Know Your Audience

• You are writing for people from the ages of 13 to 18. This is a wide span and you should narrow that down a bit. Young people closer to the age of 13 will have different interests than their older counterparts. Figure out which age you want to slant your story to before starting.
  
  Tell the story and let if flow naturally. Don't talk down to your audience or preach. If the story has a theme or message, let it come out naturally in the telling.
  
  

Choose a Genre

• Teen novels can be written as comedies, mysteries, thrillers, romances, paranormal or science fiction. Choose one genre or two for your story. Most people choose a book in the genre they like to read. Someone who loves comedies and romances might not want to read science fiction.
  
  

Character Building

• Develop a main character with which teens can identify. Characters that are around the teens' own age keep their interest more than those that are too old or too young. Your character must grow emotionally and, perhaps, change during the book as it has new experiences. The character must have a goal and motivation to achieve that goal. Mix in a conflict that prevents the character from obtaining the goal and you have the beginnings to a good story.
  
  

Plotting the Teen Novel

• Make an outline of your book. Ideas fade, and if you wait too long the idea, which you once thought was so good, could slip out of your mind. Get in the habit of keeping a notebook with you at all times. This is a useful way to jot down ideas as they come to you.
  
  

Read

• You can't write in a vacuum. Read as many teen and young adult novels as possible. Go to your local bookstore to see what types of teen novels are selling. By reading the popular teen novels, you will gain an idea of how they are written.
  
  

Critique Groups

• Join a critique group. Other writers can give you feedback on your book and might catch inconsistencies in your stories, typos or grammar mistakes. Critique groups are an opportunity to learn from other writers while offering your own opinions on their work.