A drama, a comedy, or coming of age novel? To be honest, when I set out to put the initial idea of Jessie Grean on paper, I was clueless. Only after transforming the initial comic idea into a full-length book, I realized that I had to think about what direction I want to go.
Before starting what is now Jessie Grean, I wrote a romantic comedy. I wouldn’t say that I am the funniest person in any room, but somehow the subject matter simply felt like it would lend itself to a lighter fair. If it hadn’t been a romantic comedy, the book would have been a drama. So I made the conscious decision to infuse the manuscript with some silliness, over the top reactions, puns, and some wannabe jokes. I even bought the book “Comedy Writing Secrets” to hone my funny bone.
What’s a romantic comedy?
I would be surprised if you’ve never read a romantic comedy before. Usally romantic comedies entwine romantic partners in a light and humuouse way. Even the drama aspect in those stories is depicted in a light way.
I enjoy romantic comedies, as I expect these kind of stories to be light, fun and a quick read. It’s light flighing on cloud nine before digging into deeper emotional roller coasters with other books.
There are so many fantastic romantic comedy books out these days. Here are a couple of great examples: “Tweet Cute“, “Red, White and Royal Blue“, and “The Bromance Book Club“.
Naturally, my eyes drifted to the yellow cover of the book and briefly considered to make Jessie Grean a light affair. Light might be the wrong word as making people laugh is actually very hard. Writing drama is much easier for some reason. However, well-placed jokes or comedic turns increase the memorability in a drama immensely. Books as well as novels who succeed with this balance linger much longer in my memory I’ve noticed.
But did I really want Jessie Grean to be a romantic comedy? The straight-up answer is no. I didn’t not only feel that this genre is right for my young adult books, but I concisely decided not to have romance in the book at all. That’s not true. There is a sliver of romance. Yet, after my second to the last edit, I almost wholly took out Jessie’s potential romantic encounter. When I read young adult books, I hate most of the time that the protagonist has a love interest or that there is a love triangle. It almost feels like the writer ticked a box when they inserted the romantic parts into the book. For me, it distracts from the journey of the characters. I prefer it when the main character focuses on self-growth and learning skills instead.
What is a drama through?
I supposed most works of fiction are dramas in one way or another; even then, they are conceived as comedies, like the romantic examples given above.
There are classic dramas like “Hamlet” and the new ones like “The Hate you give“. The stories cause emotional rollercoasters. And the friction is palpable usually from the beginning.
When I looked at the first complete draft for Jessie Grean I didn’t want the book to be a straight-up drama as they can become dark very quickly. Not just that, I noticed that I had written a fish-out of water story.
What’s a fish out of water story?
As the idiom already indicates, a fish, aka the main protagonist, has to go either on a journey and finds itself in circumstances previously unknown to her/him. I suppose most dystopian, as well as fantasy books, could be partially categorist in that trope.
A fish out of water story helps the reader to discover the new world along with the protagonist without putting awkward exposition into the book, which can feel out of place and was only put in to give the reader extra information.
What’s a coming of age story?
Coming of age stories detail the grow of the protagonist from young adult to propper adulthood.
Your first thought might be that all young adult books are coming of age stories. But young adult is a term for books mainly targeted appeal to teenagers and college grads. This doesn’t encublulate the genre at all. Coming of age stories reflect the struggles of teenagers today or the time period the book was written in. That is why coming of age stories are mainly found in contemporary young adult books.
Jessie Grean is definitely a coming of age story. It’s her story of self-discovery and growth. But does she manage to transition into adulthood successfully? I guess you have to read the book once it’s coming out.
What’s a young adult book?
As I mentioned above, Jessie Grean is definitely a young adult book. Not only is the character 16, but it’s also about her journey.
I want to state that here, just because the protagonist is a teenager doesn’t automatically mean that it is a young adult book. In general young adult books are aimed at teenagers and young adults. But everyone can read the book regardless of their age.
However, a couple of years ago, I realized that just because the character is young, the books might not be targeted at the age group of the main character. I learned that lesson with the “The Boy In The Striped Pajama“.
So Jessie Grean is a young adult book containing dramatic elements and tries to grow into herself. She learns new skills and carves out a new life for herself in a new to her environment.
What genres do you like to read?
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