As I've gone out looking for other YA writers who blog, I've been a bit overwhelmed. How do these people manage to be so darned chipper? How do they find time to write pithy anecdotes for the blog AND read so many pre-published books AND market their own work AND hold contests AND keep up with chores AND keep spouse and kids even marginally happy AND actually write new material that's fresh and doesn't utterly suck? I suppose some of this wonderwoman facade can be chalked up to "brand." Women who write high-energy, humorous stories need to keep up a high-energy, humorous persona online. I imagine the YA fantasy writers keep blogs that are more serious and lyrical.
It can be hard not to look at the community that writes for teens and not have the sinking feeling that you have to contort yourself to somehow fit in, as if these folks sat at the "popular table" in the high school cafeteria. Fortunately, I don't think that's quite the case. I've noticed an encouraging trend on these blogs: YA writers support each other, cheer each other on. They read widely in the genre, and appreciate the best in each subcategory, whether it's humor, romance, suspense/thriller, fantasy, historical, or literary. There seems to be room for new voices and a delight in discovering them. So even if my work is on the strange and serious end of the spectrum, I suspect there really is room for me at the table. Time to pull up a chair and start learning names.
Categories: writing life, young adult fiction
I know the feeling, Laurel. It's hard to achieve balance in all the areas you mentioned, and usually when I can't do it, it's my blog that falls off the radar. But I consider that acceptable. I also keep reminding myself that I am not part of the online community so I can be just like everyone else, but so I can fill my unique role--in my case, a writer who also happens to be a book blogger (most blogs I read are one or the other). Celebrate diversity! Most importantly, have fun, and cut yourself slack when you need it. We're all here cheering you on...
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