- Joined
- Sep 20, 2008
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- 182
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- 59
The bracket I think I'm going for, is older YA, so keep that in mind, with any back and forth we end up with. What I have in mind, the closest other types of books I can come up with, is a bit of a mish-mash of Bordertown/Holly Black's Valiant/Rob Thortons's Moonlight.
I've been doing some back and forth chatting with an old pal, going back some 22 years. He does a lot of urban writing, pretty hard stuff, detailing his time as a bike messenger in SF in the mid 90's (which, if you know anything about that scene, means you know how hardcore those people were- No, he didn't know Puck and says, he wouldn't have wanted to) and what his life was like when he left that. He's chided me, on being too effete, when it comes to how am I trying to convey. He reminds me, I spent my time as a bit of a Riot Grrrl, how we used to roll as teens in a PNW college town and he says, "write it as you know it".
Yeah, yeah....but in YA (as my protagonists are teens, I can't see how it can be for any other market), there are limits as to how and what an author can throw down. By that, I mean, even if a scene or event is critical to plot point or character development, I would imagine an editor would look twice as descriptive manipulative sex is going on (needs to be so, to get the hows and whats of that pivotal relationship), under the influence of several drugs, while a pack of skate boys burns down the house next door.
I know, I should write the book as I see it and then worry about that sort of thing later. To just get it out on paper/harddrive, but I have limited time per day to write and I want to make the most of it. Putting down scene's that shouldn't actually be in a marketable book for the genre, seems wasteful of time and will be a nightmare to edit back out.
Then I think of non-fantasy/paranormal YA books, Looking for Alaska, 13 Reasons Why, Speak and there is quite graphic content, in some cases, repeatedly, and it passed with approval by the editor. Different sub-genre, and often, to my eye, a different conclusion for the reader to come to, but still...
So really, I am torn as to telling it as I see it, or seeing it and being more circumspect in how I show it.
Thoughts, opinions, advice from those YA published...whatever you want to toss my way..
I've been doing some back and forth chatting with an old pal, going back some 22 years. He does a lot of urban writing, pretty hard stuff, detailing his time as a bike messenger in SF in the mid 90's (which, if you know anything about that scene, means you know how hardcore those people were- No, he didn't know Puck and says, he wouldn't have wanted to) and what his life was like when he left that. He's chided me, on being too effete, when it comes to how am I trying to convey. He reminds me, I spent my time as a bit of a Riot Grrrl, how we used to roll as teens in a PNW college town and he says, "write it as you know it".
Yeah, yeah....but in YA (as my protagonists are teens, I can't see how it can be for any other market), there are limits as to how and what an author can throw down. By that, I mean, even if a scene or event is critical to plot point or character development, I would imagine an editor would look twice as descriptive manipulative sex is going on (needs to be so, to get the hows and whats of that pivotal relationship), under the influence of several drugs, while a pack of skate boys burns down the house next door.
I know, I should write the book as I see it and then worry about that sort of thing later. To just get it out on paper/harddrive, but I have limited time per day to write and I want to make the most of it. Putting down scene's that shouldn't actually be in a marketable book for the genre, seems wasteful of time and will be a nightmare to edit back out.
Then I think of non-fantasy/paranormal YA books, Looking for Alaska, 13 Reasons Why, Speak and there is quite graphic content, in some cases, repeatedly, and it passed with approval by the editor. Different sub-genre, and often, to my eye, a different conclusion for the reader to come to, but still...
So really, I am torn as to telling it as I see it, or seeing it and being more circumspect in how I show it.
Thoughts, opinions, advice from those YA published...whatever you want to toss my way..