tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post1423187741337573577..comments2023-05-05T11:15:58.903+01:00Comments on Emma Pass • My Blog: How YA Saved My (Writing) LifeEmma Passhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18209194238119830841noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-26395178970737438942011-11-08T17:20:11.956+00:002011-11-08T17:20:11.956+00:00That's a great story, Emma! I love hearing how...That's a great story, Emma! I love hearing how authors find their genre. It took a while for me to come round to mine - I was writing literary fiction for a bit! Eep!Talli Rolandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04780882465745107715noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-1272354234203567872011-11-07T16:32:37.594+00:002011-11-07T16:32:37.594+00:00Hello, Linda - it's nice to catch up with you ...Hello, Linda - it's nice to catch up with you too. Hope you are well, and thank you for commenting! :)Emma Passhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18209194238119830841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-89311769124234803512011-11-07T13:25:48.082+00:002011-11-07T13:25:48.082+00:00Hello, Emma - a friend directed me to this. Nice t...Hello, Emma - a friend directed me to this. Nice to catch up after a good many years! Thanks for the mention. And I'm definitely going to look up STORY.Linda Newberynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-27270836713134815432011-11-03T20:17:47.459+00:002011-11-03T20:17:47.459+00:00Dan, you're so right. Now, I can see how daft ...Dan, you're so right. Now, I can see how daft it was to think I should only be reading certain sorts of books, but back then… blame it on teenage insecurity, I guess! These days, I'm the same as you - if I'm not enjoying a book, I can walk away from it without feeling guilty. Life's too short - and there's a lot of books out there to read.<br /><br />And you're right about YA, too - it seems to be a very inclusive genre, which is what makes it so exciting. You can write about anything.Emma Passhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18209194238119830841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-39888560639609931782011-11-03T08:59:56.440+00:002011-11-03T08:59:56.440+00:00Me, I just like stories. I love 'em. All kinds...Me, I just like stories. I love 'em. All kinds. That's why I don't believe you should just read the books you feel you ought to read - you should read the ones you love to read. No guilty pleasure, just pleasure. I've taught myself to put a book down if I'm not enjoying it and I don't care how it ends.<br /><br />As for genre? I'm not sure my novels really fall perfectly into any particular genre. They're books for adults who like reading good books, I suppose! Which makes me think . . . the great thing about YA, is that it's all YA. It isn't YA Horror, YA literary, YA blah blah blah. YA almost isn't a genre, it's just books for young people, no matter what the books are about. How refreshing.<br /><br />So when people ask me what kind of books I like to read, well, there's only really one answer isn't there? Good ones.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-21378454778848211542011-11-02T20:55:10.885+00:002011-11-02T20:55:10.885+00:00Harriet - thank you, and it's great to find an...Harriet - thank you, and it's great to find another STORY junkie! I would absolutely love to go on one of McKee's courses one day; it would certainly be an unforgettable experience.<br /><br />Julia - you should definitely try STORY! I honestly believe that without it, I would not now be getting a book published. It turned my writing around.Emma Passhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18209194238119830841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-71481270574701233252011-11-02T18:44:51.508+00:002011-11-02T18:44:51.508+00:00Still straddling the line between juvenile and adu...Still straddling the line between juvenile and adult fiction... a foot in each world. I sometimes wonder if I too would love YA. I am definitely going to have to get a look at the Robert McKee book -- I keep hearing good things about it!Julia Munroe Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09798422149542791454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-2883375243773857762011-11-02T18:43:49.952+00:002011-11-02T18:43:49.952+00:00Yes, Abi, I agree with Emma about STORY! I use it ...Yes, Abi, I agree with Emma about STORY! I use it all the time - and I went on one of McKee's weekend courses too... intense, brilliant & bit scary (him!), but worth every penny... Emma, thanks for this post. It's fascinating to hear how you came to find your writing 'home', and the next time someone asks me why I'm writing YA books, I will think of this post!H.M. Castorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08716936870601385683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-65236171612527727722011-11-02T17:17:44.453+00:002011-11-02T17:17:44.453+00:00You should definitely try STORY, Abi - it's an...You should definitely try STORY, Abi - it's an incredible book. As for your multi-genre talents, I am in awe! I'd love to be able to write for different ages, but YA seems to be what I'm drawn to so I'm not going to argue. :)Emma Passhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18209194238119830841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-55263792172154838302011-11-02T16:30:54.853+00:002011-11-02T16:30:54.853+00:00What a fascinating post Emma - loved it. I really ...What a fascinating post Emma - loved it. I really must get hold of the Robert McKee book - it sounds great! It's amazing how that moment suddenly hit you when you just knew that YA was the right genre for you. That must have felt wonderful and it just confirms your instinct that you were born to write (which you were!) My experiences are quite different - I love writing for all ages and in fact one of the things I enjoy so much about writing is the challenge of writing for a different market. However, my first love is poetry, and I can't not write it. I can't imagine myself writing horror or thrillers though - I'm too big a scaredy-cat - I'd frighten myself to death!Abi Burlinghamhttp://www.abiburlingham.talktalk.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-53843386695365749532011-11-02T14:18:29.204+00:002011-11-02T14:18:29.204+00:00That's exactly it, Lari - it felt like coming ...That's exactly it, Lari - it felt like coming home for me too. I don't look at the time I spent writing other stuff as wasted, as it taught me a lot about writing (and disciplining myself to write), but it only felt 'right' once I started writing YA.Emma Passhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18209194238119830841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2169809609802357406.post-65289234588967842992011-11-02T08:27:16.926+00:002011-11-02T08:27:16.926+00:00I recognise this journey! I fell in love with book...I recognise this journey! I fell in love with books when I read fantasy as a child (CS Lewis, Diana Wynne Jones) and yet when I started trying to be A Writer in my 20s, I wrote literary short stories, because I thought that was the training ground for writing proper big person novels. I learnt a lot, I got a few published, I even won an award, but I never felt entirely comfortable with them. I wasn't writing in my own voice, or from my heart, just exercising my brain. Then I had kids, I started reading kids' books again, and the lightbulb flashed on. I still loved the stories which I had loved as a child. Now I write children's books (and get them published, and win awards!) and I feel completely comfortable. I'm telling the stories in my heart, in my own voice. It's like coming home!Lari Donhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13290918954317744377noreply@blogger.com