“Writing for a Y.A. Audience”: An Asylum for Inspiration

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On the way to my parents’ house, I pass an insane asylum.  It has all the key characteristics to making it creepy.

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Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Abandoned? Check.

Broken windows? Check.

Overgrown, crumbling porch? Check.

Mysterious past? Check.

By “mysterious,” I mean that everyone I talk to has a different story about it.  Most people say that one time “long ago,” the inmates rebelled and its been closed ever since.  Of course there are stories about those inmates still trapped inside.  Not sure how they could still be trapped with broken doors…

Some people tell me they used to sneak inside.  Some say evil things happened inside.  There is a huge chain-link fence surrounding the rambling building right now, so no one can sneak inside anymore.

When looking it up, there is very little information about the abandoned psychiatric center.

Driving by it so often inspired so many thoughts for a story.  Did I want to write about an inmate?  Would it be a work of historic fiction or a mystery?

A ghost story took form, and along came HAWTHORNE HIGH.  What happens if an old psychiatric center is transformed into a haunted high school?  Find out in this young adult novella.

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Jordan Elizabeth is a young adult author who is obsessed with history and ghosts.  You can connect with Jordan via her website, JordanElizabethBooks.com.