Writing Young Adult Fiction For Dummies [Paperback]

Deborah Halverson (Author), M. T. Anderson (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 5, 2011 | ISBN-10: 0470949546 | ISBN-13: 978-0470949542 | Edition: 1

Your hands-on, friendly guide to writing young adult fiction

With young adult book sales rising, and bestselling authors like J.K. Rowling and Stephenie Meyer exploding onto the scene, aspiring YA writers are more numerous than ever. Are you interested in writing a young adult novel, but aren't sure how to fit the style that appeals to young readers?

Writing Young Adult Fiction For Dummies gives you tricks of the trade and proven tips on all the steps to write a YA book, from developing an idea to publication.

• Unique writing exercises to help you find your own authentic teen voice
• Tips to avoid when submitting manuscripts
• How to break into the flourishing young adult market

With the help of this step-by-step guide, you'll have all the skills to write an inspiring and marketable young adult novel.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Your hands-on, friendly guide to writing young adult fiction

Are you interested in writing a young adult novel, but aren't sure how to develop a style that appeals to young readers? Writing Young Adult Fiction For Dummies gives you tricks of the trade and proven tips on all the steps to write a marketable YA book, from developing an idea to publishing your manuscript.

• Get ready to write — get the scoop on everything you need to know before you begin writing, like pinpointing your audience, finding an angle that'll make your story stand out, and making use of outlines

• What a novel concept — find out how to shape your plot, create teen-friendly characters, develop a convincingly youthful voice, write natural dialogue, and find techniques for connecting with your audience

• Put on your editor's cap — discover how to rewrite and polish your story to transform it from a first draft to a seamless, fluid final draft

• Get published — find the right agent and/or editor, craft a one-of-a-kind submission package, and promote your novel once it's published

Open the book and find:

• Helpful sidebars from notable YA authors

• Ideas for timeless themes

• Four easy steps to writing a killer hook

• Tips on writing believable characters, settings, and dialogue

• How to edit and revise with confidence

• Answers to the most common publishing contract questions

• Common pitfalls to avoid

• Advice on self-publishing vs. traditional publishing

Learn to:

• Develop a writing style that appeals to young readers

• Turn your ideas into a compelling manuscript through writing exercises

• Submit your novel to young adult publishers

About the Author

Deborah Halverson founded the writer's advice website DearEditor.com and was a veteran editor for young adult and children's fiction before picking up a pen and writing the teen novels Big Mouth and Honk If You Hate Me.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 1 edition (July 5, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470949546
• ISBN-13: 978-0470949542
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 0.8 x 9.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #74,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Deborah Halverson edited children's books for ten years--until she climbed over the desk and tried out the author's chair on the other side. Now she is an award-winning author of books for young readers, including the teen novels HONK IF YOU HATE ME and BIG MOUTH and WRITING YOUNG ADULT FICTION FOR DUMMIES. Armed with a master's degree in American literature and a fascination with pop culture, she sculpts stories from extreme events and places-- tattoo parlors, fast-food joints, and, most extreme of all, high schools. Deborah is also the founder of the writers' advice website DearEditor.com. She lives with her husband and triplet sons in San Diego, California.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Writing Resource July 5, 2011

By Helen F. James

Format:Paperback

This book is sure to release the writer in you. It's a new title in the "Dummies" reference series and it's packed with step-by-step information for moving your seed of an idea to a published book and then offers a plethora of strategies for promoting your work. The book's goal is to provide the reader with all the "tools you need to become a published author of young adult fiction." Mission accomplished! Deborah Halverson's practical and inspiring advice includes how to get started, step-by-step assistance on developing a story and targeting the audience, developing the plot, character, setting, point of view, dialogue, and she even covers nitty gritty details from punctuation through contract questions. Award-winning young adult authors contributed sidebars of interesting and personal writing information on a variety of topics.

The book is presented sequentially, but the "modular" structure provides readers with the ability to zone in on their specific topics of interest. Five different icons are used to highlight information that deserves special attention. The book has a friendly, upbeat conversational tone, but make no mistake, the book is packed with all the essential advice needed for honing your writing skills. Halveson brings a wealth of experience to the project as a former editor, an author of teen novels, teacher of young adult literature, blogger, and the founder of DearEditor.com (a writer's advice website). This is an important resource that both aspiring and seasoned writers will want to read and then revisit frequently when challenged with specific writing concerns or just to be inspired to do their best writing.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars CANDID, PRACTICAL ADVICE FROM A REAL PRO July 5, 2011

By BrickToyNut

Format:Paperback

If you want to learn how to write compelling fiction that appeals to teens ("Young Adults") and MGs (mid graders, roughly ages 9 to 12) start here. Even writers aiming at older groups or genre fiction can learn much from this book, which is written in a candid, casual, friendly, and often humorous style. Halverson draws upon her years as a childrens' editor for a major publisher, and her own two YA novels, and many masterpieces by other authors (notably Pullman's Golden Compass / His Dark Materials trilogy), to provide spot-on examples for the big points. For those of us who are long past adolescence, she reminds us just what it was like. Her chapter on "Creating Teen-Driven Action" begins thus: "As if being a teenager weren't enough--hormones going crazy, friends with hormones going crazy, teachers nagging you like crazy, parents with no patience for your blooming brand of crazy, and mirrors with daily surprises that surely have no other purpose than to drive you wall-to-wall crazy. No wonder everyone thinks teens are legally insane." This book is for writers who like to be entertained as they learn, and who hope to reach a broad, popular, mainstream readership. Guest commentaries by many other successful YA and MG writers add to the mix. Her chapter on "Self-publishing: Is It For You?" clearly lays out the pros and cons of the new models (author services, POD, ebooks) and the traditional / legacy publishing route.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredibly useful July 4, 2011

By J. Griffin

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I found the format and content of this book to be incredibly useful. I have read, and learned from, a number of YA writing books (as well as other books on fiction writing), but WYAFFD is the one that will be dog-eared from use within months. Deborah's experience as a long-time editor of YA, an author of YA, a teacher of writing (UC San Diego), and the brain behind the Dear Editor website are evident on every page. She complements this with wonderful sidebars from other YA authors, editors, and agents throughout the book.

There's lots of practical advice on every phase of writing YA fiction from understanding what it is (for example, how middle grade fits in) and who it targets to each major element of your story (hook, characters, plot, pacing, setting, voice, dialogue) all the way through marketing, the pros and cons of self-publishing, and a fun section of "Tens," like "Ten Common Pitfalls in Writing YA Fiction." Writers at all levels of experience will find useful insights.

Throughout the book the content is paired with steps in the process of writing a story which totally works for we the analytical and process-oriented. In particular, I found the sections on revision so useful, I've extracted a lot of the tips onto post-its that I have stuck up on my story wall. Each section helps me think through another layer of storytelling, another way to add richness and complexity. It's the first book on writing that made revision fun for me, almost like a treasure hunt.

This is the book I will be giving to anyone I know who wants to write YA fiction.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Lots of good advice, but lots is general not YA in particular March 9, 2012

By Richard Stooker

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I was somewhat disappointed. It's nothing wrong with what's in the book, but a lot of it is familiar territory for people who've already read a lot of books on writing. And being a For Dummies book it can get very basic, about deciding on a place to write, your schedule, and so on. Everybody has different schedules and just has to work out the schedule that suits them the best. And some people can get up early in the morning before going to work. Some of us prefer to stay up late at night after coming home from work.

However, there is a lot of good information about targeting stories toward the Young Adult market in particular. That is what I bought it for. There's a lot of insight on what state of mind teenagers bring to the books they read, and what they want.