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Hello, how’s everyone today?
So, I’ve got two ideas for separate contemporary novels and was wondering if any of you have written contemporary. The two I have in mind are set during summer, and I’m not really sure how to make them interesting. I want something akin to The Penderwicks and have them be wholesome, sweet, and not too terribly heavy (reserving that for a darker one). So, any tips on writing contemporary?
Tags (feel free to not answer if you want to): @theducktator @ellette-giselle @whalekeeper @linus-smallprint @raxforge @rae @loopylin @hybridlore@the_lost-journal @keilah-h @anyone else
“Our house is full of ducks!!!!”
I’ve written a handful of contemporary (not finished them though lol), and I’m by no means an expert in this field, but I’d say it really comes down to adding conflict, even if it’s as simple as a strained relationship with a family member. I don’t know your characters, and I’ve also never read The Penderwicks so it’s hard to know how to suggest some specifics. If you’re looking for something lighter than family or friendship problems, maybe you could swing the route of clean/cozy mysteries. That’s always a fun one to do with a summer setting and there’s a lot of options (visiting an elderly relative’s home and discovering some historic thing that leads into a search for more details about their past; a string of break-ins around town and your characters band together to try to figure out who is doing it).
If you’re able to share more details about the stories you were thinking of, I might be able to give some better suggestions!
"Real love is for your good, not for your comfort." -Justin Whitmel Earley
Tagging @esther-c
To err is human; to arr is pirate.
*subscribes* I’m plotting a contemporary romance series, but I haven’t actually written any yet. Will your books be middle grade or YA? I would say have at least one continuing conflict through the series like how in The Penderwicks on Gardam Street, (my favorite), they have the Save Daddy Plan, or in the 1st Vanderbeekers book they’re trying to convince their landlord to renew their lease, or the Saturdays (not contemporary as it takes place in the early 40s, but it’s similar to the Penderwicks) revolves around the ISAAC club.
To err is human; to arr is pirate.
@theshadow I’ve never written contemporary before, actually. All of my stuff has been sci-fi or fantasy.
"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers
*bursts in through the door and tumbles onto the ground* *hops up and dusts self off* Did I hear someone mention ConTEmPoRarY fiCtIOn??? 👀 I’m here for it 😎
First of all, make sure you’re reading contemporary!!! Especially within the little genres that you want to focus on. I can’t stress how helpful this is. I know some authors are like “read 40 books in your genre before writing” but that’s just crazy and I don’t have time for that. So! I like to be reading contemporary fiction books as I’m writing my WIP, specifically books that deal with the same type of stuff I’m writing. For example, I’m currently working on a YA novel that takes place in the 90s and has a lot to do with high school. I previously read a YA novel that took place in the 80s and am currently rereading for the gazillionenth time the Christy Miller series, which focuses a lot on the high school experience. So you might not always find books that have little things that correspond to your WIP, but look for books with the same vibes. And different ones too! You might find inspiration or learn some new things with how that specific author writes.
Second, I 100% agree with what Trailblazer and Ducktator said. Make sure you have conflict!! (Even though I think every story should be character-driven), I’ve found that contemporary tends to be driven more by the character’s internal conflict (which could translate to or be influenced by external conflict) rather than action or a crazy plot.
I have to admit, writing wholesome, sweet, quiet stories but still making them entertaining can be difficult. But I know you can do it!! Rely on conflict, but also don’t forget to include the scenes that will make readers melt a little bit or bring a smile to their face.
I wish I could add more, but for some reason I can’t think of any other advice for a moment. If you’re willing to share, I’d love to hear your ideas so I could give some more pointers that are specifically geared towards what you’re thinking!
Write what should not be forgotten. — Isabel Allende
Really know your characters and try to build conflict between them naturally. (There’s probably lots of articles about that, maybe some even on here.) The better you know and understand your characters, the easier writing will feel, especially if you don’t have a super clear plot and are more just following the events of a certain time period. Though I would recommend having some kind of main conflict if you can.
"Don't shine so that others can see you. Shine so that through you, others can see Him." ~ C. S.
Hm, okay I’ll take those into account. I would share details about the stories in mind but they’re both in the very, very early stages of development (aka I have one or two ideas for each and that’s about it 😅).
So far, for the first one I want it to be set in the summer or fall, and be about two high schoolers sending paper airplanes to each other from really far away and the two’s relationship and how it shapes they’re lives (either that or I want it to be a raven carrying the messages because why not).
The other is digging up older characters, who are four siblings, and would focus on their summer. I already have an idea for what two of the characters (Milly and Molly Long) would go through, with Milly trying to fix a broken friendship and Molly navigating a relationship with a boy and her friends. No idea what to do for the brothers (Toby and Liam) yet.
So yeah, that’s all I’ve got for both. Thanks for the advice. Any thoughts?Thanks for the suggestions, I plan on them being probably YA but also not leaning too heavily into that category. The Penderwicks on Gardam Street is the best one imo, although I’ll look at those other ones you mentioned.
I guess I wasn’t really thinking about the genres people write while tagging XD
“Our house is full of ducks!!!!”
@esther-c (why didn’t I take you before, you literally write contemporary!!)
First of all, make sure you’re reading contemporary!!! Especially within the little genres that you want to focus on.
Ooh, okay that’s a good idea. I’ll try that, do you have any book suggestions?
I previously read a YA novel that took place in the 80s and am currently rereading for the gazillionenth time the Christy Miller series, which focuses a lot on the high school experience. So you might not always find books that have little things that correspond to your WIP, but look for books with the same vibes. And different ones too!
I will also try this.
Second, I 100% agree with what Trailblazer and Ducktator said. Make sure you have conflict!! (Even though I think every story should be character-driven), I’ve found that contemporary tends to be driven more by the character’s internal conflict (which could translate to or be influenced by external conflict) rather than action or a crazy plot.
Alright. Do you have any pointers on making this type of conflict really engaging for the reader?
I wish I could add more, but for some reason I can’t think of any other advice for a moment. If you’re willing to share, I’d love to hear your ideas so I could give some more pointers that are specifically geared towards what you’re thinking!
Thank you so much for the advice, I’ll try to keep it in mind while writing. If you go above, I have my ideas in response to Trailblazer, though I can put them in a more organized fashion if that’s easier.
Thank you. What type of conflicts would draw the reader in in a contemporary?
“Our house is full of ducks!!!!”
@theshadow no worries mate! (Read that in Sniper’s voice XD)
I enjoy being tagged anyway. (Whether you read that in his voice or however you imagine my voice to sound is up to you.)
"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers
(It is 9:30 at night where I’m at and I’m doing silly things on KP again…..)
"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers
Nothing immediately comes to mind for the first idea you mentioned, but for the second one, maybe a point of conflict could be something that both brothers are trying to achieve and it turns into a competition… you could go as deep into this as you want, whether it’s just petty sibling arguments or if it goes farther into one of them doing something dirty to beat his brother and then they end up needing to reconcile and repair their relationship. Maybe their school or youth group has some sort of summer competition that is kind of like a scavenger hunt where they need to accomplish certain tasks or community service projects throughout the summer and they reach the point where they’re trying so hard to win that they try to sabotage each other… it could go as far as both of them getting disqualified from the competition to bring them back to common sense.
"Real love is for your good, not for your comfort." -Justin Whitmel Earley
What exactly is contemporary writing? Books that come to mind when I hear this and the projects you are describing are Swallows and Amazons, The Moffats, and one more book I can’t remember the name of where two children discover a hidden town by a lake during summer holidays. (All I remember is that the boy has braces, which remind the girl of a car’s bumper. I think the boy’s name was Julian.)
This isn’t my area of expertise since I mostly read/write fantasy, but looks like others have got you covered, so I will leave it to them.
Sometimes it is necessary to paint the sky black in order to see the stars.
one more book I can’t remember the name of where two children discover a hidden town by a lake during summer holidays. (All I remember is that the boy has braces, which remind the girl of a car’s bumper. I think the boy’s name was Julian.)
Gone-Away Lake! I love that book!
To err is human; to arr is pirate.
Yes, that’s it!
Sometimes it is necessary to paint the sky black in order to see the stars.
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