Sheltering Your Characters

I started writing book 4 in the Del Rio Bay Clique series, today.

Yes, yes, I know that technically I still have book 3 to fine tune. But for whatever reason, book 4 was on my mind, today. And as I mulled over its direction, it occured to me that there's a very real danger of me sheltering my characters.

I don't want to do that.

Don't get me wrong, I also don't want to push them so far to extremes that they're going against character. But it's important to me that I find a happy medium, lest I suffer from Bell/Spelling Disorder.

Have you ever heard of that?

It's when the creator of a story coddles his heroine because their feelings for the character gets in the way of the character's growth.

Confession: I totally made up the name. I didn't, however, pull the name out of my...imagination.
William J. Bell and Lee Bell created The Young & The Restless and The Bold and The Beautiful. And of course, Aaron Spelling is the wunder producer of such great TV dramas such as Dynasty, 90210 and Charlie's Angels.

Wait...did I just say Charlie's Angels was a great drama?

Okay, anyway.

I'm not one to question the prowess of the Bells or the late-Spelling. But they both did something that annoyed me well before I became a writer - they sheltered the character closest to their creative hearts.

I used to watch Y&R, back in the day - basically from the time I was a tween until I graduated college. And one of the characters I despised the most was Cricket, played by Laure Lee Bell, daughter of the Bells...or at least one of them.

Cricket was this pristine character among a sea of bad assess on Young & The Restless. And when she dated rocker, Danny, it was all I could do not to gag. This guy was a rock and roller and yet he only had eyes for Cricket who practically had the words "I wear a chastity belt" tattooed on her head.

And therein lies the problem - Cricket was too perfect. It was like the Bells felt she was good enough to be in the show, yet wanted none of the show's usual soap opera dirt and drama to touch her. So while any other young person on the soap was a slut in training, Cricket was not about to lose her virginity unwed.

Same with Spelling. Aaron Spelling's daughter, Tori, was the squeaky clean one among a cast full of hormone raging teens on the loose. By the time Tori did lose her virginity it was not without a lot of teasing (the audience, not Tori's love interest) and morality tie-ins.

Now, of course Spelling and the Bells were related to these "characters" by blood. My characters are on paper and I have no such obligation to keep them squeaky clean.

Yet, as I plot out book 4 I'm finding myself afraid to go where my heart wants to because I don't want to muddy these characters. I love them and they're like my kids. I want them to always make the right decisions. I want them to rise above the usual teen temptations.

But if I did that I'd be going against everything I believe about YA fiction. Primarily, it's ability to edutain.

And I'd be falling victim to Bell/Spelling-itis.

You can't shelter your characters no matter how badly you want to. It's not fair to them or the readers.

Readers have to see series characters make and suffer the consequences of tough decisions. When you avoid those scenarios, series grow old. And while some may certainly say that I'm making them act contrary to "who they are," I'll pre-argue that by saying this...

My characters are teens. In So Not The Drama they're fourteen year old freshman. By book 4, Who You Wit'?, they're fifteen and sixteen-year old, rising juniors. It wouldn't only be a crime not to have them change, mature and face tougher choices, it would be unrealistic.

So here I go. I'm taking the plunge into deeper waters. But not without my heart tugging at me to keep the girls innocent and safe. It's just this time, I'll have to ignore my heart and listen to my brain.

Sorry girls. We all have to grow up, some time.