Writing Young Adult Fiction For Dummies

by Deborah Halverson

  Over the years, young adult fiction has developed into an age-defying literature, most significantly with the publication of J. K. Rowling’s famous Harry Potter series. When that now legendary wizard hit the scene in 1997, kids suddenly found themselves competing with adults twice or three times their age for the front of the line at Harry Potter launch parties. And then with the explosion of paranormal hits and mainstream crossovers in the early 2000s, YA fiction attained a new level of prosperity and audience appeal. Wonderfully, the classics still hold strong, creating a rich market for young adult fiction.

  And let’s not forget the Nostalgia Factor. Nostalgia calls adults back to the books they remember from their own teen years, like Katherine Paterson’s Bridge to Terabithia or maybe their favorite issue books from the 1970s. Adults reread these books and share them with the young adults in their lives.

  Maneuvering through the Challenges

  With such a wide readership, writers of young adult fiction have great opportunities. They also have challenges that writers of adult fiction don’t toil against: reluctant readers and gatekeepers.

  Reaching reluctant readers

  In education and publishing circles, reluctant readers refers to those teens and tweens who aren’t so keen on spending their free time — or their assigned time, for that matter — with a book. What makes them so reluctant? Many simply haven’t yet found joy in reading. Or they see reading as a chore when they could be indulging in “fun” things (such as TV, movies, video games, hobbies, and activities with friends and family) or going to school, doing homework, and participating in extracurricular activities. And then, of course, some young people simply lack solid reading skills.

  Reluctant readers make up much of your potential audience, especially in the middle grade realm. You can take this into account in your fiction by

  Putting big words in contexts that make their meaning clear: Some kids love consulting their dictionaries, but reluctant readers aren’t in that group.

  Writing clear, tight sentences: Even the best readers don’t want to fight their way to the meaning. Keep it accessible.

  Keeping up a fast pace: Young readers generally don’t have the patience of adults, who may stick with a slow-starting book because they’ve heard great things about it or are especially intrigued by the promises in the jacket flap copy.

  Hooking young readers instantly: Help young readers get emotionally invested right off the bat . . . or risk losing them.

  Writing stories with high teen-appeal is especially important with reluctant readers, so give careful consideration to your target audience; identifying your target audience is a vital prewriting phase I cover in Chapter 2. Give these kids a reason to read instead of succumbing to frustration or to the million other things screaming for their attention.

  You may hear of a subcategory of young adult fiction called Hi/Lo, as in high interest, low reading level. These books are created specifically for reluctant readers. They’re packaged to look like any other book, but the text is written with their needs in mind. The stories are short, from 400 to 1,200 words, and they have many illustrations. Hi/Lo books feature distinct characters who are quickly characterized — no going on and on about anything in a Hi/Lo, which uses quick pacing to keep interest. Sentence structure is short, simple, and clear. Storylines are straightforward and avoid jumps in point of view or time. Because boys are three times more likely to be reluctant readers than girls, Hi/Los are commonly geared to boy interests, emphasizing funny situations, sports, disasters, teen conflict, family/friend problems, and street kids and gangs, and they embrace the sci-fi, mystery/spy, and adventure genres. Hi/Lo is a small, specialty subcategory. I focus this book on trade fiction, or the general market, which sells through standard outlets to the general reader.

  Pacifying gatekeepers

  Unlike writers for adults, you don’t have direct access to your audience. Instead, you and your novel must wend your way through a group of people who in one manner or another screen books before they reach the kids they’re written for. I’m talking about librarians, teachers, parents, book reviewers, even booksellers. These are the gatekeepers of young adult fiction. Every one of them has opinions about what young people should read, with some of those gatekeepers holding the purse strings.

  This means you have to please a lot of people before you ever get to your primary audience. Edgy stories that offer rougher views of the world may not squeeze through the filters. Language, sex, and violence all get careful screening. In principle, that’s not necessarily a bad thing; adults should be aware of what the young people under their wings are reading. But it does add a many-people-deep wall that writers for adults don’t have to work around . . . or under or over or right through in some paper-and-ink version of the old Red Rover child’s game.

  Cases of banned books and censorship arguments periodically crop up in the young adult fiction news, reminding the world of the most ardent gatekeepers. But your chief awareness should lie at the level of everyday screening for age and individual appropriateness. Keep in mind the role of gatekeepers in your readers’ lives as you make decisions about your story’s content and word choice. Young adult novelists must by default consider their gate-keepers . . . but whether you choose to pacify gatekeepers, work within general boundaries, or blow the boundaries apart is completely up to you.

  Understanding types of children’s book publishers

  Most people can name some big publishers, but the children’s book publishing industry also has specialty publishers who target specific customers through various outlets. You should know the differences among the players if you’re to become an effective player. Here’s the lineup:

  Traditional trade publishers: These are the companies most people think of when they hear “publisher.” Sales reps market their books to bookstores, libraries, and schools, and the books are reviewed in dedicated book media such as School Library Journal. These houses operate with a traditional publishing model, which pays authors advances against royalties while handling the editing, marketing, sales, order fulfillment, and monies. Smaller houses may offer royalties only, no advances. In most cases, the author holds the copyright to his story. (More on advances, royalties, and copyright in Chapter 17.)

  Mass-market publishers: These companies have the same advance and royalty structure as traditional houses, but the copyright may be in the company’s name, or the author and house may have a joint copyright. Mass-market publishers may also publish the paperback editions of novels originally published in hardcover by a traditional trade publisher. These books are marketed to and stocked by bookstores and discount retailers such as Wal-Mart. These books get reviewed in some dedicated book media.

  Packagers or book developers: These companies generally come up with the concepts and story ideas before hiring writers to execute those plans, usually for a one-time flat fee. The packager develops the content, takes care of all editing and packaging, and then sells the project to traditional or mass-market publishers, leaving distribution and marketing to that purchasing publisher. The copyright may be joint or in the packager’s name.

  Educational publishers: These companies publish curriculum-based material intended primarily for use in schools. They may pay advances against royalties, royalty only, or a flat fee. They usually employ a sales force that markets directly to educators in their schools or at conferences. These books are reviewed in education journals.

  Small presses: These companies may publish just a handful of titles a year. Not all of them publish young adult fiction; they often specialize in one or two book categories. They may offer advances against royalties, royalty-only contracts, or flat fee contracts. Small press books sometimes get dedicated book media reviews. They often market through direct mail catalogs sent directly to potential customers or through wholesalers (also called distributors), which means they hire independent compani
es to stock and distribute their books. Because of their small-operation status, they may cease operating suddenly, so there’s higher risk in publishing with a small press.

  Vanity publishers: Also called co-op publishers or subsidy publishers, these companies handle the production of the book while the author foots the bill. The author also pays for the marketing and promotion (if there is any) and handles the distribution. Vanity publishers offer a percentage (varying from 3 to 40 percent) of each book sold, although sales numbers aren’t usually high, and the publisher owns the ISBN (the 13-digit International Standard Book Number that uniquely identifies your book). The publisher may send out books for review at author expense, but dedicated book media rarely review them.

  The Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) warns its members to avoid any publisher that requires authors to pay for publication of their work. The distinction between vanity publishing and self-publishing is becoming quite murky as the author-services companies that aid in self-publishing expand their services menu. See Chapter 14 for more on the murkiness.

  Self-publishing: This kind of publishing puts you in the driver’s seat, with all the control as well as all the monetary risk. You design, edit, produce, market, and distribute your own books. You own the copyright and your ISBN, and you keep all the money generated. Self-published books rarely get dedicated book media reviews. They can be sold through online booksellers as well as through personal author websites and at appearances, and they may be sold as e-books or take advantage of print-on-demand technology and so don’t necessarily need to be physically stocked.

  Self-publishing favors those who already have a platform and can sell the books as ancillary products, such as through back-of-the-room sales at speaking engagements, or when there are small, identifiable, reachable target audiences. The means for self-publishing are changing as the publishing world evolves to include electronic technologies, and opportunities for individual authors are expanding. I’ve dedicated Chapter 14 to self-publishing.

  Enjoying the Perks of Writing for Young Adults

  You may have challenges that writers for adult fiction don’t have, but you also have something special going for you: your audience. Young adults are a devoted readership that’s vocal about their passions — and their defiance. Their loyalties and rebelliousness create opportunities for you.

  Getting new waves of readers: Long live the renewable audience!

  Because new readers age into the young adult market each year, the audience for your fiction is a constantly renewing one. This is a boon for you. For each set of newcomers, the old is new. First time love is as exciting and confusing for the new batch of readers as it was for their older siblings. I talk about picking universal themes that you know will resonate with your targeted age group in Chapter 2. Your task is to come at your theme in a way that makes it fresh and relevant to those new teens on the block.

  Gaining a following: The young and the quenchless

  When young people like a book, they can be passionate, vocal fans. They tell their friends about it, and then their friends read it and tell their friends about it, and then you have more fans. And with social media, telling one friend can mean telling dozens at the same time. Don’t discount the role of peer pressure in teen book-selecting. No young person wants to be the last to read the latest hot pick, so word of mouth is a big deal with this audience. Just as booksellers hand-sell in bookstores by recommending their favorite titles and authors to customers, so, too, kids push their picks. Get them liking, and get them talking.

  You also find that teen readers stick with an author or series with fierce loyalty. They line up outside stores to buy an author’s hot books, and teens even create their own book trailers (see Chapter 15). If you can hook ’em, you own ’em. Teens want more. And because adults are now sticking with young adult fiction even when they grow out of the official age ranges, you may keep your readers longer than you think.

  Breaking the rules

  A great part of writing for teens is that they’re open to new ways of telling stories. They don’t yet know all the “rules” adults follow — not that they’d care about them if they did know. Young adults like to test boundaries. In content, teens like to flirt with danger while secure in the belief of their immortality and safety. And in seeing rebellion and rule-breaking in stories, teens feel empowered and thrilled and validated.

  In terms of writing style, teens are quite open to different. They haven’t become wedded to the old ways, so young readers are more likely to embrace new stuff. They let a story talk about itself, for example, jumping out of the narrative to address readers. They’re also willing to walk the line between fantasy and real. And still being so close to their picture book days and thus very visual, they welcome the inclusion of visual elements when that suits the story.

  An example of middle grade fiction that breaks the mold is Brian Selnick’s The Invention of Hugo Cabret, a 526-page book that blends words and pictures in a novel that had expert librarians scratching their heads while they decided what it was. A picture book? A graphic novel? A full-fledged narrative novel? They decided picture book, awarding it the 2008 Caldecott Medal for Illustrations (of which it has nearly 300), even as the National Book Award committee called it a finalist in the Young People’s Literature category.

  Let this knowledge free you up to explore and experiment with your own fiction, finding the right way to tell your story.

  Chapter 2

  Targeting Teen Readers

  In This Chapter

  Understanding the age ranges and categories

  Comparing teen and tween fiction

  Choosing your genre and theme

  A story that thrills a 17-year-old can completely freak out a 9-year-old. Yet young adult fiction encompasses those ages and everything in between. Most books aren’t so expansive. Your goal is to target one specific age group for your story and then sync your themes and conflicts to that group’s maturity level and social concerns. That means you must identify your target readers early in the process. This chapter guides you through that step, charting the standard age groups and genres, factoring in the overlap of tweens and teens, and helping you give common teen themes a fresh twist to grip readers and make your novel stand out.

  Identifying Your Teen or Tween Audience

  Before you start cranking out chapters, you must be able to name your target audience — your readers’ ages and gender — along with your intended genre, which reflects your readers’ interests and expectations (more on genre in a bit). Simply saying, “I’m writing for teens,” isn’t enough. Several age groups fall under that umbrella, each with its own emotional maturity, intellectual level, and social interests, and you have to be sure that your story ideas, theme, plot, structure, and language all jive with the age range you pick.

  All seven of the craft chapters in Part II of this book help you hone your storytelling skills to suit your chosen target audience, but in this section, you take aim at your audience. After all, scoring a bull’s-eye is awfully hard when you’re shooting in the dark.

  Choosing your age range

  Some people say “young adult fiction” to mean novels written for all young readers, distinguishing these books from novels for adults. However, if you’re talking to someone within the world of young adult literature — librarians and teachers, editors and agents, writers and booksellers — it’s good to distinguish between middle grade (MG) fiction, or tween fiction, and young adult (YA) fiction, or teen fiction. An author who says she’s “writing a YA novel” is writing for teens. She’d specifically state “a middle grade novel” or “MG” if she were writing for tweens.

  Everything in this book works for both MG and YA fiction — the craft tips, the submission strategies, the marketing guidance, the whole shebang. The storytelling craft is essentially the same for each ca
tegory, and the same players in children’s book publishing handle all books for young readers, from toddler board books all the way up to MG and YA novels.

  You need to understand both MG and YA so you can function in the biz with the movers and shakers as well as tell your story to your readers in the most effective and affecting manner. I give you the insider’s view of the MG and YA categories in this section.

  Breaking down the age ranges

  Officially, the two categories of young adult literature — YA and MG — are further split into age ranges. Assigning age ranges to stories helps book-buyers and readers judge the age-appropriateness of the content and the writing. Table 2-1 lays out the age ranges for you.

  You may find a story’s age range listed on a book jacket flap or in its online bookseller listings; you can certainly find it in the publisher’s catalog, which publishers usually post on their websites each season.

  Table 2-1 Age Ranges for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction

  Age Range

  Category

  Description

  Ages 9–12

  Middle Grade

  Older elementary into middle school, grades 4–7

  Ages 10–14

  Middle Grade

  Middle school into early high school, grades 5–9; these kids may be reading older MG and younger YAs

  Ages 12 and up

  Young Adult

  Older middle school into high school, grades 7–12