Do You Have To Pay A Literary Agent?

Do you have to pay a literary agent? Fantastic agent Colleen Lindsay asked a related question on Twitter. You can find the conversation by searching Twitter for the hashtag #agentpay.

The conversation was triggered by a hypothetical question that Colleen posed: What if we paid agents by billable hours instead of by a percentage of the sale?

Do You Have to Pay a Literary Agent? Sales Percentage Model

Do you have to pay a literary agent? Yes, but only if your project sells. And I won’t lie. I sometimes wish that I was getting paid by the hour instead of by the sales percentage. Why? Well, as I’m getting started, I am spending a lot of time developing projects. It’s a learning experience for me, as well as for the writer. And some of those projects have not gone on to sell. In fact, throughout my career, there will be projects that don’t end up selling. There might not be as much of a market for them as I originally thought, or it might not be the right time for them to cross the transom. For whatever reason, there will be unsold projects in my career…just as there are for any agent. In that situation, what does a literary agent cost? Nada. (For more on this topic, check out my post that addresses what happens when your agent doesn’t sell your book.)

The Intangible Value of Learning Experiences

And, sure, it would be nice to see some cash for the billable hours I’ve spent on these projects. But you know what? I place a very high value on a learning experience. It’s almost impossible for me to be disappointed or bitter about something if I’ve learned from it. I try to seek out like-minded writers for clients, those who want to learn and grow and turn into publishing success machines, as much through their touchdowns as their fumbles (I know nothing about football, can you tell?). Of course, I’d much rather sell a project than sit around singing “Kum ba yah” and learning, because I have responsibilities to my clients, but still. These experiences are really important. I’d feel strange charging for them.

The Sales Percentage System Works

Especially at the beginning of an agent’s career. Not only does this weed out the agents who are not hungry, not passionate, not crazy enough to work for, basically, free for a few years just to launch themselves, but it breeds a drive and determination that is an asset to any client. And it armors newer agents for the long haul, it gets us into the right mindset so that we doggedly serve our authors long after cash starts coming in.

Do You Have to Pay a Literary Agent? Billable Hours Model

If publishing were to, for some crazy reason, start to answer the question “Do you have to pay a literary agent?” with the precedent of agents charging by the hour, here are the pros and cons, in my opinion. Remember, this is purely hypothetical.

Security for Agents, Financial Barrier for Writers

A new literary agent, in the short term, would be able to feed and clothe themselves. They’d still make a pretty decent salary and get rewarded for all their editing, counseling, advising and development work. The short-term benefits would be great for the agent. (Benefits? What’s that?) However, the barrier to entry for using an agent, for a writer, especially a debut writer, would be very high. What does a literary agent cost in this scenario? A lot. Writers would have to invest thousands of dollars into launching their writer career — and that project might not sell, after all, so those costly hours would be for nothing.

Except, of course, learning experience, but I doubt someone who has sunk years or their life and thousands into it would feel as peaceful as I do, with my hypothetical by-the-hour wage.

The Question of Loyalty

If “Do you have to pay a literary agent?” came down to billable hours, I predict there would be huge backlash against the system of literary agents. If big houses persisted in only accepting agented submissions, there would be great unrest among writers. Loyalty between agent and writer would also decrease. Writers would begrudgingly pay their agents to “break into the business” and then might dump them once they have an “in” with a publisher, to avoid the agent’s steep hourly fees.

The problems would only get worse for established agents with established clients. These clients would have a reputation. They’d be able to make income off of subrights or foreign sales, they’d be able to sell subsequent books in a series, they’d be able to sell books on proposal. They’d need their agents more for negotiation than matchmaking and introductions. Their agents, then, would be doing much less of that really hardcore developmental, editing, and counseling work. That’s really what eats up the hours, folks.

Decreased Reward From the Sale Itself

Of course, established agents would have many more clients and much more of the business-end work of negotiation, contracts, selling subrights (A movie contract, by the way, can weigh in at about 300 pages! That’s a lot of pleasure reading!), so they wouldn’t suffer necessarily, but getting the deals and selling books would take less time for their established writers. They wouldn’t get as much reward from the sale itself.

With billable hours, unless the established agent raised their rates, they’d also have less opportunity for that out-of-control growth that every percentage-based worker dreams of. They could find the next Jo Rowling or Stephenie Meyer, but they wouldn’t have a right to a percent of that runaway success…they’d still be plodding along at whatever dollars per hour. When we’re looking at “What does a literary agent cost?” in this scenario, it’s a bargain for the established author, but it’s a bummer for the agent not to cash in on some of that success.

Passion Versus Job Security

So in the short term, addressing “Do you have to pay a literary agent?” with billable hours could benefit rookie agents. But it could also make them lazy and never instill in them that marvelous drive and hunger. I’d take my passion any day over silly things like shelter from the elements or job security. Some jobs, you draw a salary just by showing up every day and doing whatever someone tells you. (There are some agents who receive a salary for office duties or subrights work, depending on their agency, but they also get a percentage of sales, so this is not meant to disrespect my colleagues at other agencies.)

Other jobs, where you’re getting paid only based on your successes, you either have a mental breakdown or you become more invested. Me? I like the challenge. I like the risk. I like working my butt off. It makes me a better asset to you than if I was getting paid, sale or no. It makes me more determined to sell.

While I’m no longer a literary agent, I love to coach aspiring writers. Hire me as your book editor and we’ll navigate the publishing process together.

How to Become a Literary Agent

The “how to become a literary agent” question is one I get a lot, from both hopeful college kids and from people who see what I do, think it looks like great fun and want to make a career change. Well, dear readers, you’re about to get an honest (and somewhat depressing) answer about choosing the literary agent career path. Most agents start out by reading slush (slush pile meaning here) or acting as an agent’s assistant (which I have done). However, publishing is an old industry so there are a lot of apprentice-type relationships at the very beginning, where people learn and work for free. Nathan Bransford has a great take on this subject, so you should read his post, too. You can also check out what does a literary agent do across the way on this blog.

How to Become a Literary Agent: Yes, It Really Is This Hard

Want to know how to become a literary agent? Get a day job. No, really. Most newer agents have a day job. For a period of time, before I saved up enough living expenses to see me through the next year or so, I worked full-time as the world’s worst (I’ll admit, since I was always reading manuscripts at the office) product manager at a lucrative dot com. Yes, while agenting, getting my MFA, going to conferences, making NYC trips, selling books, reading submissions, reading ARCs and keeping up with each new publishing season, blogging, the whole nine. No, I didn’t sleep much. Yes, this is about the amount of time and energy it takes to get started for some people, and the number of hats people usually end up wearing.

Aspiring agents can avoid the day job route if they work for a large NYC or LA agency where there is an office space and they can be paid salary to do office admin/assistant type duties in addition to their agenting. Another way to avoid this issue, obviously, is having someone who’s willing to support you and put up with your lean years while your literary agent career takes off.

The Financial Reality of a Literary Agent Career

But most agencies, even those with offices, pay no salary and are commission only. And you don’t earn the full 15% as an up-and-coming agent. Sure, the agency commission is always 15%, as far as the author knows. But new agents pocket between 5% and 10% of the total sale, not the full 15%, and the rest goes to the agency as profit and to pay overhead. Overall, the money situation is pretty bleak at the beginning.

It Takes Five Years

Andrea says it takes at least five years to start earning a decent living as an agent. I’ve heard another very successful agent say that his goal, when starting out, was: start making money two years in, start making a living five years in. Those numbers are very accurate and that’s because publishing takes so long. For example, I negotiated a book deal this week. This book will come out in 2012. The first payout is on contract signing. We probably won’t get the contract until July, the money for signing until August or (since publishing is on vacation, and therefore even slower, in August) September. Also, part of the payout for that book is, unfortunately, on publication. (More and more houses are breaking up the advance to be paid on contract signing, on delivery of final manuscript (or art, in the case of an illustrator), and on publication…traditionally, the advance is paid half on signing, have on d&a (delivery and acceptance).)

So this particular advance is split into thirds and will be stretched for two years, until the book hits shelves in 2012. Then, the book will try to earn out its advance, which usually takes one or two years, depending on a number of factors. Only then will the author (and therefore the agent) start making royalties twice a year on the project, provided it keeps selling. So, a year to two years for the project to come out, another two years to start getting some kind of additional money for it.

In five years, the logic goes, I will have sold enough books, enough of them will have come out and some of them will have started earning royalties to give me a somewhat steady paycheck.

How to Become a Literary Agent: The Qualifications

Willingness to work for free
Willingness to work, work, work, read, read, read, work, work, work
Willingness to be poor for years (unless you also have the bandwidth for a day job, too, or a really supportive partner) and sell, sell, sell

Here’s how my book publishing agent career developed. I read slush for an adult agency for a while, but my heart was always in children’s books. I asked one of my now-colleagues to let me read for ABLit. She didn’t put me on slush, though. She gave me full requests and client manuscripts to read. I quickly started giving notes and honing my editorial eye. Then all of the other agents started giving me their really tough projects — client manuscripts that, for whatever reason, hadn’t been selling. I started giving notes on those and, after a revision or two, some of those manuscripts found homes. When I did this for a manuscript of Andrea’s, she extended a hand and said, “Welcome aboard!” That process took, overall, about a year.

It’s Hard, But If You Love the Work…

Lots of readers tell me that what I do sounds really glamorous and amazing, and that’s why they want to know how to become a literary agent. It is! I love books. I love writers. I love writing. I love publishing. I get to hang out and have drinks with some of the biggest creators in children’s books. I get to visit publishers and listen to editors talk about books they’re excited to be bringing into the world. I get to meet Bernadette Peters (this has nothing to do with anything, but boy, it’s cool!). I sit next to Newbery Medal winners at dinner. I love this life very, very much!

But the financial realities behind it are not so glamorous or fascinating at the end of the day. Still, there’s nothing else I’d rather be doing.

While I’m no longer a literary agent, I have ten years of experience in the publishing industry under my belt. I’d love to use my experience to help you with the novel editing process.

What’s the Buzz?

I am heading into BEA today. Excuse the lazy post but BEA week is always crazy. What are the ARCs you most want to see?

I’ve already read MATCHED, which is a dystopian book that went to auction with seven publishers bidding. What are the other hot reader books you want to know about?

Writing is Hard

Writing is hard and intensely personal, which is why writers have a habit of taking criticism — any criticism — to heart. There’s a funny side effect of being an agent who blogs. On more occasions than I care to mention, I’ve gotten emails from my clients after a post, asking if the post was about them, specifically. (And, clients, if you have done this, then yes, for probably the first and only time, this post actually is about you! Now stop reading my blog and go write/revise/be brilliant!)

While I don’t make it a habit to write thinly-veiled posts about clients or writers and I don’t think I’ve said anything that would greatly offend clients or writers on this blog, this little quirk does drive home a big point: writing is extremely personal.

Writing is Hard (And Extremely Personal)

Writing is hard from a craft perspective, but it’s also hard from an emotional perspective. A writer is putting their imagination, their hopes and their dreams on the line when they sit down at the keyboard. This is a deeply sacred and important thing. No matter how far along a writer is on his writing journey, no matter if she’s writing her first book or her tenth book, the act of writing and creating is absolutely essential. And every day that I sit down to read a submission from a writer, I honor the sacred bond and trust that writers expect from me when they reach out to share their creative work. Their creative passion — even if the writing isn’t agent- or editor-ready just yet — is what makes them tick. I would never do anything to break their trust and risk hurting their creativity. (Read some constructive feedback examples.)

At a conference one time (and yes, this is a specific example…I hope this writer would allow me to talk about this in the hopes of illustrating a very important point that could spare the next writer some heartache), a writer told me that a creative writing teacher of hers had once taken her story, held it up as an example in front of the entire class, and completely ripped it apart. It took this writer twelve years to bounce back from writing rejection and type another word after that day.

Sure, this writer is an extreme example of taking rejection personally — she could’ve been overly sensitive to her teacher’s comments or excessively shy or whatever. But it only goes to show how much power a person-perceived-to-be-in-authority has over a person’s writerly self-esteem. This isn’t something anyone, whether a critique partner or a teacher or an editor or agent, should take lightly. (Check out more advice on how to deal with negative criticism.)

Writing And Sensitivity

People have all different levels of sensitivity about all different sorts of things. But because writing is hard and so personal, because it deals with hopes and dreams and deep, creative desires, it is all the more fragile. It’s easy for writers to slip into a mindset where they’re taking rejection personally — which makes them all the more protective of their writing. And I am always sensitive to that fact.

I’ve said this in my disclosures on the About Me page, but I think it bears repeating here: I will never use a specific or identifiable example on the blog unless I have permission from the writer to do so (like with questions emailed to me, the workshops or contests, for example). Stuff asked and shared at conferences is fair game because conferences are a public setting and a lot of good stories come out of live events. If I want to illustrate a craft point, I will make something up (usually exaggerated) to suit my purposes. I will never cull directly from slush or from client manuscripts.

Where Do I Get My Post Ideas?

From questions people ask at conferences, from questions people ask via email, from issues that come up in the comments. Between the publishing business end of things, the craft side and the agenting side, I don’t think I’ll end up running out of things to talk about anytime soon.

And if I do discuss a particular craft issue, it is never unique to any one writer. First of all, that would make the post a lot less universal! Second of all, there really is a list of common craft traps and pitfalls that most writers fall into, if they’re going to fall. Believe it or not, but I find myself giving many of the same writing notes over and over. I end up seeing many of the same writing issues in 10-page sample after 10-page sample. When you read as much unpublished writing as I do, a writer’s unique strengths and challenges often match up pretty well with other strengths and challenges that you’ve seen before. If there’s something wonky with craft, it’s usually pretty universal. So work on not taking rejection personally — most likely, you’re among lots of other writers who have received a particular piece of feedback.

The only things that really stick out, usually — and the ones that I will obviously not blog about because of that trust I mention — are zany story ideas. The plots and premises that NOBODY has ever come up with before (usually not a good thing because they’re too out there to be widely commercial). But these types of slush gems aren’t for Twitter or the blog or Facebook. They’re just between me and my cat.

I know that writing is hard. Hire me as your book editor and I’ll give you constructive, actionable feedback that’ll help make your writing stronger.

Big News!

Last week I hinted on Twitter and Facebook that I have big news to share. A lot of clients, personal friends, colleagues and people who I’ve talked to at conferences already know this, as it has been in the works for a while, but now I want to make it official on the blog:

In July, I’m moving to Brooklyn to open up an East Coast office of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency!

Today is a fitting day for this announcement, as it finishes up my last week of classes for my MFA degree. (I’ll turn in my thesis over the summer, which I can do from anywhere, and then I’m done!) I’m typing up all my loose ends and getting ready for the big move.

Since not everyone knows how ABLit works, let me break it down. Our agency has a central office in the San Francisco Bay Area but we all work independently. That allows us to dedicate ourselves and all our attention to our clients. No daily office grind, no “big, imposing agency” vibe. Last year, we had an agent in Japan. Right now, one of our agents is in Chicago and three of our agents, a few interns and our subrights co-agent are in Southern California.

But it has been a while since we’ve had a dedicated presence on the East Coast. I’m very excited to be stepping up!

I’m making this move for a number of reasons, some personal, some career. I feel like it’s the right time for me to dive into NYC and immerse myself in the publishing scene. I’d love to make strong bonds, lasting relationships and more friends in the industry. It’ll be great to represent ABLit in New York and it’ll also be a fantastic asset for my clients. Finally, my boyfriend and I have been doing the cross-country long distance thing for a year and it’s time for me to finally join him.

I love being so close to Andrea and my Bay Area colleagues. They have been around the corner (some of them literally!) ever since I first started reading for ABLit two years ago and I have learned so much from being so close. I can’t imagine where I’d be without every single one of them. They are truly fantastic, inspiring and wise. I’ll miss them, my friends and my family — as well as my beautiful home city of San Francisco — so much, but this is the time for me to take my show on the road. I will still fly back all the time for meetings, family, friends, and the Big Sur conferences, which I absolutely adore.

Send a toast and well-wishes my way…I can’t wait to bring you more good news, more posts, more insight and more kidlit as I take this next step in my career!

(Okay, but I am still here in the Bay Area for a few months, so if anybody wants to make that a physical toast-and-well-wishes, you know where to find me!)

***

A word about Sushi: Since Sushi has been such a presence on the blog in the last few weeks, I can now say that this is why her recent illness was so stressful. As I keep an eye on her, I need to know that her health is good enough to survive a taxing move across the country, too. She was always part of my plans in NYC and I hope she stays that way. All signs point to “yes” so far. Thank you for all your continued Sushi love!

Tennessee auction update: Where do I begin? My full manuscript auction ended last night, with a highest bid of $2,800. Demand for this item was so high that I offered a full manuscript critique and phone call to the top 5 highest bidders, at the lowest bid amount of the 5 ($2,125). If all 5 highest bidders want to participate, that means my item will raise over $10,000 for Tennessee flood relief. I am floored and more than happy to do the extra critiques. I immediately got on the phone with Victoria, one of the auction organizers, last night and we just kept going in circles of “Dude…” and “Thank you”/”No, thank you!” I really hope I can swing a trip to Nashville sometime this summer to meet the organizers. Mandy, Victoria and Myra are heroes. They are doing so much good, and I’m honored to be a part of that. Congratulations to the winners! I can’t wait to read your manuscripts!

Think of Me, Think of Me, Sushi

Bizarre post title, right? I don’t often get personal on the blog (there are many more exciting, writing-related things to talk about!) but I could really use some cheering up this morning. Almost exactly a week ago, my cat Sushi (whose name I love to insert into popular lyrics, as you can see, above) got sick with an infection and stopped eating. She’s an older kitty — maybe 14, though I don’t know for sure because I adopted her — and some health problems are par for the course, but she got sick so suddenly that I’m really having a hard time coming to grips with it. I’m just not ready to lose her, less than a year after I lost my other kitty, Smokey.

She’s been to the vet and has quite a collection of medicines that I’m hoping will make her comfortable and heal her right up, but I don’t know if it’s looking good. She still hasn’t eaten on her own and the longer that lasts, the less chance of recovery. In lieu of a blog post today — I doubt I’d have anything intelligent to say, as my thoughts are elsewhere — I want to ask for some good energy and some well-wishes for my beloved Sushi, seen here.

All About a Full Manuscript Request on Your Novel Submission

Here, I want to explain my philosophy on the full manuscript request. I only request full manuscripts for a novel submission, not partials. Part of it is the same rationale as why I say you should send 10 sample pages with every query, regardless of an agency’s submission guidelines: instant gratification. When I see an enticing query letter, I want to move on to a novel submission right away.

full manuscript request, novel submission, literary agent, query letter — Look at this dutiful agent seriously considering a full manuscript request.

How Some Agents Handle a Full Manuscript Request

Imagine if I followed the partial request plan of some agents:

Ask for the first 30 pages, evaluate
As for the next 50/70 pages, evaluate
Ask for the next 100/150 pages, evaluate
Ask for the full manuscript … eventually

This is a bit extreme, but I have seen all sorts of iterations of this for a novel submission. Why bother? Well, here’s the rationale. An agent who asks for a lot of partials ultimately ends up rejecting fewer fulls, because their decision process is long and fewer manuscripts get all the way to the full manuscript request (Dealing with a query rejection? Read the linked post). On the other hand, there are also agents who request a full after reading only the query. They probably reject the vast majority (~99%) of their fulls, since the first time they see a writing sample is when they make a full manuscript request. I request a full after reading the query and the first 10 pages. I reject a vast majority of my full manuscripts, but not nearly as many as the person who reads only a query and asks for the full.

The one downside to asking for a full is that, to a writer, a full request is a Big Deal. It is More Serious and More Important than a partial request for a novel submission. I wish this wasn’t the case. I only request a full so that I can read through the first 30, 50, 70, 100, 150, etc. etc. etc. and keep reading until a) the quality of the writing takes a nosedive, b) the plot stops making sense, c) the story takes some kind of bizarre turn, d) the characters warp, e) I lose interest. All of these things, unfortunately, happen sometimes. However, sometimes they don’t!

Why a Literary Agent May Stop Reading a Novel Submission

There are a million reasons to stop reading a manuscript but there are also a million reasons to keep reading. With requesting a full and not a partial, I don’t have to stop, ask for more, stop, ask for more. I can read for as long as I’m riveted and, if that extends to the end of the manuscript, I’m a very happy agent. With a full at my disposal, I’m free to take my time, have my process, really dig in and mull things over without going back and forth with the writer.

I wouldn’t advocate sending a full when asked for a partial, like I’d suggest you send a writing sample anyway, but I just hope you understand a little bit more of what goes through my mind as a literary agent and exactly what a full request from me means.

If you want to make a literary agent read more, you’ll want the strongest possible manuscript. Hire me as your novel editor and we can increase your chances at success together.

Elements of a Novel Query Letter

You will see many a frustrated agent harping over and over again that the elements of a novel query letter should always follow submission guidelines. I will be the first to add my voice to the chorus: you should always follow submission guidelines when sending your novel query letter!

Elements of a Novel Query Letter: Always Follow an Agency’s Specific Guidelines

But…you should always follow our submission guidelines. At ABLit, we request the first 10 pages as one of the elements of your query letter submission. I’m here to say something a little controversial that might raise some hackles. I say, send the first pages to all the agents you’re querying, even if they don’t ask for them. (Sorry, guys!)

Before we proceed, I will write one note of warning here — this advice is for Advanced Users Only. Your first 10 pages have to be solid gold, or you shouldn’t bother with this strategy. Try to take an objective look. Try to determine whether or not you’ve got Conference Polish Syndrome. If your first 10 are a marvel and the rest of the manuscript is even better, send them with your novel query letter regardless of the guidelines. (Check out my post on how to finish a novel for more info.)

Why You Send Your First 10 (If You Know They’re Good)

Here’s why. When I read a novel query letter that catches my eye, I have absolutely no way of knowing if the writing is any good. And that’s all that matters at the end of the day. If I was judging a submission on query only, I’d have a very high chance of requesting something that ended up being totally off-base. Query writing does not equal manuscript writing, the two are completely different by nature. Or I’d request something and wait to receive it and forget what I liked about the query in the first place and so the sample would make no sense and I would’ve lost interest in the meantime or gotten busy with something else, etc. etc. etc.

If some sample pages are an element of your query letter submission, I can look at the writing right away. There’s much less room for error in terms of requesting something that ends up a hot mess, and I have instant gratification. A query intrigues me and I can keep reading immediately. No wait, no chance to lose any enthusiasm. Sometimes, it’s a total let-down. Other times, I like the sample and get even more excited and request the full on the spot.

My Personal Experience With Sending the First 10

Before I joined the agency, I was an agented writer myself. My third manuscript and, hence, my third round of sending novel query letters, landed me an agent (full disclosure: I am no longer with that agent, as that would present a conflict of interest). When I sent out only queries for my first two manuscripts, I got a lukewarm response and it took forever. With my third try, I decided to send 10 pages as an part of my novel query letter submission, whether requested or not. I think Sarah Palin might’ve called that a “mavericky” move. Almost everyone responded right away, the whole process took two weeks and I got offers from six agents. I’m not saying that’ll happen for everyone, but this strategy made it easy for an agent to a) read me right away, b) like me right away, c) get really excited. (Note to writers: I did mention above that this was my third try at getting an agent…that means I’d tried and failed several times. It takes a lot of practice to learn how to write a novel that agents consider publishable enough to offer on.)

That’s why I’m so happy the first 10 pages are part of our submission guidelines at ABLit. And I think there’s a good case for making it your submission strategy, regardless of guidelines elsewhere. Just make sure you paste the text in the body of an email if you e-query. Also, the “No attachments” part of many submission guidelines is one you really shouldn’t ignore. (Check out more of our posts on submission!)

Are you struggling with how to pitch an idea effectively? Hire my query editing services and I’ll guide you through the process.

Great News!

Since it is officially up on the website now, I can announce it: I am an associate agent at Andrea Brown Literary Agency!

Check out my bio on the agency website!

If you are a YA, MG or picturebook writer, please think of me when you put together your query list.

As a result of my new position, I’ll be making changes to the blog, vetting some old posts and generally getting everything into brand new shape. Please pardon the dust while I revamp some of my old content and look for more content geared to aspiring writers in the future!

Teenage Perspective in YA Novels

One of my favorite parts of SCBWI (where I took no pictures, because I am made of #epicfail, by the way) was Krista Marino’s voice workshop, where we dissected and discussed YA novels and writing teenage characters. One of the keenest insights came when she invited her author Frank Portman (mastermind behind KING DORK and the forthcoming ANDROMEDA KLEIN) to talk about his songwriting for his band, The Mr. T Experience (better known as MTX).

Know the Teens Who’ll Read YA Novels

Dr. Frank and Krista made a very good point during the workshop. Writers, remember:

Teens aren’t stupider versions of adults. They’re just as smart, just as emotional, just as perceptive… they’re simply lacking the experience and perspective that most adults get in the process of living more years on the planet.

And, since your character will change over the course of your young adult novel, your narrative is just one way they’ll get some different perspective and evolve as people, right? Excellent. In the meantime, as you’re fleshing your characters out, MTX songs make an excellent primer in teen voice and angst.

Tap Into Those Angsty Teen Emotions

Have you forgotten how desperate guys are to find a girl, any girl who likes them/wants to talk to them/can stand looking at them? Do you remember the sting of feeling completely alone and invisible to the opposite sex? Listen to the hilarious “Even Hitler Had a Girlfriend” off of Our Bodies Our Selves.

Have you forgotten the tremendous roller coaster of first love? The ups and downs and the dizzy compulsion to make it work despite any and all common sense? Try “Who Needs Happiness (I’d Rather Have You)” from Revenge Is Sweet, And So Are You on for size.

Do you remember the ecstasy of finding the one person who understands you? The relief of discovering an oasis amidst the torture of high school? Listen to “Thank You (For Not Being One of Them)” off of Love is Dead. (Check out this post for more on YA romance.)

If You Need Inspiration, Try Music

If you think the voice in your YA novels is lacking authenticity, if your teen emotions aren’t ringing true, do yourself a favor and pick up a couple of Mr. T Experience albums. And yes, this is extremely, extremely gratifying for my 16 year-old inner fangirl. Who knew my nerdy MTX fandom would pay off career-wise? You can check out Dr. Frank’s website by clicking here.

Are you hitting the right voice in your YA novels? Hire me to be your young adult fiction editor.