Writing for the YA/Teen Market

The YA/Teen audience is a hard nut to crack. This class discusses the seven necessary elements of every successful teen project and why you must include them.

We’ll go through how to choose your protagonist and know your exact demographic; how to create dialogue that feels genuine; how relatable themes, stakes, and dilemmas drive story; the difference between inspirational and aspirational in teen films; and what types of teen stories are driving the marketplace today. Plus, do you HAVE to write the book first? We’ll examine teen hits, the YA Book-to-Film market, as well as two teen films I helped develop to make sure your stories are snapchat-worthy and TikTok famous.

What You'll Learn:

• The 2 Things every single Teen film and book is about
• The 9 story elements that will ensure you connect with the YA audience
• How to make sure your young characters are castable and their dialogue is genuine
• How to create stakes, dilemmas, and conflicts that will keep readers and YA audiences engaged
• How to choose the right protagonist for your story
• Why love stories are so important in YA.
• How the YA Film, TV and Book worlds have changed over time and how they differ
• What new trends and adaptations are driving the YA Market right now in Film, TV, and Book
• Insight into why 1 major teen films I helped develop was successful at the box office …and why 1 wasn’t.

Who Will Benefit:

• Film, TV, and Book Writers working on projects geared for the Young Adult audience.
• Any writers looking to understand what is selling in the YA Market and why.
• Any writers looking to better understand what drives and connects with the Teen/YA demographic.
• Any writers wondering if/how their YA Novel could be adapted into a Film or TV Series.
• Writers looking for a deeper understanding of major story elements to engage the reader and audience.
• Writers who love Teen Movies in any genre!
• Writers trying to attract the teen/YA demographic

Danny Manus is a former development executive, a screenwriter, and is the CEO of No BullScript Consulting (www.nobullscript.net) and author of “No B.S. for Screenwriters: Advice from the Executive Perspective.” He was ranked a “Cream of the Crop” script consultant by CS Magazine. His clients include finalists and winners of prestigious contests including the ABC/Disney Fellowship, Austin Film Festival, PAGE Awards, Scriptapalooza, etc. He has consulted on produced projects including Strangerlands starring Nicole Kidman, I, Frankenstein starring Aaron Eckhart, and In-Lawfully Yours starring Marilu Henner.

The Writers Store does not offer any refunds for the webinar. All sales are final.