Question About Genre

Petey · Nov 30, 2008

I have written a story in which the main protagonists are teenagers. As it happens, one of them is a vampire, one a werewolf, and one a witch.

Here's my question, should I market my book as young adult, or fantasy. Or should I treat it as both in order to have a wider range of agents to choose from.

jst5150 · Nov 30, 2008

I'll rec YA since that's your primary demographic.

JamieFord · Nov 30, 2008

Probably YA, but just write it--tell your story. Worry about genre later.

Liosse de Velishaf · Dec 1, 2008

YA is not really a genre, is it? It's an age category. I think you'd be best off describing it as a YA Fantasy, since that's what it appears to be... though with such a little amount of info, no one can be sure but you. I think Jamie has the right idea, though. You can't place the story 'til it is a story; which means you'd best get it written first.

Phaeal · Dec 1, 2008

As Liosse says, YA is an age category. Within that category, all the "adult" genres exist: romance, SFF, mystery, suspense, mainstream, etc. YA fantasy is a good description, or perhaps YA urban fantasy, depending on the background and timeframe of the story.

KikiteNeko · Dec 1, 2008

YA is an age category, but a lot of it depends on how it was written. The prose will determine if it's geared more for teenagers or adults. If you're unsure, query agents in the sch-fi/fantasy genre AND agents who deal with mostly YA. Couldn't hurt if the material is relevant to both.

The story I'm working on right now is about teenagers, but I'm trying to gear it more towards an adult audience.

Petey · Dec 1, 2008

As I have mentioned in my first post on this thread, the story as already been written. Another couple days of editing and I will be ready to begin working on query letters.

Thanks for the info on YA. A lot of people talk about YA like it is its own genre so I was not sure how to market it. I think I will stick with mostly fantasy agents. From the research I have done so far, it looks like a lot of the agents that handle fantasy deal with a lot of YA.

Thanks every one.

Danthia · Dec 2, 2008

Voice is a big part of YA. YA also tends to be faster paced. If you feel the story has a YA voice and the story would appeal more to teens than adults, market it to YA. But if the voice is more suited to an adult fanatsy and the story relies on situations that require more world experience to understand or relate to, go adult.

Question About Genre

Petey

jst5150

Vorpal Comics. Weekly Podcast. Twitch Artist. Vet

JamieFord

giving resonant directions

Liosse de Velishaf

Phaeal

Whatever I did, I didn't do it.

KikiteNeko

.

Petey

Danthia