Teens Writing for Teens, the 5th

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MysteryRiter

Murder isn't so bad...
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I go by Eastern Time. Sorry, that's all yer gonna get
 

Allaboutwords13

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Awww that's mean :p haha oh well. I just wondered, since you were calling it morning when it's afternoon here :) It's not like i can stalk ya. haha
 

MysteryRiter

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I know but im still young. I'm not really worried about you, anyone can access this page
 

amlptj

Speling & grammer murderer, Sorrie!
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Morning!

hehehe if you cant tell from my location I'm from Philadelphia PA, in the USA. Frankly i dont care if people know because if someone could find out exactly where i live among the 2 some million people that is some skill! But yeah i'm on Eastern Standard time too!

Morning how are you all doing today?
 

MysteryRiter

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Ok. Didn't sleep in as much as I would've wanted to
 

amlptj

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Yeah i'm at work, so i cant sleep in... but tomorrow i'm off so YAY!!!! And today i officually have enough money for my iPhone! SCORE!!!!

Today has been a good day... shockingly i'm actually dressed up slightly and i'm in a good mood... Wow that double shot of espresso really does work! I feel like i have ADHD right now
 

Allaboutwords13

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Yeah, i gathered where you're from Ally. haha.
I'm doing okay, thanks. I came up with an idea for my next story. Planning, however, is NOT my forte, and so i wonder how well it'll go....
I figured i had to change the first chapter of the one i'm working on though, after asking a question on another thread. I still keep losing words though... i'm like... "HOW?!" haha
 

Parametric

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Planning is practically my only skill when it comes to writing. I can't write a decent scene to save my life, but I sure can outline. :tongue
 

MysteryRiter

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Honestly, I don't believe in planning. Make your characters and their personalities, think of a good beginning ending and juicy middle and your done. Write the first few pages and let the characters choose what they wanna do
 

Allaboutwords13

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Honestly, I don't believe in planning. Make your characters and their personalities, think of a good beginning ending and juicy middle and your done. Write the first few pages and let the characters choose what they wanna do

I like your way of thinking :p :evil
 

MysteryRiter

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Yay. Someone agrees. Most people just give me a quizzical look. *high fives*
 

Parametric

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It doesn't matter whether you "believe" in planning. It works for some writers, not for others. I've written enough novels that I know the value (for me) of a very detailed outline. I very much doubt Harry Potter could have been written without one. Disbelieving that doesn't make it untrue.
 

Allaboutwords13

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That's true. We're all different. But i find, if i spend time planning, as i've tried before, i end up writing more than i can on the actual story. It's weird. lol
 

MysteryRiter

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Hi para. I'm just wondering how old you are because whenever I talk to you, your wisdom and maturity gives me the impression that your an adult. That's a compliment.
Also, what should I aim for for a word count for a YA mystery and don't just tell me not to aim at a certain word count. 70k ok? More or less?
 

Parametric

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I'll be 23 in November. I joined the Teens Writing for Teens thread back when I was still a teenager, which you can appreciate was some time ago. :tongue I'm working on my fifth novel and my second degree.

Also, what should I aim for for a word count for a YA mystery and don't just tell me not to aim at a certain word count. 70k ok? More or less?

Ex-agent Colleen Lindsay wrote a classic post on word counts which most people use as their Bible. She suggests that for a YA novel (except paranormal and fantasy, which can run longer) you'd aim for 45k-80k. My experience is that the ones on the shorter end of that wordcount are YA contemporaries, many of which are around 50k. I'd suggest about 60-80k for a YA mystery.
 

MysteryRiter

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Oh thanks. I read the article. So I guess 70k seems pretty good because this novel is geared more to older YA readers. :)
 

amlptj

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wow mine go WAY over those... hahahaha.

I never used to plan for books, used to just write down whatever i thought would be awesome to happen next, but as the story lines go more complicated then tied into things with my others books in the series i literally dont have the brainpower to keep going without intensive planning, especually since i write them as though they are real, keeping track of days, weather, and stuff like that for every day in a month from anywhere from 2-3 years back is literally impossible!
 

MysteryRiter

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Hi, how come stalky doesn't come up as a word in Microsoft word? I know it is one...
 

MysteryRiter

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It's got a def on dictionary.com, merriam webster and the free dictionary. Why not word?
 

amlptj

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Word is stupid! Oh and did you know Word actually has a limit of how many misspellings and grammer mistakes you can have before they stop tracking them?
 
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