Give a warm welcome to author Melissa Knight, who writes YA Christian contemporary fiction. Today she’s writing about her three rules for writing YA fiction. And check out her latest novel, You Were There, releasing tomorrow!

Is writing fiction for a teen audience any different than writing for adults? Perhaps a better question for authors is, what will make a teen audience want to read your book?

Prior to writing my first YA novel, I taught English, among other things.  I attempted to match up students with books which interested them, allowing the books themselves, and by default the authors, to captivate and entice the students into becoming lifelong readers. One of my biggest triumphs was watching a fourth grader, below grade level in reading and with precious little interest in books up to that point, almost walk into a wall because he was so engrossed in a Magic Tree House book and wouldn’t put it down!  In my second gig now as an author, I have heard from a teacher working at a juvenile detention center that her incarcerated students enjoy my YA Christian romance books- even the guys. I’m delighted by this but don’t pretend to completely understand what the secret sauce is.

Here’s what I do know, and the convictions by which I abide.

Keep it real but honor the reader’s innocence. Yes, there are YA books out there with obscenities and suggestive, if not explicit, sexual encounters, and they sell. An argument for this is “realism”, meeting the readers in the everyday worlds in which they live.  My counter to this as an author is that we can do better. We can depict gritty circumstances and convey the pressures teens face with solid, well-chosen words that resonate with our readers, without cheapening the reading experience with vulgarity.  Maybe it’s the teacher in me, but I used to tell my own kids that cussing only reveals a poor vocabulary!  Let’s honor our teen audience with solid, thoughtful writing, not sensationalism.

Keep it snappy. It helps me to imagine each chapter, or section within a chapter, as a scene from a movie.  If it doesn’t have movement or conversations to carry the plot forward, does it need to be in the book?. Teens today have grown up with memes and brief social media posts. Involved descriptions of the way the sunlight shines on the water may be beautiful and seem necessary to set a scene, but make sure it’s downright magical or a lot of young adult readers are simply going to skip it. Even I do that! (And I’ll bet you do, too.)  Great dialogue and strategic action will keep me, and those teen readers, wanting to turn to the next page.

Read what other YA authors are writing.  I’m a firm believer that the more you read, the better a writer you become. If I want to perfect my peach cobbler, I’m for sure hanging out with the legendary cook at the church potluck or examining that southern chef’s cookbook recipe! I read YA romance all the time, as well as other YA genres, and have often been stopped in my tracks by a great line or a plot twist I did not see coming. I cheer for those authors, and also learn from them. How did that writer pace the story?  How did she freshen up a tired trope?  What made the flashbacks effective?

Bottom line? Solid writing is solid writing, regardless of a reader’s age. 

Call me biased, however, but in my opinion our young adult readers, for a variety of reasons, deserve – and have- the cream of the crop.

*****

True love? What a fantasy!

Reese has plenty of reasons for being a skeptic. The Owens women, despite their thriving wedding planner business, have a sad history when it comes to matters of the heart!

And yet, there’s this guy…

Tall, athletic Daniel Dixon is full of contradictions. Super-competitive yet gentle, his bold stance on what love really means affects Reese deeply.

Complications arise when she discovers a not-so-secret figure from her past. Add a troubled ex-friend to the mix, and Reese questions not just her judgment, but her physical safety.

Reese’s journey to faith, and to a love that is joyful and enduring, is told with humor, honesty and a healthy dose of grandma advice!

You Were There is a Christian YA Romance, Book One in The Rayburn High Romance Series. Find it here on Amazon!

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