Margo Berendsen

Teenage love that lasts forever

2012-01-17T04:00:00.000-07:00

This is a potentially controversial subject that no doubt has already been talked about by others more knowledgeable than me. But it's something that's been on my mind a lot lately. There's a whole herd of YA paranormal novels where you've got a girl and a boy falling in love and it's a "I'll die for you" or "I can't live without you" kind of love.

I think Twilight opened a flood gate and there's apparently a big demand for these kind of stories in YA (I confess, I've read quite a few. They aren't the ONLY kind of stories I read though).

I adore a good love story that overcomes all odds but I'm really wondering - I'm struggling - whether its creating unrealistic expectations in YA?

The cynical side of me says, well Disney's been pushing these fairytale love stories on little girls for at least 80 years. The damage has already been done.

And my romantic side argues back, "well, it really can happen. Maybe it's rare, but it's possible."

I also think it's possible to write a great teenage love story and still keep it realistic. But this is where it's a little tricky, defining what "realistic" is. I'm still trying to figure that out. My own love story experience was very different! - a whole lot of false starts, and then finally finding true love in my late twenties. And even then, it's been a rocky road.

So I just had another thought about Disney. The classic Disney love stories are all set in far off places or times - they are basically fantasies. YA paranormal has the distinction of bringing fantasy "closer to home" - so to speak. They are all set in, or at least start out in, a normal teenage high school world, but they create a bridge to a fantastic world. I have yet to find one of these all-consuming teen love stories set entirely in the real world (West Side Story, maybe? - any other real world examples?)

This is my first post for Young Adult Teenage Tuesday - a new meme started by Sheri Larsen over at Writer's Ally (let her know if you are interested in joining!) - it's pretty much open to anything related to YA reading, writing or teenage life in general.

Mythical madness

2012-01-13T07:35:00.000-07:00

Welcome to another Friday Mythical Madness, in which I take images found on Tumblr and imagine mythical creatures to go with them. The plan is to come up with new creative ideas, but really that's just an excuse for the fun addiction that Tumblr is.

To start off, pull up a chair and have a spot of tea and cookie:

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Now, pretend you are a child like the one in this image, with an imaginary forest of plants and animals sprouting up around you. When these plants photosynthesize, they sprout all sorts of magical things.

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An old cathedral or palace overgrown by nature is a perfect dwelling for mythical creatures. This made me hypothesize that if enough moss grows on an old statue, it can come to life.

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Mythical creatures also live in space. This picture of the Orion nebula looks like a huge moth made of stars.

Most antagonists stop here. One that doesn't

2012-01-10T01:00:00.000-07:00

It's been many months since I saw the movie Thor, but one of the characters, Loki, inspired me to recently watch the movie again. He's one of the most interesting antagonists I've encountered in a long time, and I wanted to figure out why (WARNING: spoilers ahead):

Who is he? A prince, infamous for being a trickster and a silver tongue

What does he want? To be king of Asgard.

What stands in his way? His older brother, Thor.

Loki makes a deal with the enemy and capitalizes on his brother's weakness - pride, recklessness - to get Thor banished from Asgard, which puts him in line to become king

Most antagonists stop here. They have only one motivation.

Not Loki. Here's where it gets interesting.

In the process of getting Thor banished by breaking the truce with the Frost Giants, Loki discovers he has some scary similarities to the Frost Giants.

He confronts his father, Odin who confirms that he is indeed the offspring of their worst enemy. Loki's world is shattered. Odin claims he still loves Loki as his own son, but Loki thinks he's just a pawn in the political maneuverings.

This turns him bitter, so when he has an opportunity to step in as a regent king, he not only tries to destroy Thor but also tries to destroy the planet of the Frost Giants, perhaps in a bid to erase any memory of his unsavory link to the enemy.

We know that we have to throw something unexpected at our protagonists which change their goal(s), but I don't think you see this enough with antagonists. I think it's this unexpected development in Loki's world that makes him such a memorable antagonist.

Anyone else have a memorable antagonist (from a book or movie) that I could analyze?