So, today is another revising day, and once again I'm faced with uncertainty about the genre of my story.
Someone who seems to know what they're talking about recently took a peek, and she didn't think it was really all that Y.A. (young adult, 16+ readership). I'm really not sure myself. That wasn't my intention when I wrote the first draft. I was just writing. I wasn't think of genre, and I really don't care if it's Y.A. or not. I just want to know what to call it.
When Twilight came out it was super popular and it had teens and supernatural stuff in it and I went, "Oh, terrific! So does mine! I guess mine must be Y.A. too." Then as I explored this newfangled genre, I was thrilled to find out tons of grown women, just like me, were really into this kind of story. (Maybe they'd like mine too.)
Y.A. can be edgy. I'm edgy-- I love edgy. Y.A. has teen protags. Hey-- so do I! Y.A. has a teen "voice". Mah grl can talk smack with the best of them. But she has a whole lot else going on in her head, and all my other characters do too. Y.A. tends to be set in a teen "world", like high school. Umm... mine is not, at all.
I have to admit, in most of the Y.A. I've been checking out, I've missed the slightly more complex sentence structure, sophisticated vocabulary and complicated subtext. This IS NOT a slam on the genre. The stories are super imaginative, and written in a straightforward, clean style. I'm just not so sure it's where I fit anymore.
When I was a teen Y.A. didn't exist, so we just read "books". Often I'd run into words I wasn't sure of, but I'd get the context they were used in, and derive their meaning that way. If I was really intrigued, I'd go look it up. I did that when my history teacher called our vice principal an "obsequious ass". By the end of the day I knew exactly what that meant. For a while I was obsessed with the word "morsel". I guess I was weird. I took out books on abnormal psych and Thomas Edison. I read stuff I wasn't assigned, from Ray Bradbury to "Revolution for the hell of it" to Doris Lessing. I always read adult material I guess. There wasn't much being written specifically for teens.
My story has a teen protag, but doesn't take place in an exclusively teen world. All the other characters are adults. My protag has never been to high school, and has no teen friends. My story is edgy, but has some humor, even a little romance, and a lot of ghosts. I don't really care what genre it is. I wish someone could just tell me.
You're supposed to think of what section of the bookstore it would be in if you got published. All I can say is, "Fiction-- under "S" (For Seeger).
If anyone has any insight on this I'd love ot hear it.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
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18 comments:
How old is your protag? And what happens? YA doesn't necessarily have to be what happens at school. There's loads of other opportunities for YA.
Although I'd have to say that normally, if you have a protag of that age, it's around that? But I am no YA expert, so I'll wait to see what others say.
JKB--
Hi and thanks for weighing in.
I thought so too. That was one reason I thought maybe mine was YA, but look at White Oleander-- supposedly that's not. 10th Circle-- not. This is so confusing!
Did the person who read your manuscript read much YA material normally? A lot has changed over the years in YA writing.
And I do see what you mean about adult fiction that just happens to have young adult characters. Seems to me the difference would be in the activity and interactions of these characters. Has anyone you've sent your stuff to say...oh, so not YA? This would be a good question at the Childrens and Young Adult book conference.
Hi Sue:
YA absolutely does NOT need to have simplified sentence structure, words, etc. Mine doesn't. It doesn't have to be set in a school either. Many aren't.
I'd say just keep writing it, and pitch it. Try YA agents first, and see what they say. If they say "not YA", reconsider. It's just your job to tell a good story--it's your agent/editor's jobs to classify it and sell it.
Lynn--
This person is very tuned in to YA, but is only one person, so who knows. Glad I'm not the only one who is confused about this.
Susan--
Yeah, I've read some that is more-- literary I guess, and I like that. I'd really like to find a place at someone's table.
I'm resubmitting it to an agent who suggested a couple revisions at her request, and at that time want to ask her what she thinks, but am kind of afraid. I've heard they don't like that-- that you are supposed to know.
Pshaw on the "they don't like that." If you're going to be working with this person--if they're going to be selling YOUR book--you need to be able to ask them honest questions.
And I didn't think mine was a UF until my agent told me it was. :)
Yeah, YA has definitely changed over the years from the ones I read when I was a teen. (Sweet Valley High series, Judy Blume...) These days plenty of YA's are set outside high schools and deal with some serious adult issues like shooting up heroine, suicide and sex among other things.
And, like Susan said, the writing does not need to be simplified at all. Teen readers are smart and can handle well written, complex stories, and a lot of teens read adult books, too. One of the things I was always told is not to 'write down' to your reader, trust them to get it. And I think teens appreciate reading books that are smart like they are and not necessarily simplified. Er, if that makes sense. And not to say they don't like fun, easy reads either, but it's nice to have the option of both.
Have you tried reading Stephanie Kuehnert, Libba Bray, Elizabeth Bunce -- all beautifully written and complex stories.
I think if your heroine is a teen and the story revolves around her and her goals it sounds a lot like YA. If you have a cast of characters, both teen and adult, and the story revolves around all of them, then maybe that might not be YA. ??
LOL. Don't know if that helps or not! :D
Oh, forgot. It sounds from your post that you're writing this in first person? If you are, and this entire story is told through her point of view and she's 16 (whether there are adults in it or not, and it's set in a non-traditional setting) then it does sound like it really could be YA.
Have any agents you sent it to come back and said this is not YA?
Susan--
Thanks for the shot of confidence. I'm not ordinarily a timid wimp, but trying to get an agent is so paranoia inducing!
Kelly--
I'll def check those out-- thanks! That "giving your readers the benefit of the doubt" line of thinking is exactly how I've always looked at it. I just began to question since this comment came back.
Mine is 1st person pov IN my mc's chapters, but I have other chapters written in 3rd omniscient she doesn't appear in. My mc is def THE MC, but is the only teen.
An agent who read a partial liked the voice and mc, but said her main confusion with it was whether it was YA or not, and suggested rewriting it in 1st, which I am (most of it), and making an important secondary character 18 or 19, which I am. she said if I did those things she'd want to see again. So I'm in revision mode.
I wish I could help you out. My daughter (13) reads a lot of stuff that is considered YA but contains some very adult situations.
I struggled with this on my own WIP before I finally decided in straddled the line between literary and commercial. It's happy there.
The only advice I can give is make a decision on where you think it best fits and steer it toward that genre.
Good luck!
Sounds like this agent would be viewing this revised version as YA (and is having you do the revisions so that it fits, without question, into that market). Think you might have a YA on your hands when you're done. ;-)
Good luck with revisions!
I'm no expert, but from your description of your story, it definitely seems to falls in both catogories. And as someone said you have the opportunity to target agents that represent ya and adult fiction. Plus, if an agent is interested in the story, she's likely to ask you to change it a little here or there so it better fit into a genre.
Hey Kat--
Yeah, I've heard that. Mine has some weighty stuff too. I like the freedom to address big issues.
Kelly--
You're right! Duh (of me)! Hello?-- Just do what she said and send it back Sue. Hopefully whatever it get's labeled it'll just be good enough to make the cut.
Crimogenic--
I think you're right-- It's in that zone where I could steer it either direction. For now it's being steered towards YA I guess. I'm very willing to make changes/work with the publishing pro's to get it shined up and ready to sell.
Wow, do I ever know what this is like! I decided to call mine Literary fiction but send to agents who also take YA.
I don't know if I have another "YA" in me after this one; my next book is about a 33 yr old woman.
Anyways, I have only gotten two responses in 6 weeks. I think I need to do some poking and fixing...
Heidi Hick--
I know. I've been thinking about "the next one" too. Right now I have two solid sequel ideas, one is very definitely YA-- moving protag into into romantic relationship, but the other shoves it over into thriller territory.
Fantasy-- That I A) actually get published, and B) have loyal readers who will follow the characters wherever they go (?).
I have to say that if your book makes me laugh as much as this post, then I would read it even if it was stocked under WC, for "Who Cares!"
But I feel your pain. I started writing a hot paranormal romance that has become a bloody, kick-ass urban fantasy. I was skeptical at first, and then I gave up. I’m taking the whole “Working Genre” serious. I had filed it under my Paranormal Romance folder, and now that my heartbreaker-heroine is running out of demons to kill, it is filed under my Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance/I Wonder If… folder.
Hey Magaly,
Thanks for stopping by. I checked out your blog and tried to comment but have noticed lately a lot of the word verifications are not liking me for some reason.
Yeah, it is hard to find the right category. Maybe with experience (in my case)?
In my case too, I suppose. BTW, I removed the word verification. I doubt I’ll get any spam.
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