Firsts--and why I write YA

In high school, I started a list.

The first time I ... ♡… kissed a boy. …at the school dance … ♡… french kissed. … the New Years Eve party … ♡… enjoyed kissing. … went to the old cemetery …

Kidding!!!!

Pretty much.

My dad—in the throes of cleaning frenzy after I moved away to go to college—tossed it out, and I’ve tried to re-create it from memory. Though I really did enjoy that night in the cemetery, kissing wasn’t the only thing on the list

The first time I … … went down a water slide … wrote a letter to the editor … appreciated Shakespeare … ran in a cross-country meet … went on a ski trip with friends …cheated on a test (and the last time. I got caught.) … ate a whole meal with chopsticks

Each first had a different quality—tingling me all over, boosting my self-confidence, zapping me with electric excitement, filling me with whipped cream, over-taking me with feelings of slime and rot. At night, I would spend hours in the dark reliving the glory or the pain.

And that’s why I love writing for teens. They live in a world of firsts, of intense highs, deep lows, and events so significant they will never be forgotten.