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Table of Contents
About This Book Conventions Used in This Book What You’re Not to Read Foolish Assumptions How This Book Is Organized Part I: Getting Ready to Write Young Adult Fiction Part II: Writing Riveting Young Adult Fiction Part III: Editing, Revising, and Formatting Your Manuscript Part IV: Getting Published Part V: The Part of Tens Icons Used in This Book Where to Go from Here
Part I: Getting Ready to Write Young Adult Fiction Part II: Writing Riveting Young Adult Fiction Part III: Editing, Revising, and Formatting Your Manuscript Part IV: Getting Published Part V: The Part of Tens
Chapter 1: The Lowdown on YA Fiction Introducing YA and Its Readers Knowing what makes a YA a YA Understanding why YA fiction is for kids Looking at why it’s not just for kids Maneuvering through the Challenges Reaching reluctant readers Pacifying gatekeepers Enjoying the Perks of Writing for Young Adults Getting new waves of readers: Long live the renewable audience! Gaining a following: The young and the quenchless Breaking the rules Chapter 2: Targeting Teen Readers Identifying Your Teen or Tween Audience Choosing your age range Targeting gender Exercise: Name your category Knowing Your Genre Exploring genres of YA fiction Writing cross-genre novels Thinking through the Theme Looking at universal teen themes Making timeless themes relevant today Exercise: Choose your theme Making or Chasing Trends Chapter 3: Managing Your Muse Setting Yourself Up to Write Carving out your writing space Protecting your writing time Setting Your Muse Loose Capturing ideas Getting the words to flow Bulldozing your way through writer’s block Outlining the Right Way (for You) Outlining the whole story Planning portions Tossing out the outline Doing Research, YA-Style Taking notes and keeping records Following general research guidelines Finding reliable online resources Doing field research to make the teen realm yours Putting the brakes on research Revealing what you know Finding Your People: The YA Community Joining a professional organization: What SCBWI should mean to you Attending writers’ conferences Keeping up with the biz: YA-specific journals Checking out the online community Joining a critique group
Introducing YA and Its Readers Knowing what makes a YA a YA Understanding why YA fiction is for kids Looking at why it’s not just for kids Maneuvering through the Challenges Reaching reluctant readers Pacifying gatekeepers Enjoying the Perks of Writing for Young Adults Getting new waves of readers: Long live the renewable audience! Gaining a following: The young and the quenchless Breaking the rules
Knowing what makes a YA a YA Understanding why YA fiction is for kids Looking at why it’s not just for kids
Reaching reluctant readers Pacifying gatekeepers
Getting new waves of readers: Long live the renewable audience! Gaining a following: The young and the quenchless Breaking the rules
Identifying Your Teen or Tween Audience Choosing your age range Targeting gender Exercise: Name your category Knowing Your Genre Exploring genres of YA fiction Writing cross-genre novels Thinking through the Theme Looking at universal teen themes Making timeless themes relevant today Exercise: Choose your theme Making or Chasing Trends
Choosing your age range Targeting gender Exercise: Name your category
Exploring genres of YA fiction Writing cross-genre novels
Looking at universal teen themes Making timeless themes relevant today Exercise: Choose your theme
Setting Yourself Up to Write Carving out your writing space Protecting your writing time Setting Your Muse Loose Capturing ideas Getting the words to flow Bulldozing your way through writer’s block Outlining the Right Way (for You) Outlining the whole story Planning portions Tossing out the outline Doing Research, YA-Style Taking notes and keeping records Following general research guidelines Finding reliable online resources Doing field research to make the teen realm yours Putting the brakes on research Revealing what you know Finding Your People: The YA Community Joining a professional organization: What SCBWI should mean to you Attending writers’ conferences Keeping up with the biz: YA-specific journals Checking out the online community Joining a critique group
Carving out your writing space Protecting your writing time
Capturing ideas Getting the words to flow Bulldozing your way through writer’s block
Outlining the whole story Planning portions Tossing out the outline
Taking notes and keeping records Following general research guidelines Finding reliable online resources Doing field research to make the teen realm yours Putting the brakes on research Revealing what you know
Joining a professional organization: What SCBWI should mean to you Attending writers’ conferences Keeping up with the biz: YA-specific journals Checking out the online community Joining a critique group
Chapter 4: Writing the Almighty Hook Understanding the Importance of a Hook Calling your shot for others Calling your shot for yourself Writing a Great Hook in Four Easy Steps Step 1: Introduce your character Step 2: State your theme Step 3: Assert your core plot conflict or goal Step 4: Add context Exercise: Write your hook Using Your Hook to Shape Your Story Chapter 5: Creating Teen-Friendly Characters Casting Characters Teens Care About Calling all heroes Selecting a jury of peers Offing the old people Bringing Your Characters to Life Revealing character through action Revealing character through dialogue Getting physical The beauty of flaws: Creating a not-so-perfect character Backstory: Knowing the secret past Exercise: Create a full character profile Putting Your Characters to Work Making the introductions Using character arc to drive your plot Granting independence to teen characters Writing Believable Baddies Giving the villains goals and dreams Seeing the good in the bad Making an example of an antagonist Exercise: Write a character profile for your antagonist Chapter 6: Building the Perfect Plot Choosing the Approach to Your Plot Acting on events: Plot-driven stories Focusing on feelings: Character-driven stories Seven Steps to the Perfect Plot Step 1: Engage your ESP Step 2: Compute the problem Step 3: Flip the switch Step 4: Dog pile on the protagonist Step 5: Epiphany! Step 6: Final push Step 7: Triumph Exercise: Plot your trigger points Tackling Pacing and Tension Picking up the pace Slowing the pace Creating tension Managing Your Subplots Pulling Off Prologues, Flashbacks, and Epilogues Prologues Flashbacks Epilogues Chapter 7: Creating Teen-Driven Action Grabbing Teens’ Attention Opening with action Tell ’em how it is: Giving key info Making promises Pushing Readers’ Buttons with Scenes and Chapters Knowing a scene from a chapter Mastering transitions Leaving Teens Satisfied Empowering your teen lead Keeping it real Keeping your promise Delivering a twist Chapter 8: Setting Is More than Somewhere to Be How the Where and When Affect the Who, What, and Why Place Time Social context Setting Up Your Characters Manipulating their minds Putting words in their mouths Kicking characters in the pants Tying Your Plot to Your Place Choosing the Best Setting for Your Teen Novel Making the Setting Come Alive Engaging the five senses Sample scene: Two girls on a bus Researching your setting Weaving the Setting into Your Narrative Sprinkling versus splashing Stacking the sensory details Keeping it young Giving the setting a job Freshening up common settings Chapter 9: Crafting a Narrative Voice Teens Will Listen To . . . and Love I’m Not Talking Dialogue Here: The True Meaning of Narrative Voice Getting a feel for narrative voice Seeing what goes into narrative voice Pinning Down Your Narrator and Point of View First-person POV Second-person POV Third-person limited POV Third-person omniscient POV The unreliable narrator Exercise: Developing your narrative POV Making Sense of Teen Sensibility Self-awareness and the teen psyche Embrace your inner drama queen Word Choice: It Pays to Be Picky Say what? Using appropriate words for your audience Getting fresh with your phraseology Exercise: Creating a word bank Showing a little style Syncing Your Delivery to Your Audience Sizing up sentence structure and paragraphing Putting punctuation in its place Show It, Don’t Tell It Chapter 10: Talking Like a Teen Telling Your Story through Dialogue Character and mood: Letting your teens talk about themselves Delivering information: Loose lips reveal plot and backstory Choosing the setting: Their “where” determines their words Even Old People Can Sound Young Rediscovering your immaturity Relaxing the grammar Ditching the fake teen accent Cussing with caution What the Best Dialogue Doesn’t Say Censoring the babble Dodging the question Avoiding info dumps Getting the Balance Right: Dialogue and Narrative Taking breathers with beats Making the action count He said, she said: Doling out dialogue tags Welcoming teens with white space Weighing your balance of dialogue and narrative Doing a Little Mind Reading: Direct Thoughts Part III: Editing, Revising, and Formatting Your Manuscript Chapter 11: Editing and Revising with Confidence Self-Editing, Where Every Revision Begins The read-through: Shifting your mindset from writing to editing Self-editing checklist Calling in the Posse: The Give and Take of Critiquing Participating in a critique group Hiring a freelance editor Getting input from teens and tweens Revising with Confidence Starting big and finishing small Taking chances with your changes Knowing the final draft when you see it Chapter 12: The Finishing Touches: Formatting and Finalizing Paying Attention to Nitty-Gritty Details Patrolling punctuation Avoiding basic blunders with easily confused words Running spell-check Making Passes: Professionals Proofread (Twice) Formatting the Standard YA Manuscript Page setup and such: Tackling the technical stuff Putting the right stuff on the first page Protecting What’s Yours and Getting Permission Copyrighting your manuscript Understanding plagiarism, permission, and perfectly fair use Asking for the okay Crediting your sources Part IV: Getting Published Chapter 13: Strategizing and Packaging Your Submissions Creating Your Submission Strategy Compiling your submission list Identifying the right editor for you Deciding to work with an agent Query Letters, Your Number-One Selling Tool Why queries feel like the be all, end all . . . and are Writing a successful query letter Writing an Effective Synopsis Drafting the synopsis Tweaking the tone and tense Formatting a synopsis Packaging Your Submission What to include What not to include The skinny on sample chapters Keeping Your Fingers Crossed Enduring the wait for a response Receiving the long-awaited news Turning “No” into “Yes!” Using rejection to strengthen your story (and maybe resubmit it!) Reading between the rejection-letter lines Keeping your ego (and feelings) out of it Chapter 14: Self-Publishing: Is It for You? What’s So Different about Self-Publishing? Eyeing the benefits Realizing the drawbacks Understanding Your Publishing Options Traditional publishing Print-on-demand (POD) Digital publishing Knowing the Players Author services companies Publisher services companies Distributors Wholesalers Booksellers Weighing Self-Publishing for Your YA Fiction Common scenarios for self-publishers Balancing your goals, your guts, and your wallet Chapter 15: Mastering Marketing Laying the Foundation Working with a Marketing Team Understanding the marketing department’s role Calling in reinforcements: Freelance publicists Marketing Yourself: I Write; Therefore, I Promote Creating and maintaining a platform Gathering your marketing materials Garnering book reviews Part V: The Part of Tens Chapter 16: Ten Common Pitfalls in Writing YA Fiction Dating a Book Slinging Slang S-E-X Writing Cliché Characters and Situations Preaching Dumbing It Down Writing for 18+ Putting Adults at the Helm The Waving Author Writing to Trends Chapter 17: Ten Facts about Book Contracts Does the Publisher Own the Copyright to My Book? What Does “Buy All Rights” Mean? What are Subsidiary Rights? What’s the Deal with Electronic Rights? What Does “Advance Against Royalties” Mean? What’s the Difference between Royalties on “Net” and “Gross”? Why Do My Royalties Go to My Agent? What’s a Boilerplate? Am I Protected from Libel Suits? What’s an Option, and Why Would I Grant It? Chapter 18: Ten Ways to Make the Most of a Conference Set Reasonable Goals and Make a Plan to Achieve Them Research the Faculty Pay for One-on-One Critiques Perfect Your Pitch Prepare Your Manuscript Create a Conference Notebook Bring Bookmarks or Business Cards Make Notes on the Business Cards You Receive Save Conference Expense Receipts for Tax Records Set Aside a Post-Conference Recovery Phase Cheat Sheet
Understanding the Importance of a Hook Calling your shot for others Calling your shot for yourself Writing a Great Hook in Four Easy Steps Step 1: Introduce your character Step 2: State your theme Step 3: Assert your core plot conflict or goal Step 4: Add context Exercise: Write your hook Using Your Hook to Shape Your Story
Calling your shot for others Calling your shot for yourself
Step 1: Introduce your character Step 2: State your theme Step 3: Assert your core plot conflict or goal Step 4: Add context Exercise: Write your hook
Casting Characters Teens Care About Calling all heroes Selecting a jury of peers Offing the old people Bringing Your Characters to Life Revealing character through action Revealing character through dialogue Getting physical The beauty of flaws: Creating a not-so-perfect character Backstory: Knowing the secret past Exercise: Create a full character profile Putting Your Characters to Work Making the introductions Using character arc to drive your plot Granting independence to teen characters Writing Believable Baddies Giving the villains goals and dreams Seeing the good in the bad Making an example of an antagonist Exercise: Write a character profile for your antagonist
Calling all heroes Selecting a jury of peers Offing the old people
Revealing character through action Revealing character through dialogue Getting physical The beauty of flaws: Creating a not-so-perfect character Backstory: Knowing the secret past Exercise: Create a full character profile
Making the introductions Using character arc to drive your plot Granting independence to teen characters
Giving the villains goals and dreams Seeing the good in the bad Making an example of an antagonist Exercise: Write a character profile for your antagonist
Choosing the Approach to Your Plot Acting on events: Plot-driven stories Focusing on feelings: Character-driven stories Seven Steps to the Perfect Plot Step 1: Engage your ESP Step 2: Compute the problem Step 3: Flip the switch Step 4: Dog pile on the protagonist Step 5: Epiphany! Step 6: Final push Step 7: Triumph Exercise: Plot your trigger points Tackling Pacing and Tension Picking up the pace Slowing the pace Creating tension Managing Your Subplots Pulling Off Prologues, Flashbacks, and Epilogues Prologues Flashbacks Epilogues
Acting on events: Plot-driven stories Focusing on feelings: Character-driven stories
Step 1: Engage your ESP Step 2: Compute the problem Step 3: Flip the switch Step 4: Dog pile on the protagonist Step 5: Epiphany! Step 6: Final push Step 7: Triumph Exercise: Plot your trigger points
Picking up the pace Slowing the pace Creating tension
Prologues Flashbacks Epilogues
Grabbing Teens’ Attention Opening with action Tell ’em how it is: Giving key info Making promises Pushing Readers’ Buttons with Scenes and Chapters Knowing a scene from a chapter Mastering transitions Leaving Teens Satisfied Empowering your teen lead Keeping it real Keeping your promise Delivering a twist
Opening with action Tell ’em how it is: Giving key info Making promises
Knowing a scene from a chapter Mastering transitions
Empowering your teen lead Keeping it real Keeping your promise Delivering a twist
How the Where and When Affect the Who, What, and Why Place Time Social context Setting Up Your Characters Manipulating their minds Putting words in their mouths Kicking characters in the pants Tying Your Plot to Your Place Choosing the Best Setting for Your Teen Novel Making the Setting Come Alive Engaging the five senses Sample scene: Two girls on a bus Researching your setting Weaving the Setting into Your Narrative Sprinkling versus splashing Stacking the sensory details Keeping it young Giving the setting a job Freshening up common settings
Place Time Social context
Manipulating their minds Putting words in their mouths Kicking characters in the pants
Engaging the five senses Sample scene: Two girls on a bus Researching your setting
Sprinkling versus splashing Stacking the sensory details Keeping it young Giving the setting a job Freshening up common settings
I’m Not Talking Dialogue Here: The True Meaning of Narrative Voice Getting a feel for narrative voice Seeing what goes into narrative voice Pinning Down Your Narrator and Point of View First-person POV Second-person POV Third-person limited POV Third-person omniscient POV The unreliable narrator Exercise: Developing your narrative POV Making Sense of Teen Sensibility Self-awareness and the teen psyche Embrace your inner drama queen Word Choice: It Pays to Be Picky Say what? Using appropriate words for your audience Getting fresh with your phraseology Exercise: Creating a word bank Showing a little style Syncing Your Delivery to Your Audience Sizing up sentence structure and paragraphing Putting punctuation in its place Show It, Don’t Tell It
Getting a feel for narrative voice Seeing what goes into narrative voice
First-person POV Second-person POV Third-person limited POV Third-person omniscient POV The unreliable narrator Exercise: Developing your narrative POV
Self-awareness and the teen psyche Embrace your inner drama queen
Say what? Using appropriate words for your audience Getting fresh with your phraseology Exercise: Creating a word bank Showing a little style
Sizing up sentence structure and paragraphing Putting punctuation in its place
Telling Your Story through Dialogue Character and mood: Letting your teens talk about themselves Delivering information: Loose lips reveal plot and backstory Choosing the setting: Their “where” determines their words Even Old People Can Sound Young Rediscovering your immaturity Relaxing the grammar Ditching the fake teen accent Cussing with caution What the Best Dialogue Doesn’t Say Censoring the babble Dodging the question Avoiding info dumps Getting the Balance Right: Dialogue and Narrative Taking breathers with beats Making the action count He said, she said: Doling out dialogue tags Welcoming teens with white space Weighing your balance of dialogue and narrative Doing a Little Mind Reading: Direct Thoughts
Character and mood: Letting your teens talk about themselves Delivering information: Loose lips reveal plot and backstory Choosing the setting: Their “where” determines their words
Rediscovering your immaturity Relaxing the grammar Ditching the fake teen accent Cussing with caution
Censoring the babble Dodging the question Avoiding info dumps
Taking breathers with beats Making the action count He said, she said: Doling out dialogue tags Welcoming teens with white space Weighing your balance of dialogue and narrative
Chapter 11: Editing and Revising with Confidence Self-Editing, Where Every Revision Begins The read-through: Shifting your mindset from writing to editing Self-editing checklist Calling in the Posse: The Give and Take of Critiquing Participating in a critique group Hiring a freelance editor Getting input from teens and tweens Revising with Confidence Starting big and finishing small Taking chances with your changes Knowing the final draft when you see it Chapter 12: The Finishing Touches: Formatting and Finalizing Paying Attention to Nitty-Gritty Details Patrolling punctuation Avoiding basic blunders with easily confused words Running spell-check Making Passes: Professionals Proofread (Twice) Formatting the Standard YA Manuscript Page setup and such: Tackling the technical stuff Putting the right stuff on the first page Protecting What’s Yours and Getting Permission Copyrighting your manuscript Understanding plagiarism, permission, and perfectly fair use Asking for the okay Crediting your sources
Self-Editing, Where Every Revision Begins The read-through: Shifting your mindset from writing to editing Self-editing checklist Calling in the Posse: The Give and Take of Critiquing Participating in a critique group Hiring a freelance editor Getting input from teens and tweens Revising with Confidence Starting big and finishing small Taking chances with your changes Knowing the final draft when you see it
The read-through: Shifting your mindset from writing to editing Self-editing checklist
Participating in a critique group Hiring a freelance editor Getting input from teens and tweens
Starting big and finishing small Taking chances with your changes Knowing the final draft when you see it
Paying Attention to Nitty-Gritty Details Patrolling punctuation Avoiding basic blunders with easily confused words Running spell-check Making Passes: Professionals Proofread (Twice) Formatting the Standard YA Manuscript Page setup and such: Tackling the technical stuff Putting the right stuff on the first page Protecting What’s Yours and Getting Permission Copyrighting your manuscript Understanding plagiarism, permission, and perfectly fair use Asking for the okay Crediting your sources
Patrolling punctuation Avoiding basic blunders with easily confused words Running spell-check
Page setup and such: Tackling the technical stuff Putting the right stuff on the first page
Copyrighting your manuscript Understanding plagiarism, permission, and perfectly fair use Asking for the okay Crediting your sources
Chapter 13: Strategizing and Packaging Your Submissions Creating Your Submission Strategy Compiling your submission list Identifying the right editor for you Deciding to work with an agent Query Letters, Your Number-One Selling Tool Why queries feel like the be all, end all . . . and are Writing a successful query letter Writing an Effective Synopsis Drafting the synopsis Tweaking the tone and tense Formatting a synopsis Packaging Your Submission What to include What not to include The skinny on sample chapters Keeping Your Fingers Crossed Enduring the wait for a response Receiving the long-awaited news Turning “No” into “Yes!” Using rejection to strengthen your story (and maybe resubmit it!) Reading between the rejection-letter lines Keeping your ego (and feelings) out of it Chapter 14: Self-Publishing: Is It for You? What’s So Different about Self-Publishing? Eyeing the benefits Realizing the drawbacks Understanding Your Publishing Options Traditional publishing Print-on-demand (POD) Digital publishing Knowing the Players Author services companies Publisher services companies Distributors Wholesalers Booksellers Weighing Self-Publishing for Your YA Fiction Common scenarios for self-publishers Balancing your goals, your guts, and your wallet Chapter 15: Mastering Marketing Laying the Foundation Working with a Marketing Team Understanding the marketing department’s role Calling in reinforcements: Freelance publicists Marketing Yourself: I Write; Therefore, I Promote Creating and maintaining a platform Gathering your marketing materials Garnering book reviews
Creating Your Submission Strategy Compiling your submission list Identifying the right editor for you Deciding to work with an agent Query Letters, Your Number-One Selling Tool Why queries feel like the be all, end all . . . and are Writing a successful query letter Writing an Effective Synopsis Drafting the synopsis Tweaking the tone and tense Formatting a synopsis Packaging Your Submission What to include What not to include The skinny on sample chapters Keeping Your Fingers Crossed Enduring the wait for a response Receiving the long-awaited news Turning “No” into “Yes!” Using rejection to strengthen your story (and maybe resubmit it!) Reading between the rejection-letter lines Keeping your ego (and feelings) out of it
Compiling your submission list Identifying the right editor for you Deciding to work with an agent
Why queries feel like the be all, end all . . . and are Writing a successful query letter
Drafting the synopsis Tweaking the tone and tense Formatting a synopsis
What to include What not to include The skinny on sample chapters
Enduring the wait for a response Receiving the long-awaited news
Using rejection to strengthen your story (and maybe resubmit it!) Reading between the rejection-letter lines Keeping your ego (and feelings) out of it
What’s So Different about Self-Publishing? Eyeing the benefits Realizing the drawbacks Understanding Your Publishing Options Traditional publishing Print-on-demand (POD) Digital publishing Knowing the Players Author services companies Publisher services companies Distributors Wholesalers Booksellers Weighing Self-Publishing for Your YA Fiction Common scenarios for self-publishers Balancing your goals, your guts, and your wallet
Eyeing the benefits Realizing the drawbacks
Traditional publishing Print-on-demand (POD) Digital publishing
Author services companies Publisher services companies Distributors Wholesalers Booksellers
Common scenarios for self-publishers Balancing your goals, your guts, and your wallet
Laying the Foundation Working with a Marketing Team Understanding the marketing department’s role Calling in reinforcements: Freelance publicists Marketing Yourself: I Write; Therefore, I Promote Creating and maintaining a platform Gathering your marketing materials Garnering book reviews
Understanding the marketing department’s role Calling in reinforcements: Freelance publicists
Creating and maintaining a platform Gathering your marketing materials Garnering book reviews
Chapter 16: Ten Common Pitfalls in Writing YA Fiction Dating a Book Slinging Slang S-E-X Writing Cliché Characters and Situations Preaching Dumbing It Down Writing for 18+ Putting Adults at the Helm The Waving Author Writing to Trends Chapter 17: Ten Facts about Book Contracts Does the Publisher Own the Copyright to My Book? What Does “Buy All Rights” Mean? What are Subsidiary Rights? What’s the Deal with Electronic Rights? What Does “Advance Against Royalties” Mean? What’s the Difference between Royalties on “Net” and “Gross”? Why Do My Royalties Go to My Agent? What’s a Boilerplate? Am I Protected from Libel Suits? What’s an Option, and Why Would I Grant It? Chapter 18: Ten Ways to Make the Most of a Conference Set Reasonable Goals and Make a Plan to Achieve Them Research the Faculty Pay for One-on-One Critiques Perfect Your Pitch Prepare Your Manuscript Create a Conference Notebook Bring Bookmarks or Business Cards Make Notes on the Business Cards You Receive Save Conference Expense Receipts for Tax Records Set Aside a Post-Conference Recovery Phase
Dating a Book Slinging Slang S-E-X Writing Cliché Characters and Situations Preaching Dumbing It Down Writing for 18+ Putting Adults at the Helm The Waving Author Writing to Trends
Does the Publisher Own the Copyright to My Book? What Does “Buy All Rights” Mean? What are Subsidiary Rights? What’s the Deal with Electronic Rights? What Does “Advance Against Royalties” Mean? What’s the Difference between Royalties on “Net” and “Gross”? Why Do My Royalties Go to My Agent? What’s a Boilerplate? Am I Protected from Libel Suits? What’s an Option, and Why Would I Grant It?
Set Reasonable Goals and Make a Plan to Achieve Them Research the Faculty Pay for One-on-One Critiques Perfect Your Pitch Prepare Your Manuscript Create a Conference Notebook Bring Bookmarks or Business Cards Make Notes on the Business Cards You Receive Save Conference Expense Receipts for Tax Records Set Aside a Post-Conference Recovery Phase