Hope everyone enjoyed their Valentine’s festivities! While I’ve always enjoyed Valentine’s Day (since Ben came along, anyway) I think kids have only made it more fun. McKenna helped me make chocolate covered strawberries, we grilled some steaks, and had a nice candlelight dinner as a family.
Today, I’m really excited to be an honorary member of Teens Can Write Too. My age usually prohibits me, but they were kind enough to let me join the blog chain just this once. If you’re your teens (or early 20s) make sure you check them out.
The blog chain topic this month is on romance. Go figure.
Confession time: I never planned to write books for teens, nor did I intend to write about love as much as I do. I thought I would “outgrow it.” At least I hoped I would.
But I’m such a romantic, that I’m 99% sure I couldn’t handle writing a book without romance. I’d be bored. And I’m starting to doubt that I could ever write a decent book about adults rather than teens. (Even when I attempt it, my adult character’s current problems are heavily rooted in high school experiences.)
Why am I so fascinated by the teen romance? My husband and I met in high school; maybe that has something to do with it? I don’t know, but I adore books like This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen and Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins.
One tip I have for writing romance threads in your story is actually spun from a advice I read in an interview of Amy Sherman-Palladino (creator and head writer for Gilmore Girls).
She said one of the tricks to TV writing is making small events big, but big events small. The way I apply that to the romance storylines in my books is you’re never going to find my character’s big romantic moments at big events – school dances, Valentine’s Day, weddings.
Like in Out with the In Crowd, Connor remembers their 3-month anniversary when Skylar forgets. He takes her out for a romantic date that involves sitting on bleachers in the dead of winter eating sub sandwiches. But their Valentine’s Day – where, in desperation, he goes kinda above-and-beyond – is rather hum-drum.
Obviously it can work to have the big moments at big events (Pretty in Pink has done quite well for itself) but I like the inversion of big and small events that Amy Sherman-Palladino suggests.
Interested in knowing what your fellow teen writers think about romance? Find out here: