said romance about two teens recovering from heartbreak and discovering
themselves on an out-of-this-world accidental first date! He’s here to share with us what scares him about writing.
What Scares Me As A Writer
by Brian Katcher
Writing is similar to acting. You
take on the persona of someone you are not, and have to make that
persona believable. You work at it for months, even years, and in the
end, you either nailed it or you didn’t. There’s very little middle
ground.
As a YA author, the challenge is twofold. The hurdle I
face with every book is how to realistically portray young characters.
As I just turned forty, I constantly fear that I’m going to end up
writing about how things were back in my day, rather than with the voice
of a present-day seventeen year old. On the other hand, some things
never change. While speaking to a high school once, I said “When I was
your age, we used to hang out at the mall, watch MTV, and try to meet
girls. I have no idea what you all do now.” A boy responded “We hang out
at the mall, watch MTV, and try to meet girls.”
When writing
for a YA audience, never mention these things: current slang,
celebrities, or technology. They’ll have all changed by the time the
book comes out.
The harder aspect of this is when you write a
character with a very different background than your own. For me, nerdy
smart ass male characters come easily. But when I try to write from
another perspective, say a girl (AND AND ZAK), or a popular guy (ALMOST
PERFECT), or a transgender girl (ALMOST PERFECT) I have to tread very
carefully. I do not want someone reading about a character like
themselves and thinking ‘He got that wrong.’
I’ve not always been
successful, but I always do my research. While I can’t claim complete
success, I am proud to say that most of my negative reviews are about
cliche plots, shallow characters, and dull plots. Makes me feel so much
better.
About the Book:
When Ana Watson’s brother ditches a high school trip to run wild at
Washingcon, type-A Ana knows that she must find him or risk her last
shot at freedom from her extra-controlling parents.
In her
desperation, she’s forced to enlist the last person she’d ever want to
spend time with—slacker Zak Duquette—to help find her brother before
morning comes.
But over the course of the night, while being
chased by hordes of costumed Vikings and zombies, Ana and Zak begin to
open up to each other. Soon, what starts as the most insane manhunt transforms into so much more. . . .
Amazon | IndieBound | Goodreads
About the Author:
Brian Katcher was born in St. Louis. He started
writing while he was down and out in Mexico. He lives in Missouri with
his wife and daughter.
~ posted by Jen Fisher @cupcakegirly
