Session 1 — 22 February: What is YA fiction?
What makes a compelling YA novel? We'll talk about concepts, themes, age ranges, average word counts, and how to use your past as material while keeping it current. By the end of the session, you’ll have a back-cover blurb for your idea. (Session will also cover current sensitivities in the YA market and how to avoid cultural appropriation, and include an icebreaker discussion on your favourite YA novel of the past five years.)
We’ll be reading a recommended novel through the course and will explore the techniques the author uses in each session before a live Q&A with them in the final session.
Live group webinar with your tutor.
Session 2 — 1 March: Your Cast
Creating memorable teen characters that real teens will connect with. Letting your teen protagonist have autonomy while keeping it real. How many characters are needed? What does your main character want and why can’t they have it? The importance of backstory.
We’ll study three different YA characters, break down their appeal, and look at tips on creating an unforgettable protagonist.
Q&A session with your tutor.
Session 3 — 8 March: Voice and Openings
A strong and vivid voice is a key to drawing readers in and making them connect with your protagonist. We’ll look at immediacy, intimacy and humour, and study voice through a series of successful YA openings, noting how writers use voice to hook readers into the story.
Live group webinar with your tutor.
Session 4 — 15 March: Structure: Story and Scene (three weeks to include a Christmas break)
Alongside a compelling concept and appealing protagonist, YA depends on a solid structure: a definite problem or goal, and rising tension all the way. We’ll explore three-act structure, you’ll plot your favourite YA novel onto a graph to see how it fits, and we’ll look at beat sheets.
Expanding on the idea of ‘the hook’, we’ll look at how to incorporate that into every scene for unputdownable fiction.
Q&A session with your tutor.
Session 5 — 22 March: Pace and Action
YA is all about keeping it trim and pacy. We’ll look at when to slow down and when to speed up – how to spot the flab and keep the action ticking along using Show Not Tell. We’ll study a series of extracts showing great pacing at work and discuss what’s included, what’s not, and why that’s effective as you look at ways to hold back with your backstory and keep your story’s mysteries at the forefront.
Live group webinar with your tutor.
Session 6 — 29 March: Keeping it Real: Dialogue and Description
The penultimate session focuses on elements that bring depth and veracity to your writing. How to craft dialogue that sounds natural but is succinct and purposeful, the dangers of slang, and how much swearing is OK? You’ll work on ways to use description to flesh out your scenes and add immediacy, with a focus on worldbuilding for those writing fantasy or sci-fi.
Live Q&A webinar with featured YA author.
Session 7 — 4 April: Pulling it All Together
Two weeks of quiet writing time as you focus on your final assignment: taking the characters, concept and techniques you have explored throughout the course, you’ll write a first chapter or prologue for your peers to respond to.
Final group webinar with your tutor during the last week of the course.