Matthew Kynaston
asked
Katie McGarry:
Hi Kaite! I think it's great that you have a section here for fans to ask questions, and that you respond :) I'd like to know about what consideration you give to how your novels help construct teenagers' views on love and relationships. What's your thought process - do you hope to give them something to emulate or are you writing something they can escape into? Or is that binary an oversimplification? Thank you!
Katie McGarry
Hi Matthew,
Thank you for the question. I wrote a blog post a few months ago explaining the answer to your question. Here is the post:
I’m often asked why I write young adult fiction and sometimes the follow up question is “Why do you write romance?”
I’ll explain that I am a love story type of girl and that the first book that hooked me on reading was S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders. While I loved the entire story, I always wished that Pony Boy and Cherry would have ended up together.
That’s me—I’m a sucker for the kiss at the end.
But if you want me to be truly honest—I write romance for a very personal reason.
When I was a teen, I faced some very tough circumstances. Some things are hardships that most of us have to endure as a rite of passage into adulthood. Other things, no one should have to face.
Books for me turned into a refuge, a place in the storm. I scoured through them, desperate to find some sort of shred of myself in these characters and I was almost manic in the desire to see that these characters survived—that there was hope.
I write love stories because I do crave the hope that is synonymous with romance, but I’m also writing the books that teen me needed.
I write books that show…
The guys worth falling in love with will open doors for you. They will respect you. They will call when they say and they will walk up to the front door because that’s what you asked them to do.
They will back off if you give the slightest indication that you aren’t ready for a kiss or ready to go further because they understand that it’s your body and not theirs.
Guys worth falling for are kind, especially in the small moments that matter. They pet the puppy even when they are allergic to dogs because it makes you smile. They miss their favorite team play a game because you need a shoulder to cry on. They are loyal and strong and have integrity.
No guy is perfect. Read any of my male characters and you’ll agree that they are flawed, but when they love, they love with their whole hearts. Do I write fiction? Yes. Do I believe that there are men as described above in the real world? Yes. I know this because I married one.
I write teen romance because it’s never too early for my own daughter to set the bar high of who she will be dating over the next couple of years and for when she decides to get serious and date someone for marriage. I want her to date and someday marry someone like her father. Someone who is loyal and strong, has integrity, and loves with their whole heart.
Thank you for the question!
Katie
Thank you for the question. I wrote a blog post a few months ago explaining the answer to your question. Here is the post:
I’m often asked why I write young adult fiction and sometimes the follow up question is “Why do you write romance?”
I’ll explain that I am a love story type of girl and that the first book that hooked me on reading was S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders. While I loved the entire story, I always wished that Pony Boy and Cherry would have ended up together.
That’s me—I’m a sucker for the kiss at the end.
But if you want me to be truly honest—I write romance for a very personal reason.
When I was a teen, I faced some very tough circumstances. Some things are hardships that most of us have to endure as a rite of passage into adulthood. Other things, no one should have to face.
Books for me turned into a refuge, a place in the storm. I scoured through them, desperate to find some sort of shred of myself in these characters and I was almost manic in the desire to see that these characters survived—that there was hope.
I write love stories because I do crave the hope that is synonymous with romance, but I’m also writing the books that teen me needed.
I write books that show…
The guys worth falling in love with will open doors for you. They will respect you. They will call when they say and they will walk up to the front door because that’s what you asked them to do.
They will back off if you give the slightest indication that you aren’t ready for a kiss or ready to go further because they understand that it’s your body and not theirs.
Guys worth falling for are kind, especially in the small moments that matter. They pet the puppy even when they are allergic to dogs because it makes you smile. They miss their favorite team play a game because you need a shoulder to cry on. They are loyal and strong and have integrity.
No guy is perfect. Read any of my male characters and you’ll agree that they are flawed, but when they love, they love with their whole hearts. Do I write fiction? Yes. Do I believe that there are men as described above in the real world? Yes. I know this because I married one.
I write teen romance because it’s never too early for my own daughter to set the bar high of who she will be dating over the next couple of years and for when she decides to get serious and date someone for marriage. I want her to date and someday marry someone like her father. Someone who is loyal and strong, has integrity, and loves with their whole heart.
Thank you for the question!
Katie
More Answered Questions
Alicia RL
asked
Katie McGarry:
I'm spanish, so I read your book in Spanish. When they go on sale in Spain?
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