Well into a YA historical novel but am having thoughts as to whether it will be marketable when I am finished. Does anyone know the trends out there? Thanks.
YA Historical Fiction - is there a market?
- Thread starter penquilly
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There seem to be a lot of people writing them, penquilly, so that sounds like there may be a decent market. But in general, the market is fairly tight right now. I know there are some places on the web you can find with a Google search that can probably give you a better answer to your question.
BTW - welcome to AW and historical. Puma
BTW - welcome to AW and historical. Puma
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I wouldn't worry about whether there's a 'market' for it or not. If the story is compelling and well written there's no need to worry about trends. In any event, if you write to meet a perceived need in the market, chances are by the time your book is ready to go out into the world, the trends will have changed.
Just write the best story you can and let an agent worry about placing it.
Just write the best story you can and let an agent worry about placing it.
The book Shogun (James Clavell 1975) comes to mind. I loved that book and it was a huge bestseller. It was a perfect mixture of factual history, characters based on legends and facts.
As was mentioned, if you have a good story and it is well-researched, it will sell.
As was mentioned, if you have a good story and it is well-researched, it will sell.
I've know of a handful of YA historical novels, so somebody's buying them (does WWII count? In teenager time that was like a beezillion years ago and I suspect many teens have never talked to someone who lived through that era). Off the top of my head:
A Brief History of Montmaray
Climbing The Stairs
Wildthorn
Octavian Nothing
the Bloody Jack series
There are others out there if you search
A Brief History of Montmaray
Climbing The Stairs
Wildthorn
Octavian Nothing
the Bloody Jack series
There are others out there if you search
There are lots of YA historicals that are NY Times Bestsellers-A Great and Terrible Beauty, Rebel Angels, The Luxe Series - all of these are fairly recent too.
The Book Thief - YA historical fic (though marketed as an adult novel in Australia) - is one of the best novels I've ever read.
ETA: There is a market for YA historical fic. However, there is a much bigger market for MG historical fic. So, if your book is on the line between upper-MG and lower-YA, you may have more luck pitching as MG.
ETA: There is a market for YA historical fic. However, there is a much bigger market for MG historical fic. So, if your book is on the line between upper-MG and lower-YA, you may have more luck pitching as MG.
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In...
countries like the UK, NZ ,and OZ, where the school syllabus has specific units of history for primary and secondary students, there is a great demand for short historical novels dealing with the syllabus history. Publishers know this and welcome YA historical fiction which deals with some aspect of the school history syllabus.
Both NZ and Oz have magazines published specifically for schools and they pay well for short historical fiction and non-fiction pieces and do publish novels in serial form.
And the UK has a longstanding publishing record of outstanding YA historical fiction, which always used to be with the Oxford University Press leading the way.
If your writing is good and your story even better you'll find a market.
countries like the UK, NZ ,and OZ, where the school syllabus has specific units of history for primary and secondary students, there is a great demand for short historical novels dealing with the syllabus history. Publishers know this and welcome YA historical fiction which deals with some aspect of the school history syllabus.
Both NZ and Oz have magazines published specifically for schools and they pay well for short historical fiction and non-fiction pieces and do publish novels in serial form.
And the UK has a longstanding publishing record of outstanding YA historical fiction, which always used to be with the Oxford University Press leading the way.
If your writing is good and your story even better you'll find a market.
I've been repackaging/rewriting my First Crusade book for the YA market. It's now 65,500 words (down from 89,000) and the writing is much, much tighter (ie better).
Does anyone know which UK agents work with YA historicals?
Does anyone know which UK agents work with YA historicals?
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Yes, YA historical is fine. It's not an easy sell, but compared to what? The market is tough all around and it's never particularly easy, even in the best of times.
I'm actually actively looking for a YA historical. It will have to be both a great YA and a great historical, so it's hard to say when I'll find it, but I'm definitely looking.
I'm actually actively looking for a YA historical. It will have to be both a great YA and a great historical, so it's hard to say when I'll find it, but I'm definitely looking.
Wow, you can do all that in a week?
Sure. No problem.
I've been working on it for a couple of months. It's almost ready to go.
It has been v popular in the UK to the extent that my publisher has tried to market me that way. I can't see it disappearing any time soon - people like history in hard economic times.
UK Agents/publishers.
You need a copy of the 'Artists and Writers' Yearbook 2011' pub by A and C Black.
Amazon have it.
You need a copy of the 'Artists and Writers' Yearbook 2011' pub by A and C Black.
Amazon have it.
There is some great YA historical stuff out there - and it includes everything from prehistoric times to more recent history.
It varies. I've been aiming for 14 year olds and upwards,
but I've seen one agent who defines YA (or "teen") as 11-15.
Check the sticky threads at the top of this grouping.
Except that wasn't really YA, and it was pretty graphic too.
The Book Thief comes to mind.
I agree. Quite apart from anything else it's far too long for YA (1200 pages).
I haven't read The Book Thief, but my wife has and she says no way it's YA either.
I haven't read The Book Thief, but my wife has and she says no way it's YA either.
Uh, it doesn't look like there's too many people posting who read YA, so I'll bite because I do. Yes, there's a market for it, for YA and for MG. Granted, the big thing right now is either contemporary YA or fantasy of some kind, but I've picked up quite a few titles that were historical YA. Ten Cents a Dance is the first one that comes to mind, and the Luxe novel series is a bestseller. So absolutely there's a market for YA historical fiction.
I'm currently reading A Great and Terrible Beauty which I THINK was a NY Best Seller. It doesn't say so on the cover of the book that I got for Christmas, but I think on the sequeal, it said it was a best seller. Even if it wasn't, I know a TON of girls who read it and loved it.