YA Fantasy/Fiction vs. Regular Fantasy/Fiction

Hey gang,

I'm relatively new to the YA Genre - I namely started reading alot more about it (and other people's submissions) because it was recommended that a Dark Fantasy novel I was pushing starring a 16 year old character would be a better fit for YA.

At first, I scratched my head, and was like: "But... this thing is really, really, dark... isn't it?" I admit, I hadn't written it with teenagers in mind.

Many folks said: "YA Fantasy can be pretty darn dark - I don't think you've gone far enough to exclude it."

And yet, some novels starring a mostly youthful cast (like Martin's Song of Fire and Ice series comes to mind) are definitely not considered YA.

I've since done some reading of YA submissions. Yesterday, I read a short excerpt of two homosexual kids kicking the ever loving *crap* out of each other... broken noses and the works, because one wasn't ready to come out of the closest. I have to say, it was quite a eye-opener for me. No one seemed to refute that it didn't belong there, so I began to think maybe I wasn't even CLOSE to crossing the boundary. So, I've decided to recatagorize my story, in the interests of having a greater base of agents.

So, I ask as a general question... what is it that makes a YA Novel just that? What are things that would exclude a novel from the genre?

Could you be a little more specific? What's the difference between the theme, the voice and the pacing in a YA novel?

Shady Lane said:

Does it have a coming-of-age element? Is the pacing very tight, with suspense held through the entire thing, without pauses for exposition or unsuspenseful subplots?

Basically YA books need to be fast-paced and relevant to the teenage experience. Fantasy or not, YA books need to be relevant to teenagers.

There are of course exceptions, so no one jump on me, please. I know.

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I would say it's kinda light on the coming-of-age element... though I guess trying to become the apprentice of a ruthless wizard is a sort of "right of passage" in its own right.

Nonetheless, the pacing is very tight (at least from what I believe, and what a few readers have told m), and there's very little pauses and I don't think even a single subplot.

What's too far? Go read "Tender Morsels"--incestuous rape, gang rape, male rape, forced abortion, people who want to have sex with bears--YA. In general there are buckets of YA about sex and drugs (and rock n roll even!) out there.

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... bears huh? Okey dokes. I think my Inner Child just committed seppuku. Nice going.