***** THIS EVENT IS NOW CLOSED******
The day you've been waiting for has arrived! *tosses confetti*
Instructions for the YA Scramble:
1) Visit the first blog (based on list below).
2) Read the guestpost.
3) Identify the
PURPLE word.
4) Pick out the 3rd letter from the purple word.
5) Go to the next blog.
6) Repeat #3, #4,and #5 until you visited all 14 sites.
7) At the end, take all 14 of the 3rd letters from the PURPLE words and figure out the message near and dear to our hearts.
HINT: The secret phrase is 4 words long.
8) Enter the unscrambled message ONCE into
this form as your official entry for a chance to win some great prizes from fantastic authors and bloggers.
Participating Blogs - all must be visited:
✯
Kaitlin Simpson
✯
Kathleen Tucker
✯
Jennifer Morris
✯
Cyndi Tefft (You're here!)
✯
Melissa Layton
✯
Megg Jensen
✯
Laura Elliott
Jennifer Morris from Books Make Happy Reviews is guesting on the blog today!
Hello there
everyone!! I’m so excited to be here on Cyndi’s blog today! I’d like to say a
big, BIG thank you to her for putting this event together, and for hosting me.
So… YA fiction.
Today’s Young Adult books are full of fantastic stories based around amazing
characters. There are hardships, and
triumphs, and romances, and heartache, and mythology and realism, and honesty
and incredible imagination. YA authors create characters we love, stories we
love, and give us places and times we can lose ourselves in.
All of this
sounds EXACTLY like what I would say about some of my favorite ADULT fiction.
In fact, some of my favorite adult fiction authors write for the young adult
audience as well! How handy is THAT? Teens that read, and fall in love with a
particular author, have an ever increasing chance to find more from the same
author when they transition into reading adult fiction. I don’t know if this
has always been as widespread as I find it to be now. I don’t believe it has.
But I can count on two hands, and be in need of additional fingers, the authors
I can think of just off the top of my head that write in both the YA and adult
fiction genres. (Let’s name a few, shall we? Richelle Mead, Deborah Cooke,
Jackie [Morse] Kessler, Jennifer Estep, Wendy Delsol, John Grisham, James
Patterson, Gena Showalter, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Michelle ROWEN,
Rachel Caine, Lilith Saintcrow, Rachel Vincent, Dina James, Ridley Pearson, Stephenie
Meyer, Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr… and there are others, shall
I go on??)
My question is…
what prompts an adult fiction author to enter the YA lit world? What draws them
into writing for a younger audience? Is there a different procedure or mindset
for writing for YA? Are there any drawbacks or limitations? These are a few
questions I asked a couple of authors who were included in the list above:
1 - Did you
start your writing career in YA, or did you come into this age group later? If
you came into it later, what prompted the change?
Dina James: I came into the age group later at the
encouragement of a former editor. It was so much of a prompted change as a
"please try this I want to see what you do." I tried it with a short
story and the rest just followed. I never intended to write YA. I just sort of
fell into it.
Wendy Delsol: I started writing adult fiction. My first two
novels (attempts, perhaps the accurate term) were in this genre. THE MCCLOUD
HOME FOR WAYWARD GIRLS was the third novel I wrote. While it was making the
rounds with agents, I decided to give YA a go. I wrote STORK in five months,
and it was the project with which I found my agent. The decision to try YA was
equal parts experimentation as a new writer and market driven.
2 - Do you
approach writing adult novels and YA novels differently? Is there a different
preparation necessary? A different mindset during the writing process?
DJ: Yes I do. When writing YA I'm constantly aware of
"adult situations" and actions, especially dialogue. Where I can have
my adult character do and say things I'm accustomed to, younger people think
and respond differently, as they don't have the life experience to draw on an
older character might. For instance, I can't have a 14 year old playing a video
game that was around before they were born (unless of course it's that character's
hobby/collection/obsession, whatever, but that can be justified in the story),
or driving a car (legally) or drinking alcohol (again, legally). So you have to
think about those things. If your character needs to get somewhere across town and they can't
drive, you have to find a way to get them there. The bus, a friend, portable
hole (yeah, I know, my geekdom is showing!)... so you do have to think a little
differently, but nothing that varies too much.
WD: I write YA in the first person because I think this
perspective best mirrors the psychology of a teen. At the crossroads between
childhood and adulthood, experiences are up-close and personal. So far, I’ve
written my adult fiction in third person with close perspectives from multiple
characters. I tend to use a multi-generational cast as well as flashback scenes
to really get into the dynamics and history of the relationships. I’m not sure
the preparation—i.e. the get-to-know-you period between the writer and
character—is any different. It’s all about fleshing out your protagonist(s)
until they feel unique and authentic.
3 - Are
there any benefits to writing for a YA audience? Any drawbacks?
DJ: When I was first asked to try a YA story, I balked at the
idea. "But I don't write for kids," was my immediate response.
Encouragement followed and, despite my reluctance and apprehension, I gave it a
shot. I didn't like it. I felt it was restrictive. I couldn't do the things I
was used to, etc. In my adult writing there's sex, kissing, blood, guts, and gore.
Then I started looking around at what the genre really included. YA is
everything adult writing is, only it's through the eyes of a younger person.
How young people see things. They are not sheltered from life's trials and tribulations
because they are younger. Things that seem small and insignificant to an adult
("this person doesn't like me") can be world-shattering for a teen or
tween. Young people react to stress and the world in general in ways different from
adults, and seeing things through their eyes is interesting. In YA, there is
still sex, kissing, blood, guts and gore. It's just the reactions by the
characters that are different, and the graphic depictions are toned down.
The only drawback I can think of is the consciousness of the effect
your story will have on young people. Books meant so much to me growing up and
I admit to having been influenced in my choices by a novel or two. The only solution
is to try not to think about it so much that you end up writing a
"cotton" novel - one in which your character is wrapped in cotton so
as not to be wounded by the story's events. Just be aware that what you write
can (and most likely will) affect someone in some way. You can't control that,
so don't worry about it and just write.
WD: There is an excitement for, and interest in YA that is a
definite benefit. Readers and bloggers are passionate about the genre. They’re
also more likely to follow a character through a series of books. From a
writer’s perspective, there’s no drawback to that kind of enthusiasm.
4 - Do your
YA novels draw your adult fans, or do you have two distinct followings?
DJ: Honestly, I have no idea. I think they're combined,
really. I know there are young people who enjoy my YA, and adults who enjoy it
too, but I'm not sure about the young people enjoying my adult writing. Good
question. Clueless author.
WD: Given that it has been less than a year since my first
book (STORK, a YA) was published and only weeks since my first adult novel (THE
MCCLOUD HOME FOR WAYWARD GIRLS) released, I’m still building a following. I do
hope eventually for crossover between the two genres.
5 - Have
there been any surprises writing in the YA genre? Any myths you've busted, or
unexpected issues you've had to deal with?
DJ: Myths I've busted: "You can't do that in YA." Oh
yeah? Whatever the situation, someone has written it in YA and it's been fine.
Swearing, sex, abuse, violence, whatever. You can have and do whatever you want
in YA that you'd do in adult writing, but it has to be "suitable for the
audience." Think of it like the movie ratings. G, PG, PG-13, R, NC-17, X. In
YA, you're aiming for that G - PG-13 range. This means that you can have some
violence and language and so on. It just can't be horrific and graphic or
extended. Unexpected issues? I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did, and
I didn't expect to develop a series out of it. (Or continue it, for that
matter...)
WD: The biggest surprise in writing YA has been how many
readers and reviewers are adults (which lends itself to my hope that there will
be crossover fans). I think it speaks to the universal, coming-to-age themes of
YA. Even years later, adults relate to and remember their own teen years.
6 - Is there
anything else you'd like to share about writing YA in addition to adult novels?
DJ: All YA really means is that your lead character is under
the age of 18. That's it. Just because the lead is about a young person doesn't
mean the book won't appeal to an audience outside your target. Just write the
book.
I’d like to
thank (with big hugs, chocolate, tea and whatever else makes them smile) Dina James and Wendy Delsol for their insight.
Now… a
question for you… What authors do YOU love that write in both the YA and the
adult genres? What do you think are the major differences? Similarities? I’d love
to hear your thoughts. AND… 2 lucky commenters (randomly selected) will win
books from authors who write in both genres!!! One person will win an ARC of
Jackie Morse Kessler’s LOSS (3rd book in the Riders of the Apocalypse series and one person will win a copy of
Deborah Cooke’s FLYING BLIND (1st in the Dragon Diaries series. Both books will be donated by
their authors and mailed directly to the winner. (Please include your email and
first name in your comment so you can be reached if you win. If you don’t, you
will NOT be eligible.)
**Did you
find the word in my post in purple caps?** You need to collect the 3rd letter
of that word, along with the 3rd letter of the purple words in the
blog posts of the 13 other YA Scramble participants, unscramble the letters to discover
their hidden message, and fill out THIS FORM to enter to win the Massive Grand Prize Of Mega Awesomeness!
What’s in the Massive Grand Prize Of Mega Awesomeness, you ask??
List of
items in the MASSIVE GRAND PRIZE OF MEGA AWESOMENESS:
-
ARC of The Near Witch by Victoria
Schwab (with signed bookmark)
-
Ebook of Solstice by PJ Hoover (with
trading cards)
-
Ebook of The Space Between by
Alexandra Sokoloff
-
Paperback copy of Perception by
Heather Cashman
-
Signed paperback ARC of Anathema by
Kathleen Tucker
-
Chronicles of Vladimir Tod Gift Set
(Trade Paperback of Eighth Grade Bites, Vlad Journal, Minion Bling Buttons and
Vlad Tote)
-
Signed paperback copy of Between by
Cyndi Tefft
-
Signed hardcover of Clarity by Kim
Harrington
-
ARC of Daughter of Smoke and Bone by
Laini Taylor
-
Signed ARC of Fury by Elizabeth
Miles
-
Signed paperback of Linger by Maggie
Stiefvater
-
ARC of Tris & Izzie by Mette
Ivie Harrison
-
Copy of The Iron Witch by Karen
Mahoney
-
Winner's choice of 5 ebooks from a
list of indie authors
-
Signed paperback of Sleepers by Megg
Jensen
-
Ebooks of Soul Quest and The
Guardians of Souls by Amy Jones
-
Kindle copy of Winnemucca by Laura
Elliott (plus a guest post spot on her blog!)
-
Paperback copy of City of Bones by
Cassandra Clare
Don’t forget
to leave your comment on this blog to enter to win my individual prizes before you head
out to the next site. Good luck, and have FUN!!
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