Experiment 1

Introduction

My first experiment will be a How-To Guide that instructs young adolescents how to deal with the stresses of school and life based off of the song “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” by Kate Bush, which is the first song in my Spotify playlist. For context, the song itself has a mostly positive, but slightly uncertain mood to it, which is a feeling I associate heavily with the preteen/early teen age. In addition, a lot of middle school and high school feels like “running up a hill” in the sense that sometimes it feels as though the whole world is against you. I want to write this How-To guide with the ultimate goal of making kids feel inspired, and that the world isn’t as cruel as it seems.

Likewise, the current cultural conversation surrounding puberty, at least in my opinion, is rather bleak. Lots of older adults are quick to dismiss middle school or high school as terrible, and many people may be in agreement about this, but I believe this way of thinking can be especially damaging to kids who haven’t known anything else. Similarly, TV shows portraying high school are notorious for being melodramatic and/or unrealistic. To use my own experience, at least, I was disappointed to find that high school was way worse than in High School Musical but I was also pleased to find it was not as terrible as in Pretty Little Liars. By contrast, the conversation surrounding adolescence can also be overly optimistic, to the point where kids realize that they’re being fed lies. Specifically, in middle school sex education, I found that the aggressive repetition that a changing body is “normal” backfired and stressed me out even more than it would have if it had been treated casually. My hope for this piece is not to be too self-important, dramatic, or emotional; I personally believe that no kid growing up wants to hear more sappy news from adults about how tragic or beautiful growing up is, and instead they want empirical proof that they’re going to be okay.

Another note why this project is special to me: up until my mid-teens, my grandma sent me copies of a monthly subscription to a children’s magazine called Highlights. What I found is that even though I was well beyond the target audience for many years, I still loved reading the magazine, because it dealt with issues that all kids deal with: trouble with relationships, friendships, family, etc. in a positive way.

Genre Analysis + Research

The structure of a How-To guide is pretty flexible in my case, since I am not writing technical instructions so much as offering advice like something out of a column in Reader’s Digest. Still, however, there are certain conventions in technical writing that may be useful for this piece. These conventions are, according to freelance technical writer Kesi Parker:

“Write in plain English to speak the same language as your readers.”
“Add visual content like photos, screenshots, and diagrams”
“Break up content into headed sections but write them clearly.”
“Your language should always be concise” (i.e. active voice.)

Although I do not plan to write a novel, some of the conventions from YA novels may be useful. The genre is generally aimed at kids aged 12-18, and the protagonists of these stories are usually the same age (Peterson). Despite this, however, “nearly 70 percent of all YA titles are purchased by adults between the ages of 18 and 64” (Peterson). This may be an obstacle since I would want the primary audience of my writing to be teenagers.

It is critical when speaking to the audience to not be condescending(The Guardian, Writing for Teens). It is also common for the emotional stakes to be high (The Guardian). Similarly, here are some tips for mastering the writer’s voice for teenagers from Reader’s Digest::

“1. Time travel. To sound like a teenager, you need to become a teenager again.”

“2. Relive the terror of your yearbook.”

“3. Listen to the music [of your teen years].”

“4. Contact your old high school friends.”

“5. YouTube it.”

“6. Find a picture and make it talk.”

“7. Write for plot first.”

“8. Loosen up.”

“9. Overwrite.”

“10. Shorten it up.”

Works Cited

1. “How to Write for Teens Without Sounding Like an Adult Writing for Teens.” Writer's Digest, Writer's Digest, 4 Apr. 2016, www.writersdigest.com/write-better-fiction/how-to-write-for-teens-without-sounding-like-an-adult-writing-for-teens.

2. “John Green: 'I'm Tired of Adults Telling Teenagers That They Aren't Smart'.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 27 Feb. 2013, www.theguardian.com/childrens-books-site/2013/feb/27/john-green-adults-teenagers-smart-interview.

3. Parker, Kesi. “Creating a 'How to' Guide.” Medium, Technical Writing Is Easy, 16 Oct. 2020, medium.com/technical-writing-is-easy/creating-a-how-to-guide-186070b37c42.

4. Peterson, Valerie. “Young Adult Book Market Facts and Figures.” The Balance Careers, www.thebalancecareers.com/the-young-adult-book-market-2799954.

5. “Writing for Teens: Things to Consider.” Writing.ie, 4 Aug. 2017, www.writing.ie/guest-blogs/writing-for-teens-things-to-consider/.

Sample

In school, where do you fall?

If I don’t get straight A’s and 100% on everything, I will have a meltdown. That, or my parents will be really upset. ----All or Nothing

Dear All or Nothing,

Remember that your grades are not a reflection of you--they are a reflection of arbitrary rules and standards set in place decades ago. And remember that your parents who are pushing you to get good grades probably are doing it out of love--they just might need a bit of redirection.

I’m happy to get a B. I don’t understand why it’s so easy for other kids. -Lost

Dear Lost,

Don't let anybody convince you school isn't hard--it is hard. Very much so. But it's hard for everyone in different ways. Some kids struggle with math, but be great at music. Other kids might be total history buffs, but can't spell a word to save their life. Have empathy and be realistic. Those kids who have it all--perfect grades, good looks, loads of friends--they've got secrets too, even if they don't show it.

Just be glad I showed up at all.-Anonymous

Dear Anonymous,

And you rock for it!