That’s the thing with parents in Young Adult literature—can’t live with them, can’t live without them. Teens are exploring their world for the first time, attempting to establish their own identity separate from their families of origin, so you will find almost all characters going on adventures independent of their parents.

If you are writing a young adult novel, it’s important to consider your characters’ parents on the front end, and develop them into three-dimensional, well rounded, fully fleshed out people to avoid stereotypes and cookie cutter plot devices.

Where it Started, Where We Are

When some of the first young adult novels came out in the 1960s, Julie Just from the New York Times said the parent narrative “fit in neatly with the classic narratives: its strongest stories were about orphans and lost boys of one kind or another.” In these novels, issues weren’t with parents but with other kids. 

But by the 70s and 80s, the narrative started to shift the conflict from friendships to what was happening at home. This is where the problem parent narrative entered the scene, and has never left. It’s not to say all parents should be problematic, because surely there are still supportive parents out there, but you do have to consider the role the parents will play because it’s a significant part of young adults lives…and of course, how to get rid of them so teens characters can go on their adventures.

Approaches to Developing Your Characters’ Parents

Active and supportive parents 

By all means, you can make the parents a positive force in your protagonist’s life. Or even if the protagonist’s parents aren’t the greatest, one of the side characters could have supportive parents. They can serve as mentors, confidants, or sources of guidance for the protagonist. 

This approach emphasizes a positive parent-child relationship and showcases the protagonist’s growth while navigating challenges. 

Here are a few examples of novels who took this approach:

• The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas: The protagonist, Starr, has parents who are actively involved in her life, providing support and guidance as she navigates the aftermath of witnessing a police shooting.
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling: Although Harry’s parents are deceased so you wouldn’t consider them active, their love and sacrifice play a significant role throughout the series, shaping Harry’s journey and providing emotional support.

Tips for crafting Active and Supportive Parents

• Show moments of emotional connection between the parents and your characters.
• Illustrate how the parents’ guidance and presence positively impact the protagonist’s journey.
• Use the parents’ wisdom or advice to provide insights and lessons for your characters’ growth.

Absent or Neglectful Parents

Absent or neglectful parents create a ton of opportunities for tension and conflict. This can lead the protagonist down the path of having to fend for themselves or seek support from alternative sources, such as friends, mentors, or other family members. It allows for a greater sense of independence and self-discovery as the protagonist overcomes obstacles. 

And the reality for a lot of kids is this is their lived experience, so experiencing a character overcoming this struggle can help them process their own life circumstances. 

Check out these novels for examples of this approach to parents:

• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas: The main character, Feyre, has a neglectful and unsupportive family. Her journey takes her into the magical Fae realm where she finds a new family and discovers her own strength.
• Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell: The novel tells the story of two misfit teenagers, Eleanor and Park, who bond over music and comics. Eleanor comes from a troubled home with neglectful and abusive parents, which adds to the challenges they face in their relationship.

Tips for crafting Absent or Neglectful Parents

• Explore the protagonist’s emotions and reactions to their parents’ absence, such as feelings of abandonment or independence.
• Emphasize the impact of the absent or neglectful parents on the protagonist’s self-reliance and resilience.
• Showcase the protagonist seeking alternative sources of support and building relationships with other characters.

Overprotective or Controlling Parents 

This is basically the opposite of the parental figure we just explored. There are so many challenges characters can face when dealing with overprotective or controlling parents, and a tremendous amount of conflict can come from this. 

In some novels, this role of the parents actually creates the plot in the novel. Obstacles arise as the main character tries to assert her independence, make her own choices, or pursue her dreams. The positive side, it creates opportunities for the protagonist to develop resilience and assertiveness. 

Here are a couple novels that wrote this kind of parental figure well:

• Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon: This is a novel where the main character’s overprotective mom creates the plot for the whole novel. Olly has a rare disease, where she is allergic to basically the whole world, and her mother keeps her protected from it. But when the new boy next door catches Olly’s eye, she begins to push the boundaries of her mother’s rules thus setting the story into motion.
• We Were Liars by E. Lockhart: The story features a wealthy family known as the Sinclairs, and the main character, Cadence, has overprotective parents who try to control her life. Their actions and secrets play a significant role in the unfolding mystery.

Tips for Crafting Overprotective or Controlling Parents

• Highlight the tension and conflict arising from the overprotective or controlling behavior.
• Explore the internal struggle of the protagonist, torn between their desire for independence and their parents’ restrictions.
• Allow the protagonist to assert their autonomy and challenge their parents’ control throughout the story, creating opportunities for the protagonist to defy their parents’ expectations and find their own path.

Complex Parent-Child Relationships

No one is really all good or all bad, right? Creating nuanced parent-child relationships that blend positive and negative aspects might be the most realistic approach to developing parents in young adult novels. 

Showing the complexities of family dynamics, with parents who have their own flaws, conflicting expectations, or differing values from the protagonist can add depth and realism to the story. 

A couple examples of novels that did this well are:

• Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver: The main character, Samantha, experiences a time loop, reliving the last day of her life repeatedly. Her complex relationship with her parents, including their expectations and conflicts, contributes to the overall narrative and Samantha’s self-discovery.
• Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo: The characters in this novel come from various backgrounds with complex relationships with their parents or parental figures. Kaz Brekker, for example, has a complicated history with his deceased parents, which shapes his actions and motivations.

Tips for Crafting Complex Parent-Child Relationships

• Unveil the layers of the relationship through meaningful dialogue, flashbacks, or shared experiences.
• Explore the conflicts, misunderstandings, or differing values that shape the complexity of the parent-child dynamic.
• Show instances where the protagonist learns from their parents or reevaluates their relationship as they grow and change.

Parental Absence Due to External Factors 

Sometimes parents might be absent, but it’s not because they don’t care or are neglectful. External circumstances could be forcing the parental absence, such as work commitments, illness, death, or other external factors. 

This can create a sense of longing or loss for the protagonist, leading them to seek understanding or fill the void in their lives. It also offers opportunities for personal growth, resilience, and the formation of unconventional support networks. 

Check out these novels that show this type of parental relationship:

• Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi: In this West African-inspired fantasy, Zélie’s mother is absent due to being killed in a brutal raid. Her absence fuels Zélie’s desire for justice and sets her on a quest to restore magic to her world.
• The Clock Strikes by Dominique Richardson and Sorboni Banerjee: This is the fourth novel in my Everbeach series, and Elle’s father is absent but not because he doesn’t want to be there, but because he’s a truck driver and his work takes him on the road. This leaves Elle at the mercy of her soon-to-be-step mother Juniper, and she seeks guidance and comfort with her godmother, Titania. 

Tips for Crafting Parental Absence Due to External Factors

• Establish the reasons behind the parental absence, such as work, illness, or other circumstances.
• Depict the protagonist’s emotional response to the absence, capturing their longing, grief, or resilience.
• Introduce surrogate parental figures or unconventional support networks to fill the void left by the absent parents.

Whether the parents in your young adult novel will have a positive or negative impact (or even a mix of both) is yours to determine. Hopefully these ideas, examples, and tips will help you craft well-rounded, three dimensional parents for your young adult novel.

Dominique Richardson is the coauthor of The Everbeach Series—a young adult, romantic suspense series full of forbidden romance, deadly twists, and scandalous secrets that will keep you turning pages into the night. The fourth and final book in the series comes out June 6th. Check out the first book, Red as Blood, if you’re looking for your next bingeable read. Passionate about all things books and giving back to the community, she is also the Executive Director and cofounder of YA by the Bay, a nonprofit young adult reading and leadership festival, dedicated to inspiring teens to “be the author of your own life.” Raised between Jamaica and the United States, her biracial heritage finds a home in her books. She spends her free time passing on her love of unicorns to her twin boys, running in the Florida heat, and drinking all the coffee. She now lives in Tampa, Florida with her family.

She would love to connect with you! Find her online on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. If you’d like to stay in the know about her upcoming book releases, sign-up for her email list. To learn more about the YA by the Bay Young Adult Book Festival, check out the website.

The post Crafting the Parents in Your YA Novel appeared first on DIY MFA.

Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with recaps of the most recent episodes, a curated Listening List of episodes on a particular theme, and other fun goodies we only share via email. Best of all, it’s free to join! The theme for December is Cozy Books, and you can become an insider by signing up with your email at diymfa.com/insiders.

In this episode Amy Christine Parker and Lori discuss:

• Where she comes up with unsettling ideas and how she deals with fears on the page.
• The importance of the first line and why the opening chapters are the hardest to write.
• How she developed the characterization for the ensemble cast in Flight 171.

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

About Amy Christine Parker

Amy Christine Parker is the author of the critically acclaimed young adult thriller novels: Gated, Astray, Smash & Grab, and most recently the horror novel, Flight 171.

When she is not busy dreaming up unsettling stories, Amy loves to read, go to the movies, and travel around the world in search of story inspiration.

She lives and works in Tampa, Florida along with her husband, their two daughters, and two very high-maintenance cats.

You can find her on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Goodreads.

Flight 171

In this edge-of-your-seat horror novel, a four-hour flight takes a nightmarish turn when a supernatural creature gives a group of high school students a sinister ultimatum.

Devon Marsh is haunted by secrets. Like the identity of the person who killed her twin sister, Emily, in a hit-and-run accident last Halloween, which Devon has vowed to uncover. Like the things Devon said to Emily just before she died.

But she’s determined to start fresh when she boards a four-hour flight along with her classmates for their senior class ski trip. Devon never could have guessed those secrets would surface in the most terrifying way when a supernatural creature hijacks their flight and gives the students a deadly ultimatum:

Choose one among them to sacrifice before the end of the flight. Or the plane will crash.

As the clock ticks down, the creature slowly unearths the passengers’ deepest, darkest secrets—and reveals that one of the teens on the plane is responsible for Emily’s death. The students must agree on a sacrifice, or there won’t be any survivors. But can Devon find a way to stop the creature, or will she give in to her anger and let revenge take control?

Underlined is a line of totally addictive romance, thriller, and horror titles coming to you fast and furious each month. Enjoy everything you want to read the way you want to read it.

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link where, if you choose to purchase via the link, DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Link to Episode 442

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Spotify, or Google and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available.

Also, remember that sharing is caring so if you know anyone who might enjoy this podcast, please tell them about it or leave us a review so other listeners will want to check it out.

Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post Episode 442: Opening Lines and Characterization: Maximize Your Opening Chapters – Interview with Amy Christine Parker appeared first on DIY MFA.

Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with recaps of the most recent episodes, a curated Listening List of episodes on a particular theme, and other fun goodies we only share via email. Best of all, it’s free to join! The theme for December is Cozy Books, and you can become an insider by signing up with your email at diymfa.com/insiders.

In this episode Heloisa Prieto and I discuss:

• The different points of view that she used and why she included journal excerpts.
• How she incorporated her love of fairy tales, mythology, and magic in The Musician.
• Her process for keeping her story organized as she pieced it together.

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

About Heloisa Prieto

Dr. Heloisa Prieto is one of Brazil’s most celebrated children and YA authors. She has sold over two million books in her native country. Her Mano series of YA novels inspired the Time Warner movie The Best Things in the World. She recently published 1,002 Ghosts, and her book Viajantes do Vento was selected for the PNLD Public Book-Purchasing Programme, the biggest of its kind in the world.

She has spent a lifetime researching myths and legends-both ancient and modern-and organizing and curating collections of cross-cultural interest. She has created and organized numerous creative writing workshops for children, teenagers, and adults. Heloisa also has a PhD in French literature from the University of São Paulo, and a master’s degree in semiotics from the Catholic University of São Paulo.

You can find her on her website or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

The Musician

Thomas has felt alone most of his life, his only companions the musical creatures that he can see but others can’t. Wealth, talent, charisma, good looks, and fame conceal the eighteen-year-old’s lingering pain following the loss of his parents. His music is his bridge to the world, and his favorite form of connection.

A chance meeting with a group of strangers leads to the eventual revelation of his magical musical secret-and there are those who wish to steal it from him. Soon the wealthy Dr. Alonso and his beguiling daughter, Dora, trick Thomas into joining a cult from which he may never escape.

When Marlui, a young Guarani shaman, senses the danger surrounding Thomas, she vows to protect him from Dr. Alonso at all costs. Can she rescue him, or will Thomas succumb to the advances of Dora and lose not only his heart but the powers that bring him joy?

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link where, if you choose to purchase via the link, DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Link to Episode 440

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Spotify, or Google and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available.

Also, remember that sharing is caring so if you know anyone who might enjoy this podcast, please tell them about it or leave us a review so other listeners will want to check it out.

Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post Episode 440: Music and Magic: Writing a Brazilian Story for an English-Speaking Audience – Interview with Heloisa Prieto appeared first on DIY MFA.

Or maybe you got hooked on a BookTok sensation like Inheritance Games, These Violent Delights, or They Both Die at the End. 

Whatever it was that led you to wanting to write for young adults, you’ll need to understand some basics to write in this exciting space.

Guess What? It’s Not a Genre

One of the first things to understand about young adult is that it is not a genre. It’s actually an audience, just like adult books are referring to the audience. A book written for young adults will fall into one of many genres, such as romance, fantasy, or thriller.

Thinking of it as an audience will also help you get into the right mindset to write for teens. And writing for teens can be a rewarding journey as you can build a rabid fan base who will be loyal to your main character (especially if you write a series), share your work with their friends, and stay up into the wee hours of the night reading by flashlight.

Make Sure You Get Several Things Right

There are a few basics you need to nail down when you’re developing your YA novel. They are as follows:

Age of Your Protagonist. 

Think high school when you’re writing young adult. Since kids typically “read up” in age, reading stories about kids older than they are, you should aim for your main character to be between 15 to 18, with some young adult books, especially in fantasy, having protagonists as 19. 

Younger protagonists, that fall in the age range of 11 to 14, will typically belong in the Middle Grade category—think Harry Potter when he first gets to Hogwarts.

Mind Your Word Count. 

You’ll want to keep your manuscript between 70,000 to 90,000 words. Fantasy and science fiction can skew higher than this, but books spilling over 100,000 words are usually reserved for seasoned authors with built in fan bases. 

Mary Cole, author of Writing Irresistible Kidlit, offers this advice for sticking to the shorter word counts, “It’s always easier to add just the right thing to a sleek and streamlined project than it is to cut from an overlong one.” 

If you do choose to go over in word count, remember it might be to your own peril because the truth is, longer manuscripts are harder to sell.

Remember You’re Writing for Today’s Teens.

Avoid setting the story in the same decade you were in high school (unless you just graduated, then have at it). Believe it or not, teen stories set in the 80’s or 90’s would more than likely be considered historical fiction, not a young adult novel for today’s teen audience. You’ll want to write in either modern or future time periods for this market.

Understand the Teen Mindset. 

Young adults are starting to step away from their parents and figuring out how they fit in the world beyond their family. Being a teenager is an all-consuming stage of life, filled with all of the firsts happening in rapid succession. 

Teens also start to see the darker side of life for the first time, and fiction can be a safe place for them to explore these issues, explains Cole. 

Since teens are naturally in a stage of constant self-reflection, it makes sense that the stories themselves are also full of self-reflection and internality. Because of this, YA novels are often told from the first-person point of view.

Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll…Yes, No, Maybe?

The question of content is something you should strongly consider up front. Many of today’s books written for the young adult audience deal with real issues, and because of this, real content is permissible (content defined as sex, drug and alcohol use, and violence). 

Although there are books in the young adult section that would make any adult’s cheeks blush, take care if you’re considering writing explicit scenes, staying away from erotica. Since teens are exploring their own sexuality, the lines are fuzzy and you might be surprised at what you find on the page. 

The reality is most books on the young adult shelves will have a love story in it whether it’s the main plot or a subplot because romantic relationships are important to teens, bordering on obsessively important. I mean, you remember your high school crushes as clearly as I remember mine, right?

The same goes for drugs and alcohol. It is permissible in young adult, but take care when adding edgier elements to your work ensuring it is essential to telling your story. There are some publishers that will steer clear of substance use and many others who publish books exploring this side of life. 

Violence and profanity are also allowed, but typically not to the level a George R.R. Martin novel might take it.

A great way to gauge what is allowed for the young adult audience is to read widely in the genre you wish to write in, which is a central tenet to the DIY MFA approach to your writing career. What level of content you might see in a young adult fantasy novel will differ from what you’ll see in a young adult contemporary. You’ll develop a sixth sense for what content works and what doesn’t and see how there truly is a wide range permitted for this audience. 

The most important questions to ask yourself when adding edgy elements to your story are these: Is this level of graphic content needed to tell my story authentically? Or could I dial it back and still achieve the same effect?

Are You Telling Your Own Story?

You’re writing fiction not memoir, so your initial response to this question should be, no, I’m making this up as I go along, nothing is real except in my imagination. Yet, it’s more complicated than this. 

In September 2015, the hashtag #ownvoices was born, used by the author Corinne Duyvis to identify books written by diverse authors whose main characters shared the author’s identity. This, coupled with the movement started by We Need Diverse Books, a grassroots organization focused on advocating for more books written by authors of diverse backgrounds, has changed the marketplace for young adult in a meaningful way. 

Today, shelves are lined with stories where every kid should be able to see themself on the page. There is still a lot of work to do, but great strides have been made over the past several years to make sure there is representation across the board.

And this brings us to the point of this section: When developing your main character, it is incredibly important that you choose their identity with care. 

Today’s young adult reader is looking for authenticity, and they want to know the person telling the story truly understands the journey the main character is growing through. And to avoid the harmful perpetuation of stereotypes and shallow treatment of diverse experiences that have too often occurred in the past, publishers and readers are looking for stories told from the experience and identity an author shares with the main character.

That being said, even if you are telling your story from your own experience, as of June 2021, We Need Diverse Books and the market at large started to reduce its usage of the term #ownvoices. Because the term expanded to become a “catch all marketing term by the publishing industry,” use of it started to raise “issues due to the vagueness of the term, which has then been used to place diverse creators in uncomfortable and potentially unsafe situations,” explained Alaina Lavoie, in this article from We Need Diverse Books. Instead of #ownvoices, choose to use the description the author identifies themselves as, such as in my case “Lebanese-Jamaican Author.”

For further discussion on why writing from your experience is important, check out this article by Colice Sanders on the DIY MFA website It’s Messy in the Middle: Unpacking Cultural Appropriation. Sanders does an incredible job of explaining why representation matters, and also, if you do choose to write outside your experience, she offers several great tips on how to do it the right way. 

To Help You On Your Way

If you want to dive deeper into the world of writing for young adults, then check out these books for an in-depth exploration of writing YA:

• Writing Irresistible Kidlit: The Ultimate Guide to Crafting Fiction for Young Adult and Middle Grade Readers by Mary Cole.
• Writing Great Books for Young Adults: Everything You Need to Know, from Crafting the Idea to Getting Published by Regina Brooks.
• Writing Young Adult Fiction for Dummies by Deborah Halverson.
• Save the Cat! Writes a Young Adult Novel by Jessica Brody (this one is a pre-order, but it’s worth the wait given Jessica’s written over 20 novels and is an excellent teacher).

In addition to the above books, Mary Cole also has a blog dedicated to Kid Lit, and you can read the young adult archives on her website.

If you love young adult and want to hear from some of the leading authors in the young adult space, then sign-up for my email list so you’ll be in the know when our show FIND YOUR FAIRYTALE launches, where we will interview young adult authors about their journey to find success in publishing.

Dominique Richardson is a Lebanese-Jamaican author and former CPA turned CEO of YA by the Bay, a 501c3 young adult book festival coming to Tampa, FL in October 2023. She’s worked in management across the business spectrum—from a Fortune 100 company to a Big 4 Accounting firm, from a tech start-up to several nonprofits. She spends her free time writing books and passing on her love of unicorns to her twin boys. Dominique presents #DomsDownload on FIND YOUR FAIRYTALE, the forthcoming show for YA by the Bay, breaking down books that help people live their best lives.
You can find her on her website or follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok. Also, if you love young adult and want to hear from some of the leading authors in the young adult space, then sign-up for Dominique’s email list.

The post The Ins and Outs of Writing a Young Adult Novel appeared first on DIY MFA.

Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with recaps of the most recent episodes, a curated Listening List of episodes on a particular theme, and other fun goodies we only share via email. Best of all, it’s free to join! The theme for May is Short Stories, and you can become an insider by signing up with your email at diymfa.com/insiders.

In this episode Brett Riley and I discuss:

• How he portrayed and deepened the bond between his main characters.
• The double-sided nature of superhero powers and why he showed his characters’ weaknesses.
• Why it’s fascinating to let superheroes be bad and what that exploration reveals.

Plus, his #1 tip for writers.

About Brett Riley

Brett Riley is the author of The Subtle Dance of Impulse and Light (Ink Brush Press), Comanche (Imbrifex Books), Lord of Order (Imbrifex), Freaks (Imbrifex), and Travelers (2022). His short fiction has appeared in journals such as The Baltimore Review, F(r)iction, Solstice, Folio, The Evansville Review, and many others. His nonfiction has appeared in CrimeReads, Role Reboot, Broad River Review, Rougarou, Green Hills Literary Lantern, Literary Orphans, Under the Gum Tree, Wild Violet, and Foliate Oak Magazine. He lives in Henderson, NV.

You can find him on his website or follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Freaks

Hunted by monsters. Wanted for questioning. Late for class.

Four high-school friends suffer daily humiliation at the hands of three bullies. When the friends accidentally open a portal to another dimension, they unintentionally allow terrifying, other-worldly creatures to invade their small Arkansas town. Discovering that they are now endowed with strange superpowers, the four teens dub themselves “Freaks,” the very name their tormentors used to ridicule them. The Freaks must fight to save the lives of family and friends now in mortal peril and thwart a secret government task force that appears to be hunting them.

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link, where if you choose to purchase via the link DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Link to Episode 410

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Spotify, or Google and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available.

Also, remember that sharing is caring so if you know anyone who might enjoy this podcast, please tell them about it or leave us a review so other listeners will want to check it out.

Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post Episode 410: Writing a YA Series Inspired by Superhero Stories – Interview with Brett Riley appeared first on DIY MFA.

It’s not often that I have an author on the show where I’ve read almost their entire body of work. Carolyn Mackler is one of those rare authors. As an MFA student, I wrote a term paper for my YALit class examining the mother-daughter relationships in her first four novels. Since then I’ve been an avid reader of her work and have eagerly awaited her subsequent novels.

Usually, when I interview authors on the show, we focus our discussion on that author’s latest work. This is often a pragmatic consideration because I don’t often have the opportunity to read every book that author has written. But before we dive into today’s interview I want to pose a challenge to my word nerd listeners.

The Challenge

We can’t all read every single book by every single author on the planet, but I want you to try doing this with one or two authors whose work you love. The insights and benefits you’ll get from this practice will amaze you. When you read an author’s body of work, you not only get to enjoy great stories from an author you love, but you get to see that author’s process and creative growth over time. As I interview Carolyn today, we’re not just going to talk about her latest book, but also how different themes and elements of craft have developed in her writing over the course of various books.

But first, a quick intro about today’s guest. Carolyn Mackler is the author of several highly-acclaimed YA novels, one new middle grade novel, and a collaborative novel with bestselling author Jay Asher. Her second book: The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things received the Printz Honor and her latest book Infinite In Between has already garnered starred reviews. A fellow New Yorker, Carolyn lives in NYC with her husband and two young sons.

In this episode Carolyn and I discuss:

• Taking the leap into YA, even though the “market” wasn’t great.
• Writing your second book.
• Trying something new. Characterization and craft from one novel to the next.
• The importance of knowing your protagonists.
• Diversity in characterization.

Plus, Carolyn’s #1 tip for writers.

More About Carolyn Mackler

Carolyn Mackler’s latest novel for teens, Infinite in Between, has already garnered several starred reviews. She is also the author of the popular YA novels, The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things (A Michael L. Printz Honor Book), Tangled, Guyaholic, Vegan Virgin Valentine, and Love and Other Four-Letter Words. Carolyn’s novel, The Future of Us, co-written with bestselling author Jay Asher, received starred reviews and appeared on bestseller lists.

Her first middle grade novel, Best Friend Next Door, came out in May 2015.  Carolyn’s books have been published in more than twenty countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, France, Italy, Korea, the Netherlands, Denmark, Israel, and Indonesia. This info-graphic shows how her writing career has evolved over the years. Carolyn lives in New York City with her husband and two young sons.

If you want to purchase Carolyn Mackler’s books, I hope you’ll consider doing so via the affiliate links below (where DIY MFA gets a small commission at no cost to you). Thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

New to Carolyn’s books? Then, I recommend starting with The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things. It’s hilarious and human and totally relatable. Infinite in Between is perhaps her most complex and sophisticated novel thus far, and if you’re interested in multiple POV in YA, this is a fabulous example of that technique at work. My personal favorite, though, is Vegan Virgin Valentine which is quieter and more subtle than some of her other single-POV novels, but powerful nonetheless.

To learn more about Carolyn and her writing, follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, or visit her website.

Link to Episode 85

(Right-click to download.)

If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, leave a review, and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available. And if you know anyone who might enjoy this podcast, please share! Also, check out the awesome new podcast series from my friends over at Folio Literary Management and the Salt Cay Writer’s Retreat: diymfa.com/saltcay.

Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome.

The post Episode 85: Craft Your Body of Work – Interview with Carolyn Mackler appeared first on DIY MFA.

At sixteen, Kim left her rural midwestern town for New York City, where she pursued a career in music and acting. While attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, she sang backup for some of the biggest rock bands of the 80’s. After settling down to have a family, she became an entrepreneur, creating a children’s art education program and a travel company specializing in tours for musicians. She’s married to jazz musician Ken Peplowski, and has two beautiful teenagers.

About BLOOD AND SALT:

“When you fall in love, you will carve out your heart and throw it into the deepest ocean. You will be all in—blood and salt.”

These are the last words Ash Larkin hears before her mother returns to the spiritual commune she escaped long ago. But when Ash follows her to Quivira, Kansas, something sinister and ancient waits among the rustling cornstalks of this village lost to time.

Ash is plagued by memories of her ancestor, Katia, which harken back to the town’s history of unrequited love and murder, alchemy and immortality. Charming traditions soon give way to a string of gruesome deaths, and Ash feels drawn to Dane, a forbidden boy with secrets of his own.

As the community prepares for a ceremony five hundred years in the making, Ash must fight not only to save her mother, but herself—and discover the truth about Quivira before it’s too late. Before she’s all in—blood and salt.

In this episode Kim and I discuss:

• World-building, sensory detail, and creative descriptions.
• Having an obsession and using it to fuel your writing.
• Organizing the plot to build suspense, with shifting timelines and surprise reveals.
• Navigating the revision and edit process to get the best result.
• Creative promotion for books.

Plus, Kim’s #1 tip for writers.

Link to Episode 62

(Right-click to download.)

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To learn more about Kim Liggett, visit her website at kimliggett.com. You can also follow her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Goodreads.

Also, if you’re into YA Horror mixed with romance, check out her fabulous debut novel: Blood and Salt.

Plus, OMG how steamy is the book trailer?

Want even more tools to help you master the craft?

Check out the DIY MFA online writing conference:

Writer Igniter Con 2015
October 24-25

Click the link to learn more or register.

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Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome.

The post Episode 62: From Concept to Bookshelf – Interview with Kim Liggett appeared first on DIY MFA.