Quite late in my career, I’ve found myself writing for ‘young adults’ and I’ve deliberately put that phrase in inverted commas because I don’t like it for reasons I will explain in future blogs.
Many publishers are actively seeking out writers who can write the next ‘Harry Potter’ or ‘Hunger Games’ so they too can tap into this expanding ‘young adult’ (YA) market. That’s not a criticism of publishers – they aren’t exploiting the young, but actually opening up a genre/style which appeals not only to the young but many older readers as well.
In fact Publishers Weekly announced that over 55% of those buying so-called ‘young adult’ fiction aren’t young at all, and more likely to be over 30. And within this older group, over 70% declared they were buying this work to read for themselves. Of the remaining 30%, a very high proportion admitted they would be reading the book as soon as their teenage relative had finished reading it.
Many publishers are actively seeking out writers who can write the next ‘Harry Potter’ or ‘Hunger Games’ so they too can tap into this expanding ‘young adult’ (YA) market. That’s not a criticism of publishers – they aren’t exploiting the young, but actually opening up a genre/style which appeals not only to the young but many older readers as well.
In fact Publishers Weekly announced that over 55% of those buying so-called ‘young adult’ fiction aren’t young at all, and more likely to be over 30. And within this older group, over 70% declared they were buying this work to read for themselves. Of the remaining 30%, a very high proportion admitted they would be reading the book as soon as their teenage relative had finished reading it.
So with this sort of reading demographic, what is it I’m writing?
Fortunately I was already a big fan of the books classified as ‘young adult’ fiction. I
have a teenage daughter and we share books and it’s wonderful to be able to discuss
storylines and characters with her, and also discuss real life issues related to the
books without any embarrassment. Books are a wonderful way of tackling some of
life’s big questions, about relationships and society, and the best ‘young adult’ fiction
offers mature storylines without the ‘adult’ elements of graphic sex or sadistic murder.
However, YA fiction has also been accused of being an ‘easy read’, apparently part
of the dumbing down of our society, and I do think this is rather unfair, not just on the
writers but on the readers of all ages who enjoy these books. Take a look at the
opening lines of Suzanne Collins’ “The Hunger Games”:
“When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold. My fingers stretch out, seeking Prim’s warmth but finding only the rough canvas cover of the mattress. She must have had bad dreams and climbed in with our mother. Of course, she did. This is the day of the reaping.”
It’s a beautiful opening, poignantly descriptive and yet ominous, bringing the reader directly into the mindset of the female protagonist. Its economy is quite masterful, giving so much information in so few lines, and the opening chapter takes the reader into a very believable world of austerity and desperation, with obvious references to the harsh realities of today’s world. My daughter and I both love this book – and spend hours critiquing the film!
Fortunately I was already a big fan of the books classified as ‘young adult’ fiction. I
have a teenage daughter and we share books and it’s wonderful to be able to discuss
storylines and characters with her, and also discuss real life issues related to the
books without any embarrassment. Books are a wonderful way of tackling some of
life’s big questions, about relationships and society, and the best ‘young adult’ fiction
offers mature storylines without the ‘adult’ elements of graphic sex or sadistic murder.
However, YA fiction has also been accused of being an ‘easy read’, apparently part
of the dumbing down of our society, and I do think this is rather unfair, not just on the
writers but on the readers of all ages who enjoy these books. Take a look at the
opening lines of Suzanne Collins’ “The Hunger Games”:
“When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold. My fingers stretch out, seeking Prim’s warmth but finding only the rough canvas cover of the mattress. She must have had bad dreams and climbed in with our mother. Of course, she did. This is the day of the reaping.”
It’s a beautiful opening, poignantly descriptive and yet ominous, bringing the reader directly into the mindset of the female protagonist. Its economy is quite masterful, giving so much information in so few lines, and the opening chapter takes the reader into a very believable world of austerity and desperation, with obvious references to the harsh realities of today’s world. My daughter and I both love this book – and spend hours critiquing the film!
But how is this opening different to an ‘adult’ book? I’m currently reading Simon Sebag Montefiore’s “One Night in Winter” and these are the opening lines of his prologue set in June 1945:
“Just moments after the shots, as Serafima looks at the bodies of her schoolfriends, a feathery whiteness is already frosting their blasted flesh. It is like a coating of snow, but it’s midsummer and she realizes it’s pollen. Seeds of poplar are floating, bouncing and somersaulting through the air in random manoeuvres like an invasion of tiny alien spaceships. Muscovites call this ‘summer snow’. That humid evening, Serafima struggles to breathe, struggles to see.”
So it’s different. Not a lot different. Obviously different in style and ‘person’ and to some extent in content (though I would argue that the graphic killing of children in “The Hunger Games” is even more horrible).
But not a lot different....? Actually there is one main difference for me as a reader. “One Night in Winter” is a little longer and more complex and requires a lot more investment from me, in terms of time and concentration. While “The Hunger Games” drew me in from the first page and I honestly couldn’t put it down. I also spent nights with each “Harry Potter” book telling myself that I should be going to sleep and still turning yet another page because I desperately needed to know how it ended.
So what is “young adult” fiction? I’m supposed to know because I’m supposed to be writing it. Is it less about literature and more about story-telling? Well, what does that actually mean?
Or is it all just books? And this relatively new classification is simply a way of classifying the audience? If a ten year old can and wants to read it, does that mean it’s ‘Young Adult’ fiction? At ten years old, I was reading Steinbeck – does that make Steinbeck a writer for ‘Young Adults’?
More thoughts on the subject in future blogs, where I try to define my audience for the forthcoming series of "Spirit and the Magic Horsebox".
“Just moments after the shots, as Serafima looks at the bodies of her schoolfriends, a feathery whiteness is already frosting their blasted flesh. It is like a coating of snow, but it’s midsummer and she realizes it’s pollen. Seeds of poplar are floating, bouncing and somersaulting through the air in random manoeuvres like an invasion of tiny alien spaceships. Muscovites call this ‘summer snow’. That humid evening, Serafima struggles to breathe, struggles to see.”
So it’s different. Not a lot different. Obviously different in style and ‘person’ and to some extent in content (though I would argue that the graphic killing of children in “The Hunger Games” is even more horrible).
But not a lot different....? Actually there is one main difference for me as a reader. “One Night in Winter” is a little longer and more complex and requires a lot more investment from me, in terms of time and concentration. While “The Hunger Games” drew me in from the first page and I honestly couldn’t put it down. I also spent nights with each “Harry Potter” book telling myself that I should be going to sleep and still turning yet another page because I desperately needed to know how it ended.
So what is “young adult” fiction? I’m supposed to know because I’m supposed to be writing it. Is it less about literature and more about story-telling? Well, what does that actually mean?
Or is it all just books? And this relatively new classification is simply a way of classifying the audience? If a ten year old can and wants to read it, does that mean it’s ‘Young Adult’ fiction? At ten years old, I was reading Steinbeck – does that make Steinbeck a writer for ‘Young Adults’?
More thoughts on the subject in future blogs, where I try to define my audience for the forthcoming series of "Spirit and the Magic Horsebox".