Last Friday was my birthday. It was a moderately significantly numbered birthday, and by that I mean it wasn’t a major milestone (like, say, 21 or 30 or 50) but it wasn’t a filler birthday, either. Even so, while there was a bit of fanfare (I have great friends), it didn’t feel as significant to me as I thought it should.

This all got me thinking about milestones that my characters face, or could face, during the course of their journey, and how they experience them. Since I write young adult, there are some significant birthday possibilities, of course, but so much more than just that: getting a driver’s license; senior prom; getting into college; graduation; moving out. Then, of course, there are all the “firsts”: the first time you drive a car, the first time you call someone your boyfriend, the first time you stand up to an adult, the first time you sneak out of the house, the first time you realize you have something unique to say and there might just be some people in the world who want to hear you say it. Read the rest of this entry →