The Three 'G' of Zombie Books (young adult writing tips)

 A good young adult zombie book should have three genres:  

 

I love a good zombie book. So much so I wrote one myself. So, I know when it comes to a good zombie book there must be a good balance of horror, slice of life and comedy. While zombie books deal with the world ending and, well, the rotting undead, it goes without saying that zombies are scary. Being turned into a vile, rotting and walking corpse is scary. A good zombie book is scary. It’s horror. It should have the reader both disturbed and scared. However, while dealing with this, part of the horror is the world building around it.  

 

This is where the “slice of life” should come in. While the world of zombies is focused on such, it should keep in mind that life goes on. It simply goes on with a new enemy. A zombie apocalypse doesn’t change the cycle of life. Children who survive will still grow, will hit puberty, etc. People will still know happiness, and although they will know fear and panic more, they will relish in little piece of happiness. They will have relationships with other survivors, some will hate candy, others will have a sweet tooth. While death is the focus, life still thrives. These moments will make your world more believable, and your characters more likable or dislikable. Whichever, they will be more human. So, when the moment comes that death seems near, it won’t just be another character dying off, it’ll be a person they know dying off on paper. Or maybe they don’t die off. Regardless, your readers will relate to your characters. They’ll feel that bond, they’ll be rooting for your characters, your world. Which brings us to my last point.  

 

Comedy. 

 

You may be wondering why, in a horror book would comedy would rise? Mainly? It’s a relief. A relief to your readers. Insert small moments of comedy can have your reader laughing and giving them a break from the horror. You must take your reader into consideration when writing, they need small breaks to breath. Laughing is good. Goofy moments are good. Even something small, a zombie wearing a silly hat, or a bad-ass survivor slipping on a puddle, these are comedic reliefs that will give your readers a small break so they don’t put your book down when the horror becomes too much. So, they don’t feel anxious through the entire book.  

 

It’s the little things that your readers will notice and appreciate and keep reading.

 

 

Will be breaking down comedies, slice of life and horrors so:

Stay tuned for more tips!