Voice
Perfecting Your YA Voice (Part 2)
In Part 1, Editor Krista Marino explained how YA Voice is related to diction, perspective, dialog, interior monologue, and character. In this second section she explains what makes a young adult voice unique and different from an adult writing voice. Let’s Talk about the Teen/YA Voice in Particular: YA is specific in terms of voice….
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Perfecting Your YA Voice (Part 1)
Editor Krista Marino spoke at the 2011 SCBWI LA Conference and shared the following insight on how to perfect your YA voice: There are Two Types of Voice: Authorial Voice – this is when you know a book is by a certain author. For example you know when you’re reading a John Irving or Meg…
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Five Things to Make Your First Page Shine!
The first page is your chance to make a strong impression with your teen reader! Don’t blow it! New York Times bestselling young adult author Rachel Cohn spoke at the 2011 Southern California SCBWI Writer’s Day event, and shared her list of the top five things you need on page one! The Five Things To…
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The Voice of Point-of-View
“I’m looking for great voice!” That’s what every editor and agent in the business keeps saying over and over. Yet, at the same time they have trouble describing voice. “I can’t describe it,” they say. “But, I’ll know it when I read it.” But what is it? And how do we writers find our voice?…
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Your Voice is Your Voice: Keeping It Real
An amazing voice is the number one “must-have” on every agent and editors list. So what is this odd and illusive thing known as voice? How do you find it? What does it sound like? Why is it so gosh darn important? Scholastic editor Jennifer Rees (The Hunger Games, Purge) spoke on this exact subject…
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Quote of the Week: Tom Romano
“[Voice is] the writer’s presence on the page. It is the sense we have while reading that someone occupies the middle of our mind, the sense we have while writing that something or someone is whispering in our ear.” – Tom Romano (Writing with Voice, Article) Tom Romano is the author of several bestselling books…
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How to Wow an Editor With Your Book
“This book needs to be read!” Assistant editor, Rachel Abrams, of Harper Collins shared her insight as to how to get an editor to say these very words, at the 2010 SCBWI So Cal Writers Day. The following is her recipe on how to hone your craft and make your writing the very best it can be. Your…
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Libba Bray’s Ten Insights for Writing
“What I want to talk about is the ways in which we open ourselves up to the process. Writing is a discovery to develop and reach new places with our work.” Young adult author, Libba Bray, began her presentation at the 2010 SCBWI Southern California Writer’s Day with the above call to arms. She followed with these ten…
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Revision: What’s Wrong With Your Manuscript and How to Fix It!
So you’ve finished the first draft of your young adult novel. Where do you go from here? Well take a few cues from editor Anica Rissi, (from Simon Pulse) who shared her insights on how to identify what’s wrong with your manuscript and then fix it. She spoke at the 2009 SCBWI Los Angeles Conference. The following…