Foreshadow: Stories to Celebrate the Magic of Reading and Writing YA

by Nova Ren Suma, Emily X.R. Pan

Overview

13 Short Stories from Bold New YA Voices & Writing Advice from YA Icons

Created by New York Times bestselling authors Emily X.R. Pan and Nova Ren Suma, Foreshadow is so much more than a short story collection. A trove of unforgettable fiction makes up the beating heart of this book, and the accompanying essays offer an ode to young adult literature, as well as practical advice to writers.

Featured in print for the first time, the thirteen stories anthologized here were originally released via the buzzed-about online platform Foreshadow. Ranging from contemporary romance to mind-bending fantasy, the Foreshadow stories showcase underrepresented voices and highlight the beauty and power of YA fiction. Each piece is selected and introduced by a YA luminary, among them Gayle Forman, Laurie Halse Anderson, Jason Reynolds, and Sabaa Tahir.

What makes these memorable stories tick? What sparked them? How do authors build a world or refine a voice or weave in that deliciously creepy atmosphere to bring their writing to the next level? Addressing these questions and many more are essays and discussions on craft and process by Nova Ren Suma and Emily X.R. Pan.
 
This unique compilation reveals and celebrates the magic of reading and writing for young adults. A supplemental section of craft essays offers advice on subjects from technique to revision to publication.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781643750798
Publisher:	Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Publication date:	10/20/2020
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	1,067,834
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	14 - 18 Years

About the Author

Nova Ren Suma is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling The Walls Around Us, which was an Edgar Award finalist. She also wrote Imaginary Girls and 17 & Gone and is co-creator of FORESHADOW: A Serial YA Anthology. She has an MFA in fiction from Columbia University and teaches writing at Vermont College of Fine Arts and the University of Pennsylvania. Originally from the Hudson Valley, she spent most of her adult life in New York City and now lives in Philadelphia.

Emily X.R. Pan is the New York Times bestselling author of The Astonishing Color of After, which won the APALA Honor Award and the Walter Honor Award, received six starred reviews, was an LA Times Book Prize finalist, and was longlisted for the Carnegie Medal. She lives in Brooklyn, New York. Visit Emily online at exrpan.com, and find her on Twitter and Instagram: @exrpan.

Table of Contents

{Introduction} Emily X.R. Pan xi

{Flight} Tanya Aydelott 1

Character Connection in Flight Nova Ren Suma 24

{Risk} Rachel Hylton 26

Voice in Risk Emily X.R. Pan 38

Story Prompt: Building Conflict 40

{Sweetmeats} Linda Cheng 41

Suspension of Disbelief in Sweetmeats Emily X.R. Pan 62

{Glow} Joanna Truman 64

Emotional Resonance in Glow Nova Ren Suma 78

Story Prompt: The End of the World 80

{Escape} Tanvi Berwah 81

The Twist in Escape Nova Ren Sums 100

{Pan Dulce} Flor Salcedo 102

Raising the Stakes In Pan Dulce Emily X.R. Pan 125

Story Prompt: Enigma 127

{Solace} Nora Elghazzawi 128

Mood in Solace Nova Ren Suma 149

{Princess} Maya Prasad 151

Worldbuilding in Princess Emily X.R. Pan 172

Story Prompt: Fleshing Out the World 174

{Fools} Gina Chen 175

Imagery in Fools Emily X.R. Pan 190

{Monsters} Adriana Marachlian 192

The Creep Factor in Monsters Nova Ren Suma 220

Story Prompt: Embodying a Fear 222

{Break} Sophie Meridien 223

Building the Romance in Break Emily X.R. Pan 249

{Resilient} Mayra Cuevas 252

Moment of Change in Resilient Nova Ren Suma 275

Story Prompt: Opening the Door 277

{Belly} Desiree S. Evans 278

The Motif in Belly Emiiy X.R. Pan 302

The Editor's Perspective: Q&A with the Foreshadow Fiction Editors 305

How a Story Is Born with the Foreshadow Authors 311

Story Prompt: The Last Word 316

{Afterword} Nova Ren Suma 319

The Magical Origin Story of Foreshadow 321

Masthead 323

Bios 325

Acknowledgments 331

Editorial Reviews

08/31/2020

Part showcase of culturally diverse new voices from online magazine Foreshadow, part beginners’ writing textbook, this best-of YA anthology’s purposes muddy each other’s effectiveness despite featuring touching and topical reads. Standout stories are rich with fresh perspective and nuance: Tanya Aydelott’s thoughtful “Flight” welds fine art, bodies’ limits, and an uprooted girl’s chance to choose differently than her changeable mother into a surprising jewel. Gina Chen’s charming, clear-eyed “Fools” introduces an unconventional demon to an island full of fairy tales’ leftover girls. Satirical “Risk” by Rachel Hylton transforms a high school sophomore into a lobster—and body image insecurities into joyous solidarity. And told in six games of Seven Minutes in Heaven, a Florida teen kindles romance alongside baking in Sophie Meridien’s playful, ebullient “Break.” Coeditor Pan offers prompts and accessible story assessments that highlight elements of craft, and author and editor q&as usefully illuminate publishing processes, but persistent mythologies on the “magic” of publication undermine a professional approach. This potentially valuable starting point for aspiring writers will frustrate pleasure readers and craft-oriented writing students with its split—and sometimes self-contradictory—purpose. Ages 14–up. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

"Readers are simultaneously entertained and educated. The ingenuity in the writing is reinforced by Pan and Suma’s accompanying essays. Each story shines. An enduring anthology, appropriate for classroom use and recommended for all teen readers.”
—SLJ, starred review

“Dazzling short stories by new YA voices along with enlightening essays about the writing process by established authors make Foreshadow a treasure for aspiring writers.”
—Shelf Awareness for Readers, starred review

"An anthology of new voices that exemplifies the best of what both short stories and young adult literature can be . . . Give this to a reader who wants to dig deeply into the craft of storytelling."
—BookPage, starred review

"An ingenious collection of 13 short stories that will especially be enjoyed by aspiring writers. Each of these selections displays great talent, and readers will hope to see future works by these up-and-coming creators. Ranging from deliciously creepy to glowingly hopeful, this collection offers a master class in short stories." 
—Kirkus Reviews

"[A] gorgeous short-story collection . . . Readers will be enraptured by these vibrant, unique, passionate new voices.”​
—Booklist

"A fantastic book. Full stop. It is unique in its intention, exquisite in its writing and structuring, and clairvoyant in its vision of what that field of Young Adult writing should and could be."
—New York Journal of Books

From the Publisher

★ 10/01/2020

Gr 8 Up—An anthology designed to showcase underrepresented voices in short stories. The formula is simple: A story, followed by a multi-paragraph explanation by the author, and last, Pan or Suma dissect the strategies the author used. Thus, readers are simultaneously entertained and educated. The 13 engaging and original stories in a variety of genres range from a strained relationship between mother and daughter in Tanya Aydelott's "Flight" to the end of the world in Joanna Truman's "Glow." The ingenuity in the writing is reinforced by Pan and Suma's accompanying essays. These stellar contributions from new writers are selected by a team of veteran authors, who lend a quote to introduce each story. This publication adds visibility to the Foreshadow website, which releases YA short stories monthly. VERDICT Each story shines. An enduring anthology, appropriate for classroom use and recommended for all teen readers.—Alicia Abdul, Albany H.S., NY

School Library Journal

2020-08-18
An ingenious collection of 13 short stories that will especially be enjoyed by aspiring writers.

Stemming from the digitally published serial anthology of the same name founded by YA authors Pan and Suma, this print collection features contributions by some of the new voices who were featured in the monthly online issues. Each entry is prefaced with an explanation from the well-known author for teens, including writers such as Laurie Halse Anderson and Sabaa Tahir, who selected that short story for publication. Commentary by Suma or Pan follows each one, highlighting a particular writing element on display. Topics such as imagery, voice, and emotional resonance are discussed in these accompanying essays on craft. These passages are a real treat, as readers and aspiring writers are given an opportunity to learn from established authors and editors. There are a variety of genres featured in the collection, although most lean toward the speculative. The crop of writers and their protagonists are diverse—Adriana Marachlian’s “Monsters” centers around recent Venezuelan immigrant Milagros, who sees monsters in the New York City subway, and Nora Elghazzawi’s “Solace” follows Laila, a Midwestern Muslim girl still grieving her younger brother’s death. Each of these selections displays great talent, and readers will hope to see future works by these up-and-coming creators. Extensive aftermatter provides enriching background information.

Ranging from deliciously creepy to glowingly hopeful, this collection offers a master class in short stories. (Anthology. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews