Words of wisdom – and encouragement – from a Hollywood writer who himself is, erm, over forty: The one and only William Martell:
I told this writer that I though we had the advantage over those punk kid writers. See, we’ve been kids! They have never been over 40. We can write about kid characters AND their parents! And mine our own experiences. We can write about Jim in AMERICAN PIE (I was once just like him) *and* Jim’s dad (I’m fighting desperately not to become him now). You’re as young as your characters feel. There’s no reason you have to think like a 40 year old in this business… in fact, it helps if you don’t.