FreshFiction...for today's reader: Carol Culver | 10 Things I Love About Writing The YA Novel

Two weeks ago I was at the RWA conference in San Francisco where I gave a talk about writing for the YA market.

For those of you who weren't there, here's the list -

YA books stay on the shelves longer (by longer I mean longer than category romance which is my other outlet) Category books are gone in a month, but the last time I checked at my local Borders, all three of my books in the BFF series, MANDERLEY PREP, RICH GIRL and THE GUY NEXT DOOR were still on the shelves.
Teens are loyal readers, if they like your book, they spread the word by texting, calling or whatever.
Series are popular. Hook a teen reader and they'll stick with you.
YA books are short, around 50,000 words. You can write more books in a year than single titles.
Writing for and hanging out with teens can keep you young.
You can dig into your own past for material or use your kids or your neighbors.
Deal a blow forever to the memory of those geeks, freaks, nerds, cheerleaders, jocks and goths who wouldn't eat lunch with you, date you, or even speak to you in the hall.
Teen novels can play to your strenghts. They can be romantic, paranormal, dark, light, funny, edgy or angsty.
Teens are voracious readers and they've got more leisure time than many adults do.
Teens are smart. They expect a lot. You can't let them down.

In the interest of fairness, I should say a few words about why I also love writing for Harlequin Mills & Boon, my British publisher.

The books are translated into many languages (Spanish, Danish, French, Japanese, to name a few) and sold around the world which keeps the royalties rolling in long after the initial publishing date.
The London editors are a fabulous group of supportive, kind, generous women.
Working with the London editors encourages foreign travel to see the office and meet them. Definitely a fringe benefit.