When I hop in my time machine and journey back to my YA years for material to pop into my writing, there is one word that flashes in neon above my head.
LOVE – LOVE – LOVE.
Ah, the many faces of love in those chaotic days of high school never disappoint in making our stories ring with truth.
FIRST LOVE: Sweet, delicate, and completely uninformed.
UNATTAINABLE LOVE: Aiming higher than your social sphere.
POWER PLAY LOVE: Dating the right person for social advancement.
TRUE LOVE: Shut up Mom, it is possible to find your soul mate in high school.
CONVENIENT LOVE: Sticking together for social events especially in senior year.
FORBIDDEN LOVE: Your best friend’s boyfriend.
ON AGAIN – OFF AGAIN LOVE: You’re my boyfriend THIS week.
SLOPPY SECONDS LOVE: Next…
MY PARENTS DON’T WANT ME TO DATE YOU LOVE: Rebellion.
SEXUAL-TENSION LOVE: Combusting hormones blot out all logical brain function.
OMG LOVE: When you give a so-called “friend” a second look and voila…
Which face of love fits your favorite characters? What new faces would you add to the list?
THIS IS AWESOME, LESLIE!! So awesome that I used all caps. My favorite? "TRUE LOVE: Shut up Mom, it is possible to find your soul mate in high school." *snicker*
ReplyDeleteMy favorite is true love *sigh* But of course I remember all the drama that went with the best friend's boyfriend, and the others. One of my characters is experiencing obsessive love. The other, first love.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Lisa and Julie for validating my pneumonia induced post. You gals rock.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great list! All very teen angst inducing--thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Elle. Always happy to serve up some angst.
ReplyDeleteOMG love. I always root for the good guy so usually it's this guy.
ReplyDeletecute post.
So true, Diana. The nice guy that gets overlooked and then turns out to the the #1 hottie at the class reunion.
ReplyDeleteThis is my idea of a perfect blogpost. Lots of knowledge and wisdom in a quick, punchy few hundred words. Love the whole look of the blog, too. It has a youthful feel without being rainbows and unicorns or angsty teen emo darkness.
ReplyDeleteThanks for you nice comment on my blog!
My pleasure, Anne. Your blog is awesome. I can't wait to dig back and find some buried treasure posts. Thank you for your kind words.
ReplyDeleteI think every guy I loved in highschool was a combination of true love and he's-a-mystery-and-cute kind of love. :)
ReplyDeleteLaura, I love the "he's-a-mystery..." guy. How about the, "Oh, I didn't know YOU like ME" guy?
ReplyDeleteGreat list! And these types of love always make for interesting reading. It's human and something we all share.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Lee. Great initials by the way. Is there anything better to write about than love? I don't think so. Had fun popping by your blog.
ReplyDeleteWow, this an awesome list, Leslie. Love all the plot possibilities. :D
ReplyDeleteThanks, Stina. I love making lists so I can shop from them later.
ReplyDeleteNo love elements in my MG manuscript, but I really enjoyed reading your descriptions! My favorite is the one you wrote for TRUE LOVE :) Thanks for a great post!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jess. It's fun to witness the MG world through the kids in my class where love means walking together to the lunch benches.
ReplyDeleteI'm writing a first love/unattainable (at least in her mind) love story right now. Just a short one, but it's fun! :)
ReplyDeleteHiya, Susan. It's fun being the puppetmaster, especially when it comes to love.
ReplyDelete