What is Young Adult fiction?

[Cricket - Best Sport]

I am not really interested in market definitions here.

In your opinion, what are the defining characteristics of this genre?
What topics are young adult books supposed to avoid; what parameters are they supposed to obey?
Are all books with teenagers as main characters young-adult fiction?
If not, why?
What is the intent that derives the labelling of certain books as young-adult?

 

[BookStop]

Look at the guidleine thread directly above this one. It does a pretty good job of outlining characteristics of YAFIC - of course, there are tons of exceptions. Young people today read a huge variety, and consequently, YAFIC has been changing. There are very few defining characteristics, except maybe the younger protagonist.

Books written for adults are now being marketed toward teens, and many authors who solely wrote for adults in the past are now toning down the explicitness of there writing to gear it specifically for the teenage reader.

James Patterson is a good example. When the Wind Blows and Lake House were initially adult reads, but teens started picking them up(hey-some of the characters are teens), and now he writes an entire series for teens based ont he world in the original books (Maximum Ride).

As far as what to avoid, hmmm, I guess you'd want to avoid overtly sexual situations, that is, not too much detail.(teens do sometimes have sex)And I'd avoid a lot of foul language. Think of the PG-13 film. SOmetimes a wrod or two slips in, but not more than that.

 

[Cricket - Best Sport]

Look at the guidleine thread directly above this one. It does a pretty good job of outlining characteristics of YAFIC - of course, there are tons of exceptions.

I did.

In fact, the guidelines are the main reason I started this thread.

For example, consider this:

originally posted in the guidelines
Literature written prior to the 1960s could be included as Young Adult.

Now this is just plain confusing to me. By this definition, Ulysses and Tropic of Cancer are young adult fiction but a book like American Gods isn't.

Young people today read a huge variety, and consequently, YAFIC has been changing. There are very few defining characteristics, except maybe the younger protagonist.

This sounds logical, however, consider the case of ASoIaF. Dany, Jon, Arya, Bran, Sansa and Robb are all young-adults/pre-teens. But would you call the series, or even the chapters that concern the children, young adult?

James Patterson is a good example. When the Wind Blows and Lake House were initially adult reads, but teens started picking them up(hey-some of the characters are teens), and now he writes an entire series for teens based ont he world in the original books (Maximum Ride).

That's a different issue though. Above is an example of an author who tailored his writing based on market trends. That's a savvy writer.

As far as what to avoid, hmmm, I guess you'd want to avoid overtly sexual situations, that is, not too much detail.(teens do sometimes have sex)And I'd avoid a lot of foul language. Think of the PG-13 film. SOmetimes a wrod or two slips in, but not more than that.

The scenario you describe is pretty much a deliberate dumbing down of literature. An overwhelming number of teens in most western countries partake in sexual activities. Similiarly, anyone who has ever gone to school has heard more than their fair share of four letters words by the age of thirteen.
Sexual tension and profanity are both staples of teenage interaction and directly propotional to the amount of realism exuded by a story. Perhaps sanitization of language and actions doesn't matter much in sci-fi/fantasy and can be construed as part of the story structure - but in mainstream or 'coming-of-age' fiction, novels which pupport to be realistic and in tune with the teenage culture, it basically renders the whole premise false.

 

[BookStop]

Now this is just plain confusing to me. By this definition, Ulysses and Tropic of Cancer are young adult fiction but a book like American Gods isn't.

Well - I don't think it was meant to be a 'definition' exactly. More than likely, she's just saying that lots of literature written for adults prior to 1960 could now qualify as a teen read, as in it meets much of the other criteria.

This sounds logical, however, consider the case of ASoIaF. Dany, Jon, Arya, Bran, Sansa and Robb are all young-adults/pre-teens. But would you call the series, or even the chapters that concern the children, young adult?

Definitely not -at least, not the whole story. These chapters? Maybe.

The scenario you describe is pretty much a deliberate dumbing down of literature. An overwhelming number of teens in most western countries partake in sexual activities. Similiarly, anyone who has ever gone to school has heard more than their fair share of four letters words by the age of thirteen.
Sexual tension and profanity are both staples of teenage interaction and directly propotional to the amount of realism exuded by a story. Perhaps sanitization of language and actions doesn't matter much in sci-fi/fantasy and can be construed as part of the story structure - but in mainstream or 'coming-of-age' fiction, novels which pupport to be realistic and in tune with the teenage culture, it basically renders the whole premise false.

I don't agree with any of that at all. It's not dumbing down literature if you are specifically aiming for a certain age group. Not all books with a teenage protagonist, or teenage characters, are meant to be read by teenage readers.

And, yes, anyone attending school has heard the four letter words, but that doesn't mean it's ok. It's a little sad that society is constantly pushing our children to grow up.

While sexual tension and profanity are indeed present during teenage years, it's not a necessary staple for all teenagers- either books have it or they aren't realistic isn't a realistic viewpoint. I know of many wonderful, poignant pieces of literature that don't contain sex or profanity that anyone would enjoy, adult and teen alike.

I think one of the things about Ya literature not mentioned is age group. I don't consider Ya just for teens. I think of it as more the 11-16 crowd. Usually, by 16, driving, dating, more freedoms, etc., teens have reached a maturity to be able to handle the grittier subject matter. Some probably do earlier, some later, but if a book is labeled YA I like to think of it as a 'safe' area for any person, able to understand the content, between the above ages. Parents don't have time to police everything thier child is reading, but publishers are able to label a book YA, and hopefully, have some sort of guideline.

 

[Cricket - Best Sport]

I don't agree with any of that at all. It's not dumbing down literature if you are specifically aiming for a certain age group.

The pre-1960 books weren't specifically aimed at a certain age-group. Was that era of our history more sanitized than the modern one? Charles Dickens depicts a London stricken with poverty, violence and misrule freely in his novels. Children are beaten; human life is pretty much worthless. However, his characters do not have sex publically and the four lettered words are notably absent. Such works are gladly accepted as YA-fiction however people all over the world will scream their heads off if a thirteen year old reads a romance novel with two people have consensual sex.

Not all books with a teenage protagonist, or teenage characters, are meant to be read by teenage readers.

Eh, why not?

And, yes, anyone attending school has heard the four letter words, but that doesn't mean it's ok. It's a little sad that society is constantly pushing our children to grow up.

So including a four letter word in a book automatically means it is 'okay?' If an author is trying to create an accurate portrayal of modern teenage culture, will the four letter word be out of place there? Are you saying teenagers don't use four letter words?

It's a little sad that society is constantly pushing our children to grow up.

Not really. If you study history you'll find that humans needed to 'grow-up' a lot earlier in most cultures. Besides, how is growing up related to using profanity?

I think one of the things about Ya literature not mentioned is age group. I don't consider Ya just for teens. I think of it as more the 11-16 crowd. Usually, by 16, driving, dating, more freedoms, etc., teens have reached a maturity to be able to handle the grittier subject matter. Some probably do earlier, some later, but if a book is labeled YA I like to think of it as a 'safe' area for any person, able to understand the content, between the above ages. Parents don't have time to police everything thier child is reading, but publishers are able to label a book YA, and hopefully, have some sort of guideline.

13 year olds are also teenagers. So you'd have a watered down version of reality portrayed in novels rather than let them mirror real life? Because that seems to be the intent behind labeling works as young-adult fiction.

 

[BookStop]

13 year olds are also teenagers. So you'd have a watered down version of reality portrayed in novels rather than let them mirror real life? Because that seems to be the intent behind labeling works as young-adult fiction.

Not all 13 year old children lead the same kind of life. What's realistic for some, is way far off base for others. I do have children, 12 and 14, and what I read is not always appropriate for them. However, that is my decision as neither child is yet 18, and I am the parent here. I am sure there are parents who don't care, but 'round here more are like me than not. Maybe it's cultural, who knows, but I think if you class a book as YA you have to take the majority's opinion to sell books.