Ryan Mark's Blog
February 8, 2015
The YA Dystopian Genre and Global Issues
There are hundreds of global issues facing the world at present. What better way to draw attention to them than the YA Dystopian genre? An exciting story is a great way to introduce readers to important themes and capture their attention in an engaging way.
The stories that come under this umbrella mostly depict a violent future for the world (The Road), some having society controlled by a totalitarian regime (The Hunger Games, Divergent), which was brought about by the current behaviours of society remaining unchanged, for example, continually draining the Earth’s natural resources, or, continued contribution to global warming, to name a few. The stories may be set in the future, but the reasons leading to that future are very close to home, and so, this genre is one way in which a concerned author can put forward world changing issues to a teenage reader while keeping them entertained and captivated at the same time.
A variety of issues and subjects can be covered in a book that falls into the YA Dystopian genre, from war, death, oppression, despair and environmental catastrophe, and if introduced into a plot that can hold the reader’s attention for a long period, these issues can be subtly placed into their minds without being too intrusive in the way in which they are described and put forward.
This genre gives readers the chance to read about such issues, without having to live through the hardships of what might be happening in that particular future. It gives the reader an experience and lets them imagine what such a world would be like, and maybe might make them think twice about leaving their mobile phone on charge all night…
The YA Dystopian genre can also be used to introduce global issues to a younger reader with limited global knowledge, without having to over complicate the description with too many scientific terms and explanations, which is great when trying to make them aware of the troubles that are currently ricocheting through our society.
The stories that come under this umbrella mostly depict a violent future for the world (The Road), some having society controlled by a totalitarian regime (The Hunger Games, Divergent), which was brought about by the current behaviours of society remaining unchanged, for example, continually draining the Earth’s natural resources, or, continued contribution to global warming, to name a few. The stories may be set in the future, but the reasons leading to that future are very close to home, and so, this genre is one way in which a concerned author can put forward world changing issues to a teenage reader while keeping them entertained and captivated at the same time.
A variety of issues and subjects can be covered in a book that falls into the YA Dystopian genre, from war, death, oppression, despair and environmental catastrophe, and if introduced into a plot that can hold the reader’s attention for a long period, these issues can be subtly placed into their minds without being too intrusive in the way in which they are described and put forward.
This genre gives readers the chance to read about such issues, without having to live through the hardships of what might be happening in that particular future. It gives the reader an experience and lets them imagine what such a world would be like, and maybe might make them think twice about leaving their mobile phone on charge all night…
The YA Dystopian genre can also be used to introduce global issues to a younger reader with limited global knowledge, without having to over complicate the description with too many scientific terms and explanations, which is great when trying to make them aware of the troubles that are currently ricocheting through our society.
January 7, 2015
The Young Adult Genre and Unsure/Nervous Readers
The Young Adult genre is, in my opinion, one of the most accessible genres out there at present. This is down to a variety of factors, but one of the main reasons is that the majority of the storylines, which fall into this genre, contain plots that are easy to read and follow (except for a few that don’t, but I won’t go into detail about these books), and so provide a great starting point for a reader who is either nervous, or, unsure of which type of book to pick up, or even, in some cases, where to start.
I always think that the best books are those that you can read all the way through, without having to stop, go back and re-read parts to make sense of the section that you’re currently reading. This might not bother some readers, and it may not tarnish the overall pleasure they gain from the novel while reading it, however, to an unsure reader this could be off putting. And I believe, this is where the Young Adult genre comes in.
With my book, Tremor (which falls into the Young Adult Dystopian genre), I made sure that the story I created was easy to read, with the aim of the reader being able to read from start to finish without having to stop and think: ‘I don’t understand that.’ A storyline needs to flow from the book’s pages and into the reader’s imagination, allowing them to carve an image out of the words, and I believe that this happens with great ease when reading books in the Young Adult Genre.
The target audience of the Young Adult genre may be young adults, but this doesn’t mean that the genre isn’t for older readers. That’s what makes this genre great. Such a wide variety of people can gain so much from reading books that fall into this category, whether they are unsure readers, or have great confidence in their reading ability.
I always think that the best books are those that you can read all the way through, without having to stop, go back and re-read parts to make sense of the section that you’re currently reading. This might not bother some readers, and it may not tarnish the overall pleasure they gain from the novel while reading it, however, to an unsure reader this could be off putting. And I believe, this is where the Young Adult genre comes in.
With my book, Tremor (which falls into the Young Adult Dystopian genre), I made sure that the story I created was easy to read, with the aim of the reader being able to read from start to finish without having to stop and think: ‘I don’t understand that.’ A storyline needs to flow from the book’s pages and into the reader’s imagination, allowing them to carve an image out of the words, and I believe that this happens with great ease when reading books in the Young Adult Genre.
The target audience of the Young Adult genre may be young adults, but this doesn’t mean that the genre isn’t for older readers. That’s what makes this genre great. Such a wide variety of people can gain so much from reading books that fall into this category, whether they are unsure readers, or have great confidence in their reading ability.
January 1, 2015
Stumbling Block AKA Writer's Block
I will always remember the comments my English Literature teacher made when handing back a piece of my course work…
‘You’re never going to be a published author,’ the teacher said, smiling, red pen in hand, ‘but that doesn’t matter, as what you’ve written will suffice.’
Although I knew the teacher was probably right due to the work being of a poor standard, I wished it hadn’t been said as it knocked my confidence, and it seemed like becoming a writer in the future was definitely out of the question.
I loved to write as a teenager and let my imagination run wild, however becoming an author at that point in my life had never really registered on my list of future careers. But once those harsh comments had sunk in the likelihood of this ever potentially happening was very much out of the question for me.
Writers face many challenges on the path to putting pen to paper, or in most cases now, fingers to keys, and this was the first major stumbling block that came into my path. After enduring this happenstance the urge to write fictional stories, or anything from my imagination, was totally lost to me, which after looking back, I do partly blame on the experience with the teacher. It’s amazing what a single person’s words can do to one’s hopes and aspirations – and even though you should never let the negatives deter you, as you can’t please everyone, it does hurt! We’re only human after all.
As with most unpleasant encounters, the interaction with the teacher paled into insignificance, and even though it did hurt, I knew I shouldn’t let it stop me from doing something I loved.
When I started writing again, I realised that letting those teacher’s words dishearten me was foolish. It was one piece of my work and a single person’s opinion. The piece of work that I’d written wasn’t a true reflection of my writing, and was based on a question that didn’t come from my heart. Writing Academic pieces was never my strong point… If you too struggle with such pieces, it doesn’t mean that you cannot write a brilliant story! Everyone has a great story itching to be released…
I spent years experimenting with my writing, and seeing what I could potentially create. I’d written several other stories before Tremor came to life. It took two years to find that comfort zone and finally feel happy with what and why I was writing. I can guarantee that this happens to the majority of writers. And I know this might sound like a hard and time consuming process, but the overall experience is well worth the effort from what you get in return: a published book in your hands – it’s hard for me to described what this feels like.
Even if you feel like you can’t write, but you have the urge, give it a go and see where your imagination takes you. Like I’ve explained, becoming an author had never initially triggered on my list of future careers, and I would never have believed I could write something worth reading, yet I wrote. And Tremor is the outcome of this.
‘You’re never going to be a published author,’ the teacher said, smiling, red pen in hand, ‘but that doesn’t matter, as what you’ve written will suffice.’
Although I knew the teacher was probably right due to the work being of a poor standard, I wished it hadn’t been said as it knocked my confidence, and it seemed like becoming a writer in the future was definitely out of the question.
I loved to write as a teenager and let my imagination run wild, however becoming an author at that point in my life had never really registered on my list of future careers. But once those harsh comments had sunk in the likelihood of this ever potentially happening was very much out of the question for me.
Writers face many challenges on the path to putting pen to paper, or in most cases now, fingers to keys, and this was the first major stumbling block that came into my path. After enduring this happenstance the urge to write fictional stories, or anything from my imagination, was totally lost to me, which after looking back, I do partly blame on the experience with the teacher. It’s amazing what a single person’s words can do to one’s hopes and aspirations – and even though you should never let the negatives deter you, as you can’t please everyone, it does hurt! We’re only human after all.
As with most unpleasant encounters, the interaction with the teacher paled into insignificance, and even though it did hurt, I knew I shouldn’t let it stop me from doing something I loved.
When I started writing again, I realised that letting those teacher’s words dishearten me was foolish. It was one piece of my work and a single person’s opinion. The piece of work that I’d written wasn’t a true reflection of my writing, and was based on a question that didn’t come from my heart. Writing Academic pieces was never my strong point… If you too struggle with such pieces, it doesn’t mean that you cannot write a brilliant story! Everyone has a great story itching to be released…
I spent years experimenting with my writing, and seeing what I could potentially create. I’d written several other stories before Tremor came to life. It took two years to find that comfort zone and finally feel happy with what and why I was writing. I can guarantee that this happens to the majority of writers. And I know this might sound like a hard and time consuming process, but the overall experience is well worth the effort from what you get in return: a published book in your hands – it’s hard for me to described what this feels like.
Even if you feel like you can’t write, but you have the urge, give it a go and see where your imagination takes you. Like I’ve explained, becoming an author had never initially triggered on my list of future careers, and I would never have believed I could write something worth reading, yet I wrote. And Tremor is the outcome of this.
December 22, 2014
Understanding Change through YA Dystopian Fiction
We all know our world is changing at a drastic rate – but keeping up with how and why is difficult without becoming confused or feeling patronised.
Global changes - whether environmental or social - can seem dry and boring or difficult to understand coming from news readers or journalists. A better way to approach them might be to pick up a YA novel.
Showing, rather than telling a specific issue, i.e. wars or the melting of the polar ice caps, is one of the most important skills a writer can use when trying to get a reader to fully engage with the issues that are contained within their stories, especially environmental ones, which as previously discussed in the above paragraph, can sometimes be hard to understand.
Two books that I’ve read which have been successful in this sense for me are: Floodland by Marcus Sedgwick, and, The Road by Cormac McCarthy. Both of these authors managed to successfully explain the issues which led to their stories through their clever use of description and character’s emotions – which are two great ways in which a writer can successfully hold onto a reader’s attention and engage them in the issues of their world and what their characters are going through, thus showing the reader the state of the world of their stories.
One of the issues I looked in my YA Dystopian novel, Tremor, was the depletion of the Earth’s oil resources, and the problems that could stem from complete exhaustion. I found the best way to put this issue forward was not to use large descriptions or speech from one character, which could overwhelm a reader, but to incorporate it fully into the events of the storyline, rather than breaking away from the events and going into mass explanation on the issue, therefore showing, rather than, telling.
Global changes - whether environmental or social - can seem dry and boring or difficult to understand coming from news readers or journalists. A better way to approach them might be to pick up a YA novel.
Showing, rather than telling a specific issue, i.e. wars or the melting of the polar ice caps, is one of the most important skills a writer can use when trying to get a reader to fully engage with the issues that are contained within their stories, especially environmental ones, which as previously discussed in the above paragraph, can sometimes be hard to understand.
Two books that I’ve read which have been successful in this sense for me are: Floodland by Marcus Sedgwick, and, The Road by Cormac McCarthy. Both of these authors managed to successfully explain the issues which led to their stories through their clever use of description and character’s emotions – which are two great ways in which a writer can successfully hold onto a reader’s attention and engage them in the issues of their world and what their characters are going through, thus showing the reader the state of the world of their stories.
One of the issues I looked in my YA Dystopian novel, Tremor, was the depletion of the Earth’s oil resources, and the problems that could stem from complete exhaustion. I found the best way to put this issue forward was not to use large descriptions or speech from one character, which could overwhelm a reader, but to incorporate it fully into the events of the storyline, rather than breaking away from the events and going into mass explanation on the issue, therefore showing, rather than, telling.
