24 June 2010

Believable Teenagers

What was I thinking when I decided to write a Young Adult audience novel? By definition, a YA novel requires a teenage protagonist. This would suggest that I had some small idea about how teenagers act. Somehow all of the junior high and high school drama, angst and distractions have been blocked from my mind. I'm having a hard time making my main character believable.

She's nice, she likes school and drawing, enjoys hanging out with her friends and going shopping. She isn't overly angsty and she doesn't fight with her parents every second of every day.

Don't worry, she finds herself hopelessly addicted to a new drug (sort of) in the first chapter of the book. So now she's not boring. Poor girl. Maybe I should go find some teenagers to talk to. Wait, no, never mind. I'd rather get kicked in the ribs at Kempo class. (Joking, I'm joking.)

3 comments:

Stacey said...

So she's a lot like you were as a teenager, minus the drug.

Lace and Books said...

Teens are easy. Remove all logic and have them react with hyperbole, emotion and hormones.

"But Mr. Carsonnnnnnnnnnnn, if you take away my cell phone I'm gonna die!"

*take cell phone anyway* - see you didn't die

You hate me! *snippy anger* You hate me because I failing Chemistry.

No I don't hate you and you're failing my class because you keep texting while I lecture.

But it's so not fair! *pout* It's not fair at all is it Timmy *starts flirting with Timmy the student next to her for sympathy* You wouldn't take my phone a way?

SEEE easy.

-Jo- said...

Great, I've created a Mary Sue story. Now I'm gonna have to kill myself.
How was that?