If you're involved in YA Fiction this is a MUST read article...

[Paul Stretton-Stephens]

Hello,

Seriously, if you are in any way involved in YA Fiction this article is a MUST read. It provides a rationale behind YA recent success and an insight into the future.

Here's the link:

How Young Adult Fiction Came of Age

 

Enjoy

 

Paul

Paul Stretton Stephens

‘Writing Books, Stories & Poetry to Feed the Senses’

http://www.paulstrettonstephens.com

www.facebook.com/paulstrettonstephens

 

[Ash Yuhas]

Great article, thanks for posting! This paragraph struck me as particularly interesting, as I've been thinking about what the Harry Potter generation (my generation) wants to read for entertainment after having grown up with the Potter phenomenon, the subsequent best-sellers, and the expansion in YA that seems to keep leading to more adult and darker stories (whether or not because of an aging readership or general shift in teen experiences).

So what's next for YA? It's left to future generations to decide whether Harry Potter is great literature, or very effective event planning, or both, or what. Presently, the first ten-year-olds to discover Hogwarts and practice expecto patronum with toothbrushes are now in college or entering the work force. This post-high school demographic has long been a challenge for publishers to reach. Dan Weiss, the Publisher-at-Large for St. Martin's Press, has a plan. It is called New Adult. Reading trends, economics, and psychology have so aligned as to keep this group of readers in libraries and bookstores. As Mr. Weiss explains, "On some level, New Adult speaks to the large crowd of folks experiencing a lot of the same issues of adolescence at an older age. In other words: issues of separation and attachment; individuation; and romantic, sexual, and economic independence. We think there's an opportunity to provide books that 'bridge the gap,' so to speak."

It *feels* like people my age are instinctively writing "New Adult," with older characters and more complex writing, but the same issues of change, experience, and chrysalis. Now that I've heard the term I'll need to keep an eye out for books that fall into that category. Again, thanks for posting!

[Paul Stretton-Stephens]

Hi Ash,

 

Yes I found the article most interesting, especially as I have been wondering what has changed to make adults openly browse the YA bookshelves, when previously this may have not been the case, at least not as much. What was the catalyst?  

I agree with you that the 'New Adult' angle is certainly one to watch for, and I'll watch with interest too.

Thanks for replying.

 

Paul

Ash Yuhas said:

Great article, thanks for posting! This paragraph struck me as particularly interesting, as I've been thinking about what the Harry Potter generation (my generation) wants to read for entertainment after having grown up with the Potter phenomenon, the subsequent best-sellers, and the expansion in YA that seems to keep leading to more adult and darker stories (whether or not because of an aging readership or general shift in teen experiences).

So what's next for YA? It's left to future generations to decide whether Harry Potter is great literature, or very effective event planning, or both, or what. Presently, the first ten-year-olds to discover Hogwarts and practice expecto patronum with toothbrushes are now in college or entering the work force. This post-high school demographic has long been a challenge for publishers to reach. Dan Weiss, the Publisher-at-Large for St. Martin's Press, has a plan. It is called New Adult. Reading trends, economics, and psychology have so aligned as to keep this group of readers in libraries and bookstores. As Mr. Weiss explains, "On some level, New Adult speaks to the large crowd of folks experiencing a lot of the same issues of adolescence at an older age. In other words: issues of separation and attachment; individuation; and romantic, sexual, and economic independence. We think there's an opportunity to provide books that 'bridge the gap,' so to speak."

It *feels* like people my age are instinctively writing "New Adult," with older characters and more complex writing, but the same issues of change, experience, and chrysalis. Now that I've heard the term I'll need to keep an eye out for books that fall into that category. Again, thanks for posting!

[Christine Kuehn Kelly]

Thanks, I'm reading it without waiting for my issue in the snail mail. I noticed just today the listing from Publishers Weekly had the 3 Hunger books in the top ten books. Not sure the exact category.....could they be outselling adult fiction? The list was mixed with both.

[Ruth Frances Long]

Very interesting read. Thanks for the link.

[Paul Stretton-Stephens]

You are welcome

 

Paul