Talk about how the story you’re currently writing stands out from others in your genre.
My Asbury High series may be a young adult series, but it also falls into the cozy mystery genre. This sets my series apart in two ways:
One, most cozy mysteries are not young adult reads. In fact, the main characters in such stories are rarely, if ever, teenagers. However, I have always loved the amateur sleuth angle and by having the series take place in a small town with no graphic violence nor language occurring, I found it fits perfectly into the world of cozies. Which makes me happy because some of my favorite books are cozy mysteries.
The second way in which my young adult cozy is different, is the fact that my characters are so young when the series starts. The main characters in most young adult stories are usually sixteen or older. These same characters are usually more confident in their world, yet face challenges as protagonists are apt to do. In my series, my fearless foursome start out as fourteen-year-olds, immature and unsure how to deal with high school and the changes it brings to their world. As the series progresses, the characters act like true teenagers—how do I know this? I wrote this series when I was in high school! I saw firsthand how freshmen think they’re older and wiser than they are, only to grow into seniors and look back, realizing how young they truly were. Also, I’ve taught in a high school setting, Yes, there are some mature freshmen, but overall, they become so much more confident and self-assured by the time they are seniors. My characters mimic this evolution. Therefore, the first two to three books in the series may read a little young. I’ve even had someone suggest it should be a middle grade series. However, knowing how the series and characters progress, as well as their growth and the drama that they get into (in and out of school), are not what middle grade readers would understand nor feel connected to.
Thus, my readers are in for a treat, since they can build a solid connection to my characters while watching them grow and solve the many mysteries that pop up in Asbury.
Learn more about Kelly Brady Channick at www.kbchannick.com. Click here to learn more about your favorite authors with my the Story interviews.
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