"Girls Do What They Want, Boys Do What They Can!"

Good afternoon, fellow writers! Just to let you know, the title is a lyric from the song "Girls Do What They Want" by the Maine. Good song.

Before we move on to today's topic, let's begin with the word of the day. This week's is evanescent. I used to love the band, Evanescence, and I finally understand what their name means! Evanescent is an adjective meaning to vanish like vapor. It comes from the Latin verb "evanescere," which means "to evaporate" or "to vanish." Exciting, isn't it?

This week's topic is, not the writers, but the readers. I was reading something online awhile back about boys' and girls' preferences on what they want in a novel, the ages ranging around middle grade and early high school.

Here are a few interesting points I've discovered:

- Girls are more active readers than boys
- Girls prefer to read about girl protagonists (but will read about boy protagonists), but boys usually stick to strictly boy protagonists
- Both boys and girls want a character to root for and relate to, yet boys look for sarcastic characters with a sense of humor, while girls prefer a smart, reliable protagonist.
- Girls want a character who has to surpass real life problems, like tough decisions and friendship, but boys want a competitive, funny outlook for their character.
- Girls seem to enjoy stories with more emotional depth and creative solutions to problems, while boys prefer a clear-cut good vs. evil plot. Boys prefer an action-adventure novel, while girls prefer novels relating to real life.

Boys and girls, for the most part, have very different genres and storyline they like to read, so writing for both genders can be difficult. If you want to try to write a unisex novel, try:

- Creating characters they can relate to (ex. a similar age, similar challenges and issues for that age)
- A unique storyline (but whether it's fantasy or realistic fiction, still include experiences the reader can relate to. An adrenaline rush can be achieved by defeating the dragon or doing well in a high school recital.)
- It's easier to get a girl to read about a boy protagonist, but if you really want a girl protagonist for both genders, the girl has to be adventurous and have strong, realistic goals that a boy or girl could have. (A boy best friend can help, too).

That's all for today, faithful readers! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to email me at penelopepaige@rocketmail.com. Time to go sharpen that pencil...

Question: What do you think about writing novels for both genders? Have you ever done it before? Or do you believe that most novels are easily fit for both boys and girls?

Check back tomorrow (Monday? A post? I know!) for a fun announcement. I'll give you a hint: It includes this blog, me, and a shiny award ;)

Start Your Horses!

On your mark, get set, go! Today is November 1st, the first day of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo).

Basically, for those who don't know what NaNoWriMo is, the main idea behind it is to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days (the month of November). One of the main objectives of NaNoWriMo is to get aspiring novelists to actually write their novel, but in 30 days. Why such a short time period? Well, in my opinion, if you gain the confidence of knowing you are fully capable of writing a 50,000 word novel (by finishing NaNoWriMo), you'll be able to more easily write your next novel (taking longer than thirty days of course). A major problem with to-be writers is that they lack confidence, thinking they'll never be able to finish, or lack discipline, not having the ability to just set time aside to their novel every day. With NaNo, you HAVE to budget your time or you'll never finish, so it teaches you time management. Once you finish a novel, you are free to gloat. Plus, after writing your novel and go back to revise it a few months later, you can learn about all of the errors you made and learn how to correct them.

A few tips to finishing your NaNoWriMo novel

1) Don't procrastinate. See how I posted this blog post? Yeah, try not to do that as much. That's time wasted that you could be writing your novel. I'm only posting this because I love you guys.

2) Don't edit. No matter how much you want to revise your previously-written chapters, don't look back. We both know they aren't you best, but don't reread them yet. That's for December.

3) Write the required 1667 words (or about) each day. It helps you keep a time line and not have to write all 50k in the last weekend of November. That's what I call stressful.

4) Calm down and have fun. Don't worry about if your writing is good or bad or about plot holes. Just write. It will all sort itself out. If it doesn't, that's what December's revisions are for.

I hope this helps! After all, I did use up valuable NaNoWriMo time typing it up. :] Best of luck to the participants! See you in December! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to email me at penelopepaige@rocketmail.com. Time to go sharpen that pencil...

Question: Have you decided to do NaNoWriMo this November? Why or why not? If so, what are you hoping to get from it?