...young adults seem to enjoy my books.
For that matter, I have male and female readers, homemakers and
executives, and the youngest one of my readers I’ve met is fifteen, and the
oldest is eighty something. I have avid readers who read a book daily. And the
other day, I just learned about a woman who’s never read a book in her life, but
is going through a traumatic situation so a friend of hers gave her my book
because she said it was as if I was writing her life. The young woman read When Noonday Ends in one day, and then
moved on to the rest of my stories.
If you’re an author, isn’t that the best?
The thought that I'd touched someone because I chose to write about
real situations had me in tears when I heard this.
As I was writing my sixth book, I figured out why my books
aren’t for just one age group: I write about 'people'.
It doesn’t matter your age. If you are even remotely cognizant about
the challenges we all face in life, you can relate.
I write about the issues everyone has experienced, whether personally
or while holding the hands of a loved one. I write about tragedy, overcoming adversity,
whether we opened the door or someone shoved us through it. I write about finding
love and losing it, betrayal by friends or loved ones, and even addiction.
And haven’t we all experienced those feelings?
As I mentioned in an earlier blog post — I’ll just quote the post
for ease — “I believe the success behind Twilight and Hunger Games lies in the originality of the story
and the fact that they catered to young-adult readers, without treating young
adults as though they were young and ignorant. In both stories, the main
characters acted — for the most part — mature. So the books appealed to the
younger crowd. And the mature situations and chivalrous heroes appealed to the
older women too. Err…umm…like me.
The
fact of the matter is...whether we are fifteen or eighty, we’ve all experienced trials.
Young people — for the most part — aren’t dealing with quite as many financial
and family burdens as adults, but just living in the household where a parent
has lost their job puts stress on teenagers as well. And of course, even though
some parents want to say, “Not my kid!”, almost all young adults will be in a
situation where they have to make an informed decision about sex, drugs,
drinking, or some type of illegal activity.
So,
yes, I believe that’s why even young adults relate to my writing.
In
my newest novel, I once again have a twenty-two-year-old woman who’s already
lost everything in her life and feels worthless. It dawned on me as I was
deciding what to put on the cover. ALL of my heroines have been about twenty-two.
Hmmm… Why? I
wondered.
So,
without any research… just my own thoughts, since I’m the one who wrote the
stories. I think twenty-two is an age most of us can identify with, no matter what our age.
If
you’re in high school, you are looking toward starting your adult life, thinking you
are ready for what the future has to offer. If you’re in your thirties, you still feel
as though you are in your twenties or at least those years are still fresh in
your mind. And if you’re in your forties and older, you’re normally thinking, If I knew then what I know now... I wish I
had the body I had back then… What a great time I had back then with… and
on, and on, and on.
Twenty-two
— as a female anyway — is an age where a lot of women have one of their degrees
if they are in college, usually have an idea of what career path they want to
take, and in many cases, are looking to settle down and start a family.
So…there you have it.
That’s
why I write books about twenty-something characters trying to find their way in
life. So you can dream of what might be, reflect on something similar that you
experienced, and in some cases, maybe even offer you encouragement that others
have the same thoughts or are going through the same situation as you, no
matter what your age.
Of
course, there is always a mystery to solve and a blossoming romance at hand,
but that’s because even when you’re reading a suspense-filled drama, you are
usually looking for an escape, and hopefully even a ‘happily ever after’.
Until next time, happy reading!
Carmen
Until next time, happy reading!
Carmen
Thank you for stopping by my place and reading my
musings. Remember, these are just my opinions and shouldn’t be
taken too seriously. If you have questions, please feel free to leave
them in the comment section, and I promise you I will answer. If you’re
curious about what I write, please visit one of my author pages, where
you can read all about my novels and short stories. And hey, I’ll even
give you a free book just for stopping by.
If it isn’t
available free in your area, use…
great article!
ReplyDeleteI'm starting a series of short stories based on the idea that "we are all humans, after all". It is being nice to write that.
Thank you, Vincent. I'm glad you enjoyed.
DeleteAnd yes, we are! We all laugh and cry in the same language.
Cheers!