Young Adult Equestrian Fiction - The Christmas Horse
Teenagers love horses.
They love to ride horses, they love to groom horses, and they love to read about horses.
The horse books I read as a teen are still some of my favorites today.
Horses have personalities and there are no two alike.
It is the horse's personality that speaks to the young reader.
The author can describe the horse perfectly, and it can be the most beautiful horse on earth.
But unless that horse's personality engages the characters in the story, and thus the reader, it might just as well be a picture book.
If the horse has adversity to overcome, who better to relate than a teenager? Perhaps the horse is smaller than the other horses in the barn, or large and awkward, lacking grace.
Maybe the horse is shy, scared.
With practice and schooling, a horse can develop presence, confidence.
With hard work, an equestrian and his or her horse can excel.
Don't think you can talk down to any teen fiction reader, or have a story that is too hokey.
They aren't going to read it, not unless it's a homework assignment perhaps.
And if it's going to have horses in it, then it had better sound especially true.
Young Adult Equestrian Fiction is a genre in itself.
These readers know the horse life.
A lot of them are living it, dream about it, and aspire to it.
Be creative with your plot.
The teenage character and/or characters in the story need to have issues, because issues are the way of life for most teenagers, and it's even better if the horses have issues, too.
They develop a partnership with their horse, a friendship, they listen to one another.
Be cautious about introducing a horse that's a rogue.
Stories such as this were extremely popular years ago, but have a downside.
While a rogue horse can be rehabilitated, it is rare that it will come at the hands of a novice.
The teen might just end up getting hurt.
Young Adult Equestrian Fiction books make great Christmas gifts, so all the better if there is Christmas aspect in the story.
The Horse Show scene is another popular setting.
If the horse becomes injured as part of the plot, know that injury thoroughly.
Make the rehabilitation believable.
Thus said, be cautious about too much hardship in the story.
Fiction, particularly Young Adult Equestrian Fiction, is an escape for teens.
Give them someone to care about and cheer for.
Give them, even if just for a little while, their very own horse.
Let them ride like the wind.
They love to ride horses, they love to groom horses, and they love to read about horses.
The horse books I read as a teen are still some of my favorites today.
Horses have personalities and there are no two alike.
It is the horse's personality that speaks to the young reader.
The author can describe the horse perfectly, and it can be the most beautiful horse on earth.
But unless that horse's personality engages the characters in the story, and thus the reader, it might just as well be a picture book.
If the horse has adversity to overcome, who better to relate than a teenager? Perhaps the horse is smaller than the other horses in the barn, or large and awkward, lacking grace.
Maybe the horse is shy, scared.
With practice and schooling, a horse can develop presence, confidence.
With hard work, an equestrian and his or her horse can excel.
Don't think you can talk down to any teen fiction reader, or have a story that is too hokey.
They aren't going to read it, not unless it's a homework assignment perhaps.
And if it's going to have horses in it, then it had better sound especially true.
Young Adult Equestrian Fiction is a genre in itself.
These readers know the horse life.
A lot of them are living it, dream about it, and aspire to it.
Be creative with your plot.
The teenage character and/or characters in the story need to have issues, because issues are the way of life for most teenagers, and it's even better if the horses have issues, too.
They develop a partnership with their horse, a friendship, they listen to one another.
Be cautious about introducing a horse that's a rogue.
Stories such as this were extremely popular years ago, but have a downside.
While a rogue horse can be rehabilitated, it is rare that it will come at the hands of a novice.
The teen might just end up getting hurt.
Young Adult Equestrian Fiction books make great Christmas gifts, so all the better if there is Christmas aspect in the story.
The Horse Show scene is another popular setting.
If the horse becomes injured as part of the plot, know that injury thoroughly.
Make the rehabilitation believable.
Thus said, be cautious about too much hardship in the story.
Fiction, particularly Young Adult Equestrian Fiction, is an escape for teens.
Give them someone to care about and cheer for.
Give them, even if just for a little while, their very own horse.
Let them ride like the wind.
