I came across an article written by a teen in the Huffington Post today that set me back on my heels and made me evaluate what I’m writing in my YA Sci-Fi TETRASPHERE series. I was happy to read that I’ve avoided at least some of her pet peeves, but there’s room for improvement. We can all use some guidance from members of our target audience, can’t we? I’m open. Here’s what she had to say:

I know it’s an extremely unpopular opinion. This doesn’t mean that I’ve never read a YA book that I enjoyed. Some of my favorite books fall under the YA genre. But to be honest, I don’t typically like reading young adult novels.

 

Let me just say, this is NOT because I think YA isn’t real literature. I think as a society, we have a tendency to automatically dismiss genres that women (especially young women) really enjoy. Romance and YA are often seen as not ‘real’ fiction, which is stupid, because women and teenage girls are obsessed with both. And if you’re obsessed with something, that means it’s a good book. In my humble opinion, teenage girls are the ultimate judges on culture, even though we’re constantly shamed for our decisions and patronized by adults and teenage boys alike. (You can make fun of “White Girl” things all you want, but that does not change the fact that teenage girls of all races supported both the Beatles and Starbucks before anyone else did, and where would you be without your delicious coffee and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band?)

 

However, despite believing that YA is a genre worthy of literary awards and esteem, it’s still not my favorite. There are a couple of reasons why.

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I don’t know about you, but I both read and write best when I’m alone or when the people around me leave me alone, which is in their best interest as well as mine while I’m engaged in that activity. I’m not anti-social, by any means, but delving into a book (or writing one) is like solitaire. It’s a game best played in solitude.

The flip side is that while I’m not actively involved in the place in my head where my characters live, I’m alive in this world and both want and need to be around others. This article points out how important it is for writers to get together with other writers. It resonated with me, and so I’m happily sharing it with you.

I’m writing my third book in the TETRASPHERE series, and I’m close to the end, where the action heats up and my characters are about to face their greatest challenge; so why would I need a push? The story is going well, I see the next scene in my head, and I’m focused. So what’s the problem?

The bog. If you write, you’re almost certainly familiar with it. You need a new problem to solve, a new action scene, a new twist for your readers, and you’re drawing a blank.

Maybe you’ve reached a point in your story where the characters are saying, “Let’s just finish this. I’m tired of all the drama and want to get on with a normal life.” Or is that you talking? Where’s the fun in ‘normal’?

How do writing prompts give you that little push you need? My husband the tennis-pro would call it cross-training. Doing something different improves the overall performance of any sport writing you’re already immersed in.

I found this great information from a blog I follow: Ride The Pen, and I’m sharing it with you. You’re welcome.

63 Fun Creative Writing Prompts

Welcome to the creative writing prompts page! This is going to be so much fun, and all while you improve your story writing skills.

You can find all kinds of creative writing exercises here. All of them are fiction writing prompts, and they cover almost every genre, plus you can find creative writing prompts about dialogue, characters, plot, for writer’s block, and much, much more…

Interesting writing prompts

This is not the usual stuff. I tried to make these writing prompts intriguing. Most of them are complete scenes and even mini-stories.

You can have them. Yes, you own all the rights, even if you base your entire novel on them and get it published and earn a million dollars for the movie rights. They are all yours.

To become a really good story writer, there is only one thing you need to do: Write! And these creative writing prompts should inspire you to write. They should fire your brain up and make your fingers itch.

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I’d love to hear from you! If you find this helpful, please comment!