Old People Writing for Teens

Barb D said:

My grandparents are 96 and 94, and want to have their memorial service on their 75th anniversary in June, so that they'll be there to hear what people say.

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that is such a sweet idea.

I quote my MS because I'm coolio like that. That's right, we old people can say hip and groovy words just like you kids. Fo sho.

They (the teens) charged at us with hateful sneers, skateboards raised and ready to hurt, or perhaps even kill the aliens. What in heaven’s name was their problem? Gosh darned bunch of rowdy teens. Back in my day, we treated each other with respect. I just didn’t know what to make of these bitch-ass whippersnappers anymore.

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I should be writing right now. Instead I'm just lurking.

Fo sho.

donut said:

OMG ORIGINAL DEGRASSI YES.

Joey Jeremiah, my heart belongs to you.

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But Joey cheated on Kaytlin! I always liked the Irish guy who had the crush on Spike.

RoseColoredSkies said:

Not to veer off track with the current topic, but I had another (possibly less stres-worthy) topic of discussion.

What makes you want to write YA novels?

For me, my current novel (in editing and shortly off for round one with the betas) is the first YA fiction I've done. I've written a few other novels that haven't been published and I didn't really think about who they would be marketed to.

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I honestly had no intention of writing YA. I did however have this ragtag group of characters who kept popping in and out of my head a couple of times a year over a four or five year period.

After completing my first (adult) book, I couldn't get these characters out of my head. They happened to be in their late teens and their story seemed to fit in more with the YA genre.

Kathleen, it's funny how things turn out, isn't it? My own writing has been all over the map!

Degrassi: Did anyone other than me feel positively ancient when the 'new Degrassi' came out?

Gosh, I loved Spike, too!

I didn't even know Degrassi existed until a few months ago. Of course, I don't live in Canada, but I still couldn't believe I'd never known about it. I lived in a cave, I guess

Angela: Totally. I haven't been able to bring myself to watch a single episode of the new series (not even when Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes were on).

Kaitlin: Degrassi is a goodness. A few US stations carried it, but some of the episodes with swearing or controversial subjects were edited. Some of the episodes are on YT.

Random thought: You wouldn't buy a car without test driving it, yet it seems aspiring authors are willing to dive into a genre without first exploring it.

I think this is especially important for older authors who think they might like to try and write YA. The genre is different than what it was when many of us were teens. Forever is no longer the edgiest kid on the block.

Kathleen42 said:

Random thought: You wouldn't buy a car without test driving it, yet it seems aspiring authors are willing to dive into a genre without first exploring it.

I think this is especially important for older authors who think they might like to try and write YA. The genre is different than what it was when many of us were teens. Forever is no longer the edgiest kid on the block.

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Kathleen:

I don't understand that, either. If a person doesn't enjoy reading YA novels (or children's novels, or romance novels, or whatever), they probably shouldn't attempt to write one. Seems like common sense to me!

Smish said:

Kathleen:

I don't understand that, either. If a person doesn't enjoy reading YA novels (or children's novels, or romance novels, or whatever), they probably shouldn't attempt to write one. Seems like common sense to me!

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Of course, I suppose that does improve our own chances. Perhaps we should only encourage them to read the original Sweet Valley Highs.

Kathleen42 said:

Random thought: You wouldn't buy a car without test driving it, yet it seems aspiring authors are willing to dive into a genre without first exploring it.

I think this is especially important for older authors who think they might like to try and write YA. The genre is different than what it was when many of us were teens. Forever is no longer the edgiest kid on the block.

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And you do you think is writing these edgier books? The majority of published authors of teen fiction are 'old' : )

My sister and I had a book on tape of one of the Sweet Valley books. Whatever they were called when the girls were in middle school (though I think we were probably no older than seven or eight at the time). We used to act it out for our poor mom - we'd play all the characters, just the two of us (or would use stuffed animals if we needed more bodies) and mouth the words along with the tape. My mom must've dreaded it whenever we said we were going to do a performance for her!

Random memory aside, I think it is sort of strange to write a book in a genre you're unfamiliar with if you're not planning to do any research at all into what the genre's about. It also astounds me when people who write say they don't read very much. I guess I always thought it was impossible to love writing if you don't also love reading.

timewaster said:

And you do you think is writing these edgier books? The majority of published authors of teen fiction are 'old' : )

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lol very true.

It may just be ageism on my part. I tend to assume that the posts about swearing and sex are coming from older authors who haven't wandered into the teen section since they were one.

Not that I can entirely blame them. Sometimes I wander around the Teen fiction section feeling out of place and wondering if I seem vaguely creepy.

kaitlin008 said:

My sister and I had a book on tape of one of the Sweet Valley books. Whatever they were called when the girls were in middle school (though I think we were probably no older than seven or eight at the time). We used to act it out for our poor mom - we'd play all the characters, just the two of us (or would use stuffed animals if we needed more bodies) and mouth the words along with the tape. My mom must've dreaded it whenever we said we were going to do a performance for her!

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I've got that beat. I had the Sweet Valley High board game and made my aunt play it every time she came to the house. Bless her. She never complained about having to find the perfect dress and date.

Kathleen42 said:

Not that I can entirely blame them. Sometimes I wander around the Teen fiction section feeling out of place and wondering if I seem vaguely creepy.

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I feel that way too - because in my nearby bookstore, the YA and younger books are downstairs, and the adult books are upstairs. So there's always lots of children there, and it makes me feel awkward.

You can usually tell if older authors haven't got a clue what they're talking about when it comes to teens. The ones who aren't paying attention usually have their teens speaking in a very older way, and using outdated slang and such.

I don't think it is about age. You can have teens speaking in an older way if you set the book in an earlier time. Generally it is best not to get too specific with slang unless the book is set in a clear historical period. The trick is to get teens to sound right without using too much slang, which dates incredibly quickly.

I never feel out of place in a book shop!

Everybody has to stay in touch with the market, but it would be a mistake to think that people who write young actually are young. Mostly we're not.

Kathleen42 said:

Random thought: You wouldn't buy a car without test driving it, yet it seems aspiring authors are willing to dive into a genre without first exploring it.

I think this is especially important for older authors who think they might like to try and write YA. The genre is different than what it was when many of us were teens. Forever is no longer the edgiest kid on the block.

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This is so true. People also tend to thing writing for teens is easier than writing for adults. I know the children's book crowd has to deal with even more of this grief.

Sometimes I wander around the Teen fiction section feeling out of place and wondering if I seem vaguely creepy.

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I've been checking out bunches of YA (see this) from the library, but only the last time I went to pick up my holds did the librarian say, "you sure these are yours?" ha. I realize I always carry this ready-made defense in my head -- "I write YA!" I've never had to use it, though.

No-one's ever commehted (yet) when I buy YA novels from a bookshop or take them out of the library. In the latter case, the "teen" shelves are in the adult section, so I very much doubt I'm the only adult taking books from there.

In the case of bookshops, for all they know you could be looking for a present for a child or teenage relative. (I have a nephew aged 16 and a niece aged 12, but I haven't had to use them as excuses yet.)

People who work in places like WH Smiths (a very large UK newsagent/stationers/booksellers chain) have probably seen everything. Someone must buy top-shelf soft porn or the for-women-by-women erotic novels or they wouldn't be there...and if it would be unprofessional and counterproductive to shout out something like "Is it Big Jugs Monthly today, sir?" it would be just as bad as to say "You do realise this book has an 11+ age band on it and you are a long way past eleven?" Embarrassed customers don't come back.

In any case, the real pervs are usually easy enough to spot.

eyeblink said:

"You do realise this book has an 11+ age band on it and you are a long way past eleven?" Embarrassed customers don't come back.

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That would be hilarious. The clerks at my local bookstore are actually pretty cool and often recommend other YA books for me to check out.

I JUST finished printing out a draft of my novel to revise.... and realized I forgot to put page numbers on it. AAAHHHH

In the name of saving paper, guess I'll be doing it by hand. What's pathetic: I did the same thing last draft, too.

p.s. yes, I've trying to revive this dying thread

I'll throw in an effort at revival as well:

"Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume"

How cool would it be to have that big of an impact?

I'm sure we can discuss favourite makes of pipes and slippers if we need to.

Kathleen42 said:

I'll throw in an effort at revival as well:

"Everything I Needed to Know About Being a Girl I Learned from Judy Blume"

How cool would it be to have that big of an impact?

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That would be some responsibility, wouldn't it?

The modern-day equivalent - in the UK at least - would be someone like Jacqueline Wilson, would it? Sells books by the truckload (mostly to teenage girls), has queues a mile long (not too much of an exaggeration) at signings and is one of the most borrowed authors from UK libraries.

On the revising front, my last novel (07) I printed it out. I didn't page number it because I stuck it in a binder. For some reason I find it easier to edit on the computer (probably because of my eyesight which actually sounds kind of bizarre). Though I didn't have to worry about wasting paper...I used a school printer in one of the labs.

By the way, question for everyone. So in the past, I haven't used betas but I've come to realize their extreme usefulness. They put some distance between you and the story. So the question is, how often to you guys check up with your betas about their progress?

I'm finding it hard not to ask them about their progress (I talk to all 3 of mine on an almost daily basis).

RoseColoredSkies said:

For some reason I find it easier to edit on the computer (probably because of my eyesight which actually sounds kind of bizarre).

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I have to force myself to print it, because I know it helps me see the manuscript differently, but it's frustrating not to be able to make instant edits.