@sparrowhawke

Yes! Older heroes, absolutely.

Sphinxes are also very cool and underused. Even their name sounds epic. We should write about sphinxes more.

@sparrowhawke YES. I AGREE WITH SO MANY OF THESE.

*subtly making notes, plus comparing things to current WIP just for fun*

Ooh! Another one! The main character already being part of an established relationship when the story starts. The romance isn’t a focal point, it’s just a familiar part of their life.

I’m certain there are words that I’d love to see used more often, too, but I tend to notice those when I see/hear them and then forget about them again, so I don’t remember what any of them are. XD

Aside from a handful of things I’d specifically like to see more in YA… *grabs list*

• Exploration of worldview (with contrast)
• Trope subversion that supports a Judeo-Christian worldview
• “I’m with you.”
• Tight-knit friend groups (bonus points for each member knowing alllll the little things that pester or make their friends happy)
• …

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@sparrowhawke

Because I picked it when I was 15 and 1) was worried about privacy and 2) wanted a name that seemed “cooler” than my real name. XD I realized the no-name-change-required perk a bit later. Nowadays I use my real first name in a lot of situations, but I still use my pen name on published works and in my more professional online-only…[Read more]

Wow this is late. Sorry. Another consideration if you’re a single female is that a pen name will prevent confusion if/when you get married; you won’t have to decide whether to change your publishing name or maintain your maiden name for publishing purposes because you’ll already have a pen name that’s its own thing.

• The Lord of the Rings, if you haven’t read those yet
• The Midnight Thief duology by Livi Blackburne
• Nadine Brandes’ A Time to Die (the whole series, I’m assuming, but I’ve only read the first one)
• The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is another classic with a strong theme
• I personally found the theme in The Picture of Dorian Grey…

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@rose-colored-fancy Happy to help!

Oh man… My profile is… almost two years old, apparently? XD I should go fix that. I’ve been wanting to pick The Masked Captain back up and edit it, though, so that’s cool! 🙂

Hi! I’m mostly useless on these topics, lol, but I do have a couple of thoughts I can share.

Retinitis pigmentosa is a genetic eye disease that can come on slightly later in life. Molly Burke is a YouTuber who talks about her experiences with it, if you want to learn more; she started to go blind in her early teens.

I have no direct ideas…[Read more]