Body Image

In Hope Vestergaard’s article, FLIPPING PANCAKES WITH A SHOVEL: Crafting and Promoting Compelling Books for Babies and Toddlers, she encourages picture book writers to get down on the floor and view the world as toddlers do. The same idea can apply to writing for teens.

Novelists are frequently told to “get into the heads” of their characters, but what about getting into their bodies? Being in a teen body is more than worrying about sexual development and acne. My sons were unusually clumsy right after a growth spurt because they didn’t know where their hands and feet were. Oily hair, erratic hormones and killer cramps can all be part of the picture. Don’t forget the weird stuff. That cute little pug nose is suddenly Roman. Straight hair may become curly. Eagle-eyed kids need glasses. Personally, I’d like to forget the unpleasant parts of being a teen, but my characters keep reminding me.