The Crossroads Tour: Stacey Kade

Special abilities—like seeing the dead—are not publicised for good rason. When it does become publicised, somehow a therapist gets into the picture. When do you think is a therapist necessary in this case? Given the lack of supportive parents and peers in YA, are therapists now playing the role of confidante?

The prominence of therapists in YA probably has a couple of sources. First, I don’t think it’s nearly as uncommon as it once was for people to go to a therapist, particularly when they’re struggling with an issue (paranormal or not). So, some of it is simply reflecting reality of current culture.

The second aspect is related to the fact that the unusual abilities featured in the
stories—like hearing the dead, for example—are not widely accepted as existing. So, if your kid tells you they can see and hear the dead or they become a werewolf once a month, as a parent, you’re not going to just nod and say, “ Huh. That’s interesting.” No, you’re going to haul them off to the nearest psychiatric professional for evaluation. In my story, many symptoms of being a ghost-talker—hearing and seeing gosts—mimic legitimate symptoms of schizophrenia: hearing “voices” and having hallucinations. Will’s mother is genuinely worried he is ill.

The other part of it is, I believe, YA books today also do a better job of reflecting the family dysfunction we all live or lived with (because really is there such a thing as a completely functional family? : ) ) Therapists are often that more objective source we need to be able to see outside the family craziness, to understand that just because your family behaves this way doesn’t mean everyone else does, too.

Of course, in my story, the therapist is not a confidante. He’s a source of conflict, which can also be a valid turn of events. He doesn’t believe Will can see or hear the dead any more than Will’s mother does. If Will was older and wanted to continue therapy, he would simply choose a different therapist, one who was at least willing to listen to what he had to say instead of trying to label him as broken by our definition of "normal.” Instead, Will is kind of stuck with this guy, who instead of being a help to him, is just another adult with an agenda.

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