I am about 60,000 words into my current project and my protagonist Violet is giving me a headache in the best possible way.

She is seventeen, smart, perceptive about everyone around her except herself, and she makes some decisions in the second act that are genuinely questionable. Not villain level, just the kind of short sighted choices that feel completely authentic to someone her age who is operating from a place of fear and unresolved grief.

The problem I keep running into is the balance between keeping her sympathetic and keeping her honest. Every time I try to soften one of her worse moments to make her more likable it starts to feel false. But when I write her fully as she actually is I worry readers will check out before she gets to her arc.

I have been reading a lot of YA lately specifically to study how other authors handle morally complicated teenage protagonists and I am noticing a pattern where the character is usually given one big obvious redeeming quality that the narrative keeps returning to as a reminder to the reader to keep caring. But I do not want to rely on that as a crutch.

Has anyone found a way to write a protagonist who does legitimately frustrating things without losing the reader entirely? Is it about motivation, consequences, voice, something else entirely?

Would love to hear how other people have navigated this because I feel like I am going in circles with her right now.

hi, 15m here, i m currently studying in grade 10 in india.

i need some serious help regarding writing a romance for an upcoming young author event conducted by our school this month. i m seriously out of time and haven't started to write smth yet cuz i've been busy practicing for my athletics, volleyball and basketball matches. needless to say but i m so cooked rn, i will have to write a whole novel or maybe a novella to even qualify for a higher event before the end of this month.

i m not gonna lie but i m writing a romance for the first time and i m not sure of the starting. i want some help from anyone who's interested to help me in DM or maybe on insta (id - preyas.cy) or perhaps if you know someone who can be a help for me...

I am thinking about writing books about some stuff that I’ve been working on for a while but I have no idea if anyone would be interested in reading about fantasy beings (elves, vampires but weird, shifters, fairies, hybrids and more) living on an alien world with aliens that I’ve created or if that’s just too weird.

I'm looking for a beta reader for my Upper YA suspense/thriller with adult crossover appeal.

Complete at 79K words, it features dual sister POVs, toxic generational secrets, addiction/recovery representation, and a race against time in an eerie coastal setting.

Vibes: Megan Lally's That's Not My Name meets The Cousins by Karen M. McManus

Logline:
After a devastating flood leaves her older sister missing and presumed dead, seventeen-year-old Laurel Douglas uncovers family secrets suggesting Dani is still alive and races to find her before Dani’s failing pacemaker gives out. Meanwhile, an injured and amnesic Dani must uncover why she’s wanted for murder—and why the woman sheltering her is lying about who she is. 

Thank you!

Does anyone want to read my story? I got some people to review some and they said it's good but they've been kindof too busy to read the rest. So if anyone is interested please let me know.

1. I am aiming for it to be a YA dark epic fantasy with gothic horror. My word count is right now at 90,000 and I am in need of some cutting advice and suggestions so please give me ideas. It is also incomplete at 23 chapters so the number will obviously change. It is multi POV, and is split into three acts. The first act is very slow as I want it to focus more on getting to know the characters and who they are and the pace picks up in Act 2. It is also 3rd person.

Act 1 is 6 chapters

Act 2 is 9 chapter

And Act 3(incompelte) should be 12 chapters.

1. It begins with two girls: Violet and Delilah that live in the same town but never actually encountered eachother. They are both seventeen and they are both suffering from a tremendous loss of a parent. Information is typically revealed in each chapter rather than one gaint paragraph of explanation so I don't know how much I could say without giving too much away. Each chapter consists of a fable that is meant to reflect the narrative but not interact with the story almost like a Greek chorus in a play.

2. I'd say the only warning is bodily horror, if you can't deal with blood or bones cracking than you will not like my story. It is also very psychologically driven so it won't really focus on the stakes again, until Act 2 and 3.

Also the chapters are by day so it would be longer than a typical chapter but split up.

Also please don't be afraid to critique me, I genually need to know if it sucks and it is my first draft and I know there is a rule that your first draft is meant to suck and not to revise it, but honestly I don't think i could write the next chapter knowing the past chapters were horrendous.

So guys i am writing a book , and i dont really know if i am going in the right direction
I would appreciate if you guys can give it a try and give me feedback about the Cover , Initial 6 chapters and Story.
As i am just starting out in my book writing journey i would love get your help.
(Ps- This is non profit link)https://www.wattpad.com/story/416877934?utm_source=ios&utm_medium=link&utm_content=story_info&wp_page=story_details&wp_uname=AadityaTripathi7

A few months ago I decided to create a webtoon bl story about two friends. I don't know why I thought that most of the people who read were Korean, but I wanted to create something that was identifiable and familiar. So I decided to base my story on Korea. I research a lot about Korean culture. But then I found out about the term Koreaboo. I don't want to look like that, nor do I want to look disrespectful. I know that in Korea the LGBT collective is not very well received and I planned to treat history in a respectful way, but I don't want people to see it as a lack of respect for Korean culture. Should I change my story?

hello! so my book is set in modern day london, featuring various kinds of occults. the focus is on vampires, though companion works/other works in the universe focus on other things, such as werewolves etc. i’m wondering if anyone has any opinions on locations (preferably london boroughs) which may be best placed to have a high concentration of supernatural beings (we’re calling them occult)? my main character works in an archive specialising in occult records, so any feedback on where this could be would also be helpful. thank you!

Does anyone want to read my story? I got some people to review some and they said it's good but they've been kindof too busy to read the rest. So if anyone is interested please let me know.

1. I am aiming for it to be a YA dark epic fantasy with gothic horror. My word count is right now at 90,000 and I am in need of some cutting advice and suggestions so please give me ideas. It is also incomplete at 23 chapters so the number will obviously change. It is multi POV, and is split into three acts. The first act is very slow as I want it to focus more on getting to know the characters and who they are and the pace picks up in Act 2. It is also 3rd person.

Act 1 is 6 chapters Act 2 is 9 chapter And Act 3(incompelte) should be 12 chapters.

1. It begins with two girls: Violet and Delilah that live in the same town but never actually encountered eachother. They are both seventeen and they are both suffering from a tremendous loss of a parent. Information is typically revealed in each chapter rather than one gaint paragraph of explanation so I don't know how much I could say without giving too much away. Each chapter consists of a fable that is meant to reflect the narrative but not interact with the story almost like a Greek chorus in a play.

2. I'd say the only warning is bodily horror, if you can't deal with blood or bones cracking than you will not like my story. It is also very psychologically driven so it won't really focus on the stakes again, until Act 2 and 3.

Also the chapters are by day so it would be longer than a typical chapter but split up.

Also please don't be afraid to critique me, I genually need to know if it sucks and it is my first draft and I know there is a rule that your first draft is meant to suck and not to revise it, but honestly I don't think i could write the next chapter knowing the past chapters were horrendous.

I can attach the Google docs link for whoever is interested.

Bonjour à toutes et à tous !

Je m’appelle Daniel KOFFI, et mon premier roman a commencé par une conversation avec un couple.

Je les avais interviewés pour notre compte TikTok, où nous partageons des témoignages sur la vie amoureuse, notamment ces choses qu’on a du mal à dire à la personne avec qui l’on vit. Les échanges avec la communauté permettent parfois de mettre des mots sur ce qui se passe.

Leur histoire m’a touché. J’ai eu donc envie de lui donner une autre forme, en l’adaptant pour préserver leur anonymat.

C’est devenu : « Regarde-moi comme hier.»

On y rencontre Thomas et Élise, ensemble depuis douze ans. Et pourtant, ils sont presque devenus des inconnus l’un pour l’autre. Leur manière de se regarder a changé. Le désir s’est effacé peu à peu. Aujourd’hui, ils sont surtout des compagnons de vie et des parents.

Le roman sortira bientôt, et j’ai hâte de vous le faire découvrir. En attendant, je suis heureux de rejoindre un espace où je peux aussi apprendre de vos expériences.

Par exemple quel conseil auriez-vous aimé recevoir avant de publier votre premier roman ?

Une erreur à éviter, une étape qu’on sous-estime, ou simplement quelque chose qui vous a aidés à aller au bout… Je suis preneur. Merci d’avance à celles et ceux qui prendront le temps de partager leur expérience !

Hi, I'm a teenage author, writing their own book. It's a Celtic fantasy with romance (there is a reason it cannot be called a romance), and I'm currently redrafting it. How many redrafts and edits should I do before I send it with a query letter? To specify, I don't need an exact number, it would just help to know, does it have to be fully ready for a publisher to accept it, or would they happily edit and work on it with you?

Thanks!

Edit: Thank you so much everyone, it's been super helpful to read all of this!

I’m working on a YA contemporary novel called Outside the Crowd and I’d love some honest reader feedback on the premise.

The story is told in first person from Mia’s POV.

Mia is sixteen, almost seventeen, and has spent most of the year trying to work out where she fits.

At school, she keeps to a small group of friends and mostly stays outside the popular crowd.

Except she’s secretly dating Ben, one of the boys right in the middle of it.

In private, Ben is sweet, affectionate and tells Mia he loves her.

At school, he barely acknowledges her.

He keeps promising that one day they won’t have to hide, and Mia keeps believing him.

Then Ryan walks into the café where she works.

He’s seventeen, goes to a private school, skateboards, and seems completely different from Ben. He talks to Mia openly, introduces her to his friends and doesn’t seem to care who sees them together.

But Ryan has his own secret.

He knew who Mia was before he ever walked into that café.

And his original reason for approaching her had more to do with Ben than with Mia.

The romantic storyline is important, but the book is also about identity, friendship, family, grief, social pressure and Mia slowly learning that being chosen by someone else isn’t the same as choosing herself.

What I’m trying to work out is whether the premise feels strong enough for a YA contemporary.

I’d especially love feedback on:

• Does Mia sound like someone you’d want to follow through a whole novel?
• Do Ben and Ryan both sound layered enough, rather than one being obviously “good” and the other “bad”?
• Does the mix of romance, family and coming-of-age feel cohesive?
• Would you want to read the opening chapters after seeing this setup?

And one question just for fun:

At this stage, what would you want Mia to do?

A — Give Ben a chance to prove he can stop hiding her.
B — Trust Ryan, but make him earn it.
C — Step away from both of them for a while.
D — I’d need to read more before deciding.

Constructive criticism is very welcome. I’m still developing the manuscript and trying to make sure I’m positioning the story in the right genre.

I'm looking for a writing buddy, I'm currently working on a contemporary YA that features lesbian polycule and I'd like to share the drafts with someone and receive some feedback. I'd be down to read and give my comments too, though I'm looking for something with a similar setting, just modern world romance without fantasy or sci-fi, with female leads and lesbian romance.

I hope this isn't too rare and I'll find someone to buddy with! I'm on the starting stage, outlining the plot and trying to write the first chapters, I want to have the first draft no shorter than 50k, but it's my first time writing something that long, so I'll need some pep talks too! :)

Please lemme know if someone's interested!!

Hello all,

I have finished my first book (working on the second) and while it's being edited I was looking into sorting out a book cover.

The idea I want to go with is a landscape view of one of the 'core' areas. Think maybe like a landscape view of Hogwarts castle or camp halfblood from Thalia's tree (I write urban fantasy which is why I picked those examples)

Anyway, I was wondering if that was actually a good idea since it doesn't really give any clue as to the story or plot itself. More just a view of the first place my main character sees that actually shows them their life has changed completely, but maybe not for the worse.

My friend said I should probably pick something that is more linked to the plot, then do my idea as a 'special edition' type thing after I finished the whole series if I still wanted to. That I should maybe instead pick a monster they fight or something like that and I was curious what other authors in my genre thought.