Today, Fable and the Verbivore discuss some ideas for how to approach writing authentic teenagers.

We start by discussing the importance of understanding the developmental stages (physical, cognitive, and social) that teenagers are going though and treating that with empathy. Another recommendation we mention is, as writers, connecting with our own personal experiences and memories from that time in our lives to help gain some compassion for our characters and ground our writing in a place of authentic emotion.

In this episode we talk about key examples where books used dialogue, identity struggles, character change and introspection, impulsive actions, and shifting relationship dynamics to tap into something real about the experience of adolescence. We also talk about how slang should be used with care and research into the context and timeframe. And above all teenage characters - no matter how flawed and caught up in their world - should be written with understanding and from a place of emotional honesty.

Lastly, we discuss the idea that writing for teenagers should include a message, however small, of hope. Hope from a physiological perspective is important to development, overcoming fear, finding motivation, and maintaining a positive outlook on life. Since our stories have the potential to influence young readers, we feel a responsibility to demonstrate why a life is worth living.

We hope you enjoy this episode, we sure learned a lot through this discussion. Keep creating and putting your unique voice out there!

Into the woods,
Fable & The Verbivore

Notes:

The Verbivore mentions understanding the developmental stages and challenges that teenagers face as part of the process of writing with empathy and understanding. Here are a few resources:

• NOBA Project Adolescent Development - https://nobaproject.com/modules/adolescent-development#:~:text=Conclusions,exploring%20romantic%20relationships%20and%20sexuality

• Psychology Today Adolescence - https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/adolescence

The Verbivore misremembered what happens in Veronica Roth’s short stories in her Four . The part that she was referencing comes from the end of the last book in the Divergent series Allegiant.

The Verbivore mentions a Writer’s Digest article written by a teenage writer with a list of things not to do, that specifically discusses problems with using slang when you don’t fully understand how it is used by that generation. Here is the link to that article:

• https://www.writersdigest.com/write-better-fiction/what-not-to-do-when-writing-ya-books-advice-from-a-teen-writer

The Verbivore mentions an article that discusses creating a realistic teenage voice in the narrative, using Meg Cabot’s The Princess Diaries as an example. Here is that article:

• https://blog.reedsy.com/writing-young-adult/

The Verbivore mistakenly says “Ted” when the author is Tom Leveen. Here is a quote from Laurie Halse Anderson about hope in her books:

• “Ending on an encouraging note is part of my moral code. Teenagers need to see a model of hope and growth.”

The Verbivore mentions a quote from the movie The Jane Austen Book Club, it focuses on a character who is still grappling with some trauma from childhood and her experience in school. That dialogue exchange is as follows:

“Baby, high school's over.”

“High school's never over..”

Books Mentioned:

• The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

• Divergent by Veronica Roth

• Four by Veronica Roth

• Allegiant by Veronica Roth

• The Harry Potter Series (Books 1-7) by  J. K. Rowling

• The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot

• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

• Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

• The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger 

Music from: https://filmmusic.io
’Friendly day’ by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
License: CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)