On why she reads YA almost exclusively, and would even if she wasn’t a YA librarian:

YA lit has a freshness that I really enjoy, and it rarely gets bogged down in its own self-importance. YA lit is also mostly free of the melancholy, nostalgia, and yearning for the innocent days of childhood that I find so tedious in adult literary fiction.

When you see adult fiction with teen protagonists, and wonder why that book wasn’t published as YA, it’s often because of that “melancholy, nostalgia, and yearning”. YA isn’t just about the age of the main character.

As to why she refers to it not as a genre, but as a category (my preference is to refer to it as an age range):

In some ways, YA lit has become a lot like literature for grown-ups: it is both commercial and creative, it covers a spectrum of critical literary quality, and it has titles across many genres.

Basically, everything you could find in adult literature, you can find in YA, plus more.

And speaking about those multiple genres:

One of the biggest differences in the landscape of YA lit is that there’s more genre-blending than in adult literature. It may be because teens’ literary tastes are still developing, while adults are more likely to have very particular reading habits, but I think it’s also because the newness of YA lit allows for innovation.

She also quotes a great post by YA author Chris Wooding, in which he writes:

There’s a similar lack of boundaries within the YA genre field. There’s no high fantasy or hard SF, no New Weird or urban fantasy. Genre definitions mean nothing. You want to write a steampunk post-apocalypse adventure full of cities that drive around eating each other? Or a book about a child passing through alternate realities in search of a weak and feeble God? Or a dystopian sci-fi about an underground city that’s running out of light? Go for it!

Everyone one of these books will just be on a shelf in the YA section alphabetized by author, but in separate sections that are of interest only to readers who already know about them. Honestly, that’s one of the reasons I was disappointed by Barnes & Noble’s decision to create a “Paranormal Romance” shelf within their YA section. Before, if a reader already knew they liked Twilight, they could go to the bookstore and look at the shelf, and might come across books by James John Marsden, Robin McKinley, or Sarah Mylnowski, just to name a few authors around Meyer on my own bookshelves. With B&N’s new shelving system, all they’ll find is more paranormal romance — which may be what they think they want, but they won’t know about the rest of what’s out there. And that, to be, is a shame.

She also points out an intriguing idea about trends in the market:

In the same way that youth culture is focused on what’s new and trendy, so is YA lit, which means librarians need to remain alert to new publications and weed aggressively.It also helps YA lit create an environment that encourages innovation.

Your average reader might only see the “darkness” in YA fiction, but close observers have seen trends as diverse as vampires, werewolves, angels, mermaids, dystopians, retellings of Greek myths, and more come and go. What’s next? We won’t know until it hits, and as soon as it does, it’s a sure bet the next big thing is right behind it, waiting for its turn in the sun.

Anyway, there’s so much more in the article, it’s well worth your time to read the whole post. You may even find some great new suggestions for your own TBR piles!

Image found via Pinterest, by Carlos Prez on DeviantArt.

You’re discounting the ENTIRE realm of middle grade fiction? I guess no one read Harry Potter then, or Percy Jackson, or Lemony Snicket, or The Mysterious Benedict Society, or Artemis Fowl, or The Spiderwick Chronicles, or Wimpy Kid, or James Howe, or Pseudonymous Bosch, or Jonathan Stroud, or Hilary McKay, or Carl Hiaasen, or Kate Messner, or Grace Lin, or E.B. White, or Beverly Cleary, or Mary Norton, or heck, any Newbery winner for the past 89 years!

What enrages me about this lack of attention to middle grade fiction is that those same people who are bewailing the dark tone of YA fiction are deliberately doing their kids a disservice. Can some 12 year olds read YA? Sure! And many do, I’m sure. Is YA aimed at 12-year-olds? No. The wide range of books marketed as middle grade are — books specifically for the 10-14 year old reader.

Of course these age ranges are guidelines, not bold and fast rules, but perhaps if the mother of the ten-year-old who brought home Twilight had sat her daughter down and had a conversation about the book instead of railing on all YA fiction years later, maybe they’d be in a better place.

I was an advanced reader, as was my husband. It looks like our kids will be too. As a pre-teen, if my now 5-year-old stepdaughter starts hearing about a book marketed for a reader five years older than her, am I going to let her read it? Not before I do, and not before I consider if she, personally, is ready for what it may bring up. I bet she will be — at 5, she loved The Hobbit.

But that’s called parenting. And I wish the uninformed who write ridiculous opinion pieces or call in to radio talk shows would do a little more of it, and stop asking publishers to police their children’s reading habits for them.

OK, getting off my soapbox now. It’s exhausting being here. To the comments for further discussion! I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

I have a new book idea, and before I outline, I’d like your thoughts. The MC is 16, but there is an older adult that factors heavily in the premise. If I have a couple chapters where it’s the older woman’s POV, is the book still considered YA, or is it an adult book with just a young character? Or, is this just a type of book that most authors should steer clear of?

How much is a “couple of chapters”? You can make an argument that any serious shift away from your MC’s teen perspective may drag your book out of YA, but in truth, the term is about much more than just character’s age.

That said, without looking at it to make a true determination, I would caution you against spending too much time in your older character’s head. Can you provide the same information she provides with her POV by switching things around, and having her talk with your MC? Or have the MC hear about things in some other way?

YA can include older characters, certainly, but the thing to be aware of — and try to steer clear of — is letting the adult characters be the ones who come through in the end with the answers or the solution or in some other way “rescue” the teen. If you can avoid that, and keep the story firmly as your teen MC’s, then including an older character can add a nice bit of perspective. I can’t help but think of the Harry Potter books, where the adult wizards often provide some vital piece of information to Harry that helps him figure things out for himself, but they usually don’t “rescue” him. That said, the books do stay firmly with Harry, and don’t jump into Dumbledore’s head, for instance.

Anyone feel strongly otherwise? Or have other examples to cite that do or don’t work for you?

Considering your current manuscript (either one you’re currently writing, editing, or querying), who do you think is the primary audience? You’ll see I’m not going to let you answer “everyone.” That doesn’t help anyone. I’ve broken the answers down by sex and general age range. Feel free to be more descriptive in the comments — i.e. “I write for the teenage girl audience who loved “Hunger Games” but hates “Twilight.”

I look forward to seeing the results!

Dear Ms. Unfeasible,

A mystical book transports a great-grandfather back to his youth.  There he must decide whether to return to the aches and grief of old age or remain twelve years old forever.

In LANE & FINN’S BIG BOOK OF ADVENTURE, a 28,000-word middle-grade novel, Lane regains his childhood and reunites with his beloved dog, Finn. Together they relive the escapades of their youth: The proper care and feeding of dust bunnies, the effects of drinking jelly bean juice, the lifespan of a doughnut tree, and more. Lane discovers the magic of the book will live on, enchanting the lives of his family for multiple generations, but only if he makes the correct choice.

Manuscript is available at your request.  Thank you for your consideration.

Cheers,
Lisa

I will start the conversation with one question, though: does this sound like a middle grade novel to you? Why or why not? My answer on Sunday!

I have been an avid reader of Terry Brooks, Dragonlance series, Lord of the Rings, etc. for a long time. My question is basically…would these be ‘Young Author’, ‘Fantasy’, ‘Middle Grade’ or story lines that people like yourself represent? I haven’t seen a chart or anything with examples I’m familiar with for these categories and I would hate to misrepresent myself or waste anyone’s time.

I ask, because I am writing a story similar to Dragonlance (Dragons, Knights, Wizards, etc.) and want to set off on the right foot.
I see the poor rants and raves from you guys on Twitter, and I feel bad for the sheer volume of slush queries and I don’t want to be that guy. Anyhow, thank you for getting back to me…and thank you for being so available.

I’m always happy to answer questions, because I know the world of publishing can be confusing, and it’s like the commercials sing, “The More You Know… do do do doooo.”

It sounds like you’re writing fantasy, T.J., but as to whether it’s YA, which stands for “Young Adult,” not “Young Author,” Middle Grade, or Adult isn’t a matter of genre, but age range. One of the reasons I love representing YA and MG is because those categories refer to suggested ages for their readers (or recommended reading levels), and because within those distinctions, there’s a whole world of different genres: fantasy, mystery, thriller, romance, etc.

One way of figuring out what age range you’re writing for is to consider the age of your protagonist, but even that may not tell the whole story. As the writer, you should know your suggested audience. Is it for a reader like yourself, for the ten year old boy you used to be, or the teenage kid down the street? Knowing the answer that that question may help you decide where your book fits.

But it’s not just the age of the main character and who you see reading it — it’s knowing how it would fit in the category you’re considering, which can be an even more difficult process. You have to consider content, whether that’s violence, language, sex, or something else, and decide if what you’re writing is age-appropriate, balanced of course with the question of if it’s STORY appropriate.

All I can say is, it’s not a simple question with a simple answer.

Check out your local library or bookstore and browse the shelves. See what’s out there that’s YA, MG, or shelved with the fantasy stuff. I can say that the titles you’ve mentioned were all mostly written and are usually shelved in the adult fantasy section — although, just to be confusing, Terry Brooks recently re-released the early Shannara books as YA, with minimal to none editing.

If you have further questions, I can happy repeat the advice I give to almost ALL authors — find a great critique group, and make use of them. Ask them what THEY think!

Readers, any other suggestions?

I write middle grade novels and also have written and illustrated a picture book. I have sent queries out to agents for both projects at different times and had some interest. I have a few fulls and partials out for my middle grade right now. Recently, I’ve had some serious interest in my picture book, and an agent is working with me on non-contractual revisions and has asked for an exclusive. I told her that the older version was still out with a couple of agents and that my middle grade novel was out with other agents, too. I told her that, of course, I would give her a first look at the picture book revisions (especially since we are working together on them and I love her ideas). I have sent her my novels, also, so that she can see my entire body of work.

My question is: Do I let the other agents who have my middle grade novel know that I am working on revisions for a DIFFERENT project on an exclusive basis? And, as an agent, wouldn’t this make you less likely to want to waste your time looking at my work (knowing that someone else has first dibs)?

I want to do the right and ethical thing, and I’m just not sure what that is!

So far as I can tell, so far you’ve absolutely done the right and ethical thing. Moving forward, I have a few questions for you. Does the agent who has an exclusive look at your picture book do a lot of middle grade novels as well? To be more clear, if you signed with her for your picture book, would you expect that she would also rep your MG novels? Is that what you want to do, or would you prefer that your novels are with a different agent than your picture book(s)?

At this point, with no offers as yet made, I don’t think you have any obligation to the other agents considering your work. When should you tell them something? When the agent exclusively considering your PB makes you an offer of representation, then I would contact all of the other agents who currently have your work, let them know you have an offer, and ask for their decision within a fair amount of time — a week or two, usually.

You’ll be asking them to make a decision based on the material they have — the revised picture book is still the PB agent’s exclusive, so they’d need to see the germ of what that agent saw, and be willing to offer first, and know that there’s a tighter, more polished version that would be available, if they took a chance and offered representation.

I can see another possibility as well — someone might love your middle grade novel, and want to represent you on that. Then you do the same thing — inform all the other agents that you have an offer, including the one looking at the PB exclusively (although I would be sure and let her know that the offer is based on a review of your novel, not PB), and give them time to respond.

It’s complicated — which is why I usually recommend that you focus on one project at a time, at least in terms of querying. You should absolutely be writing something else while you query — I mean, you need something to do to take your mind off waiting from response emails from agents — but having a lot out there at once makes things complicated.

Does that help? Readers, have you ever been in a similar situation? Do you want one agent to handle all your work, or multiple agents to handle different projects in different genres or age ranges?

So chime in with your thoughts and we’ll be back with more news and shoes tomorrow.

Basically, what I write sort of borders somewhere between YA and adult fiction. Is there any hard and fast answer for where exactly that line is?

There’s an easy answer, but there are exceptions. For the most part, books set in high school with teen protagonists are YA. But what about Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld, you may ask? Well, in that book, there was a tone that felt more adult than YA. I’ve also found that the device of looking back to high school years usually makes a book feel more like an adult title than a YA, which is more often set in the present. (Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl, I’m talking to you.)

There was a time when YA couldn’t include a book with a protagonist in college, but that’s changing. Still, for the most part, that summer after senior year is around the cut-off.

And it makes sense. For most teens, going away to college is a huge break, an enormous change from what went before in their lives. On a personal note, I think back to my own experiences in college, and don’t remember having a chance to read for pleasure for most of those four years. I read a lot, sure (I was an English and History major, after all), but I didn’t have a chance to read for pleasure except on vacations — and even that I’m just guessing about now. I didn’t get back to serious reading for pleasure until after college.

KLo, hope that helps! For my readers, feel free to disprove my point! Can you think of some great YAs that are set beyond the summer after senior year? Or do you have other examples of adult titles interloping on the YA setting?

We have written and published (through a small, indie publisher) a MG fantasy book. When we wrote it, we though it was YA, but now I understand there is a significant difference between the two. Our protagonist is a 12-yr-old boy who is possessed by a 1400-yr-old wizard. They are actually dual protagonists, as there is the story of the kids and the story of the adults. It was meant to be a cross-over (YA/adult), and that’s what we say. Adults have enjoyed it as much as kids.

We’re about to start the query process for what was intended to be the sequel; however, I’ve been advised by a YA literary agent to start the story with the forthcoming sequel as the first book and start from scratch. I’ve also been advised to rewrite it so it’s from only the 12-yr-old’s POV rather than complete omniscient. This agent said she’d be interested if it was YA, but she doesn’t do MG. Our story is about the boy, but it’s also about the wizard that possesses him and the wizard’s wife. It’s a magical adventure tale and a tragic love story.

Is there such a category as a MG crossover? Would I state that in my query rather than straight MG? Should I rework it to be a straight MG w/12-year-old protagonist POV? Should I keep the complete omniscient and market it as a fantasy for adults that kids would also like?

Let’s get the easy questions out of the way, ok? Is there such a thing as MG crossover? Sure! Have you heard of a little series called Harry Potter?

The rest of your questions are harder. I can’t tell you what to do with your book. I can tell you what might work for me, as one agent, but another agent may have a completely different perspective.

For the most part, for me, what I want in middle grade fiction are characters around the age of their readers. Sure, adult characters can be included, but they shouldn’t take the story away from the younger characters. I think of the term “deus ex machina” which as Wikipedia tells us means “literally god from the machine [and] is a plot device in which a person or thing appears out of the blue and solves, usually (seemingly) insolvable, difficulty.” Too often in bad middle grade fiction, the adult characters act as deus ex machinas and take the solution of the problem out of the hands of the kids. I’m of course not saying that yours is a bad novel, but that that’s something to be aware of.

You may find, if you wish to market your book as adult fiction, that the adult SF/F market may be more forgiving of characters with different ages. But this goes to the heart of the debate about YA or MG fiction in the genre right now. Material being marketed for kids is looked down at my writers of “adult” fiction, even though it’s winning awards. Laini Taylor adds her two cents, and notes John Scalzi’s recent post:

Yes, how horrible it is that some of what’s being hailed as the best science fiction and fantasy written today is in a literary category designed to encourage millions of young people to read for the rest of their natural lives. Because God knows the last thing science fiction and fantasy publishing needs right now is whole generation of new and enthusiastic readers who might actually get hooked into the genre until they die. It’s a goddamn tragedy, it is.

And the fact is, young readers are going beyond their bookshelves to seek out great books, no matter where they’re shelved, while most adults won’t do the same.

So you have to ask yourself — which readership do you want? And which book do you want to write? Those are the important questions.

Answer those first, then find a way to make your sequel something that stands alone, wherever it’s shelved. Good luck!