I'm sure you're all aware of the hoopla that went on last week after a certain WSJ article (which I never read) wrote about the possibility that YA was getting too dark.
It tossed YA authors and readers into an absolute uproar.
I'm not going to debate the merits or demerits of dark, edgy YA. I know that it serves its purpose.
BUT WHAT IF YOU DON'T WRITE DARK AND EDGY YA?
Can you still make it as a YA writer?
I think I'm a pretty decent writer. I've had two agents like my work and want to represent me, so I can't be writing complete schrot.
But twice the D and E issue has come up. Two books I sent out are commercial and trending. Both have gotten the same kind of feedback -- editors are looking for something more competitive--they want something darker and edgier.
GAH.
(To me competitive = give me the same book as those other guys--but different).
Is there no room for less than edgy in YA? Does no one want to read something that's on the lighter side and fun? Have we forgotten there's still a market for the younger YA market or any age teen who doesn't happen to be depressed at the moment?
Sorry, this has turned into a bit of a rant, and I know I'm over-stating for effect.
So tell me, is it just me? Should I just take my light, non-edgy, butt the H. E. double hockey sticks out of YA town?
Update: I need to add a disclaimer--the historical YA ms's I've written are dark. You can't write about ww2 without being dark. I'm referring to my lighter paranormal, chick-lit offerings here.
This is where I wonder about the whole publishing market. I write some dark, but believe there is a spot for everything. There are many different types of readers out there so why not give them a variety. I know it's the whole money issue, but really, if everything is dark, shouldn't there be some light. It's all about balance, because if you force readers all dark, they might get sick of it and then us folks who write dark will be struggling.
ReplyDeleteI hear ya.
On your side, Elle, definitely!
ReplyDeleteOh, I know the feeling! If there's a place for dark and edgy, then there HAS to be a place for light and fun, right? And even though I'm not even close to being a young adult anymore, even when I was one I preferred to read lighter but deep. In fact, I've just started re-writing my YA MS because it felt too heavy and gloomy to me, and I didn't even like reading it myself!
ReplyDeleteWe've been discussing this at my blog, and the common thread most people are saying is that quite often, deep is BETTER presented in a lighter format because it is unexpected and has more impact. I wish publishers would take that into consideration!
OOO!!! This is totally me! I read the occasional edgy book, but as a general rile, I like to read and write the lighter stuff.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy reading the light and fluffy stuff alongside the darker books! I've seen plenty of lighter-looking books on the shelves (Mandy Hubbard's books come to mind), so it's strange that you'd get those kind of comments on a consistent basis.
ReplyDeleteI really hope the offerings of 'lighter' material don't dry up...
And herein lies the problem. I started writing middle grade because I had two agents during my initial querying process tell me that my writing was too sweet for YA. I started researching and found that, indeed, the YA I'd grown up reading was now middle grade. I've figured out this: when I was a teen, we read Stephen King, V.C. Andrews, and the more scandalous of Judy Blume's books (Deenie, Forever, etc.). Sweet Valley High and all those "First Love From Silhouette" books were books we read when we were 12 and 13. We read UP.
ReplyDeleteNow kids don't do that, I'm assuming? Hence the need for middle grade. If teens are going to read, they want to read real stuff, not the Disney Channel stuff that 12-year-olds are watching. Which does beg the question...are there teens out there wanting the sweet stuff? Sure. I read romance novels when I was 16, too...but they had sex in them. So maybe that tells you something. I don't know.
I read "Oh My Goth" recently. That wasn't dark or edgy. What about "French Kiss?" I actually had to search to find some dark YA to inspire my current novel about a girl who finds herself being stalked. However, I'm guessing you're like me in that you can't bring yourself to kill off a character or have your characters drink, use profanity, and have sex? That IS the hard part. Is it possible Middle Grade is closer to your fit? Have you looked into some of the older Middle Grades???
PLEASE CAN SOMEONE TELL ME WHAT THE H*#L 'EDGY' MEANS?
ReplyDeleteHere is the 'actual' definition below. Now, all you smart people, tell me what people mean when they call YA 'edgy' because it sure isn't the actual meaning of the word. I didn't read that article either, so I'm just going off the stir that's been going on recently regarding 'edgy' and 'dark'.
edgy |ˈejē|
adjective ( edgier , edgiest )
tense, nervous, or irritable : he became edgy and defensive.
• (of a musical performance or a piece of writing) having an intense or sharp quality.
And for that matter, what do they mean by 'dark'? When I think of 'dark' YA 'The Hunger Games' comes to mind. I consider it dark because it's so very bleak and depressing, with not a lot of hope. 'By The Time You Read This I'll Be Dead' is what I would consider 'dark' as well. 'Some Girls Are' is dark.
I've liked 'dark' books, but I don't really write them, at least not by my own definition of the word. And I think that in the long run 'dark' and 'edgy' is a fad. Yes, some authors simply write that way, but in retrospect, I think we'll look back and see a few great books that fit the term and then a lot of 'ok' books that fall into the category.
Christine --that's the problem, it is the whole money issue. Publishing is business, and right now that's what's selling big. (Or at least that's their perception of what will sell big).
ReplyDeleteElouise - Very good point that deep doesn't have to mean dark--thanks!
Stephanie - I'm kind of mis-representing myself, as I do write historical and they are definitely dark. You're rignt, now sex, sparse swearing, but there's violence and disturbing events (hello, ww2), but I was referring to my light/paranormal offerings, where the editors liked the premise etc, but wanted, edgier.
ReplyDeleteArtemis - and yeah, I don't exactly know what that means either.
First off, I have no idea what people mean by dark and edgy, even though I hear it all the time. It's this term that has been coined and it has no real meaning for me. Second, I think you should write what you love and tell a good story and tell everyone else to shove it. Please don't leave YA town.
ReplyDeleteI think there's a lot of room for non-edgy YA. Look at publishers like Egmont and Hyperion/Disney: they only publish clean and library friendly books. I think we tend to think edgy books are more popular because we're absorbed in the YA writer/book blogger community, which doesn't always reflect what teens are reading and libraries are buying. I did a post today on what my cousin's 16-year-old daughter is reading, and she doesn't even touch edgy stuff.
ReplyDeleteI think there's room for everything, it's just a matter of timing and finding hte right editor for your book. THere does seem to be such a big focus on "edgy and dark." But I know a lot of teens who don't want so many of those books, they want an escape, not an even more depressing world than the one they live in. So keep going!
ReplyDelete"By The Time You Read This I'll Be Dead." Just that title makes me want to read.
ReplyDeleteI think, honestly, it's all about pushing the envelope. Judy Blume started it by scandalizing America by writing about menstruation, masturbation, and sexual relations between teens. (Menstruation, masturbation... That's actually kinda catchy if you add a third "M" to it!) So we keep pushing. But how far is too far and how long until that bubble bursts? Maybe never...I've been waiting for the "pregnant woman" trend in romance to pass...and it didn't. Yet chick lit lasted about fifteen seconds.
If there's one thing I've learned since I started writing in 1995, it's that if you want to make it as a writer, follow trends. If you want to make it BIG as a writer, do something nobody else is doing and do it like it's never been done before. Take that for what it's worth. I was in Music City Romance Writers with Sherilyn Kenyon when nobody was buying paranormal. She wrote it anyway. She isn't a NYT bestselling author because she follows trends...she was at the forefront of it.
Stephanie -- Well, I was ahead of the trends with Time Travel. I had a Disney/Hyperion editor tell me in person at a conference that Time Travel in YA will never sell. Now it's trending, but what's selling is d and e Time Travel. This is where I'm told I'm not competitive enough. So, I don't think you can win when it comes to trends, following or not following.
ReplyDeleteDon't be sorry, rant all you want. The problem is that the editors are looking for what they want and what they think might sell great, they aren't necessarily looking for just good books. Worse yet, they aren't necessarily looking for what readers really want to read either. It has become such a guessing game in publishing right now that they're passing up excellent novels. They're looking out one to two years to when your book would actually come out if they picked it up. It's kind of like trying to see the future, which is part of the problem.
ReplyDeleteI didn't really help did I? Sorry. It's something that bothers me a lot too. *hugs*
It's a tough market. I feel your frustration. I say write what you want to write.
ReplyDeleteWow. I'm surprised you received that response from editors. There are plenty of YA novels out there that aren't dark & edgy in the slightest. I mean... "bad" stuff has to happen in any novel, so to me, there is no such thing as a "light" novel. But you can write YA contemp without it being an issue book, or involving life or death situations. Romance (w/o sex)? Summer camp? Musical competitions? etc, etc, etc. It's all out there and selling now, and has been for decades.
ReplyDelete