-of-age novel. It’s a book about family values and a young girl
maturing to the point where she realizes what really matters in life.
Here is a short excerpt from the beginning of the novel:
When my
mother talked about Lori, she always got a funny look in her eye — not ha-ha
funny but strange funny. When I was little, I never understood. As I got older,
I wondered more about Lori, but I hardly ever asked because it just seemed to
make my mother sad.
Lori was
locked away in my mother's past life like the things in the old attic trunk. I
wondered about them too. But Mom would always say when I asked her to open the
trunk that the past was best forgotten. Yet, every now and then, I would say
something or do something that made her sigh deeply and exclaim: "You
remind me so much of Lori!"
Not long
ago, I was sitting on the living room couch reading a novel I found on the
bookshelf. My mother walked into the room and gasped.
"Something
wrong?" I asked.
She stared
at me for a moment and shook her head. "No, but for a moment, it seemed
like I was looking at Lori. I remember when she read Rebecca. She loved to read old-fashioned romances."
"Mom,
what happened to Lori?"
I'd been to
one or two family gatherings but never remember anyone mentioning Lori, Mom's
younger sister. She also had a brother named Craig who lived in Portland Oregon
"Danna,
I'd rather not talk about her. It only brings back sad memories."
"Sure,
except I didn't bring it up."
"Just
don't you read too many of those foolish books and go around confusing them for
real life. And don't think too much about boys. You’re still very young."
Now I was
really confused. "What exactly did Lori do?"
My mother
didn't answer. I could see it was hurting her to discuss her sister. Still, I
couldn't help wondering. Mom had a sister who my parents never talked about.
How totally weird was that?
Links:
THE DEVIL AND DANNA WEBSTER, YA novel published by Clean Reads, is now available in print:
as well as all E-Book formats:
store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/the-devil-and-danna-webster
In conclusion, the success of J.K. Rowling’s
books gave new hope and inspiration to those of us who write juvenile fiction.
No longer could we gripe that children and young adults do not read. If nothing
else, the reception the Potter books received proves that there is an audience
for fiction among young people. Also, such books if well-written have a strong
appeal for adult readers as well—think of THE HUNGER GAMES, DIVERGENT or the
TWILIGHT series. About 65% of books for teens are purchased by adult readers.
According to the Association of American Book Publishers, in 2014, revenue from
Y.A. and children’s books rose by 21 per cent over the previous year, while
adult fiction and nonfiction fell by 1.4 percent.
Your comments, suggestions and input welcome here!
