For Adults who read YA

Posted on January 26, 2012 // 1 Comment
A taste of my daily vacation.

I pulled this from Cassandra Clare’s website. I found such truth in it, I wanted to share.  There is also a neat link in there for Jonathan Strahan if you are interested.

“To my mind, YA is a subset of adult fiction, not of children’s fiction, and should be considered as having an entry reading age rather than an age *range*. The entry level is probably 13 or 14, but there is no upper level because the books are also for adults. Saying YA is 13-21, or 13-18 or whatever misses the point, because it suggests that the books are not for older adults, whereas I would say that in fact the core audience of people reading YA (and YA SFF in particular) are in fact 16-35. But this is only the core and the readership extends more broadly upward in age and down as well.” [From Podcast Code Street Episode 20, second comment]

“— Definition by Garth Nix. Love it!”

This has always rang true to me, even before I joined the brave and imaginative YA author pool.  I read in several places early in my writing education that YA is ‘for ages 12-18′.  Well, I beg to differ, and apparently I’m not the only one.

First of all, when I read this statistic, I thought 12 was awfully young to be reading YA novels.  These days, YA is one of the hottest genres, if not the hottest genre out there.  The content in YA books varies from what I would consider ‘rated G’ to ‘rated R’.  Usually the they settle in between, in the ‘rated PG13′ range.  I don’t think I would allow my 12 year old to read even my novels, considering the violence, language and romance that is incorporated into my books.  That being said, 18 is not the age that readers lose interest in YA novels either.  I am 26 years old.  I continue to read and write YA novels.  It’s where my passion lies.  Readers from various age group  walk into their local book store or skim through their e-reader, looking for new and fresh stories in the YA genre.

This is also why it’s so difficult to get published when you are writing int he YA genre.  There are hoards of competition.  Nevertheless, when a good plot and riveting characters are developed, people respond.  This continues to be true for every indie author or traditionally published author out there.  If your story stinks or your characters fall flat, your reader will crinkle their nose and put your book down in favor of watching a re-run of Friends.

So if you are not between the ages of 12-21, are you even allowed to read YA books?  Ha! I don’t think I need to answer such an obtuse question.  YA books are imaginative, riveting, romantic and intriguing.  They tear you out of your mundane daily routine and throw you into an entirely different world where werewolves and pixies lurk in the forest, where vampires seek shelter in abandoned buildings until night falls, where shadow hunters keep underworlds in line, where Riyata battle to protect their sacred stone, where a cursed soul seeks for reckoning, where the unreal and unpredictable stand at the forefront and everything dreary and insipid is left in the dust.  This is why people of every age love YA novels, because they take you somewhere else entirely.  And don’t we all strive to ‘get away’ sometimes?  Reading, for me, is like a daily vacation.  I don’t need a tropical beach or an isolated cabin to feel at peace.  All I need is a steaming cup of Maharaji Oolong Chi tea, a quiet room with decent lighting and a fat book that I can’t put down in risk of the characters poking at my mind all night or making an appearance in my dreams.

 The YA genre has spread like wild fire into every demographic.  I am a victim of the blaze and if you are reading my blog, then so are you.  


Happy Reading!

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Theresa McClinton

Author at Etopia Press
Hi everyone! My name is Theresa McClinton. I'm a mom, wife, and YA paranormal romance writer. My current home town is Hilliard, OH, although I've moved around quite a bit in my life. I'm a north-south-east-western kind of girl, spending most of my childhood in Kodiak, Alaska. I love to travel, love my three kids, and love what I'm doing. Life is good. Thanks very much for taking a look at my profile. Hope you enjoy the site!
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Comments

  1. Kelley Lee says:
    January 26, 2012 at 5:54 pm

    Wonderfully put. Thankfully I still fall in this supposed age range being 20 :) but I know that when I am well over middle age my book shelf’s will have my YA collection right next to What Went Wrong With the New Generation! I love YA fiction and it truly has become a new trend that I hope never fades.

    Reply

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