HI, I am writng an environmental series for adolescents (I think). While it is filled with facts, the characters and story part are non-fiction. Not sure how to market it. Can you help please. Thanks ahead of time!
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How to classify - fiction or non-fiction?
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clarification
My book is about Zero Waste which is factual, but my characters who are promoting it are fictional. 'Environmental Annie and the Winds Tackle Zero Waste
My book is about Zero Waste which is factual, but my characters who are promoting it are fictional. 'Environmental Annie and the Winds Tackle Zero Waste
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Your question is kind of confusing. Do you mean the environmental research details are nonfiction and the characters and story are fiction? In other words, you made up the people and story but the environmental details are facts? Please clarify.
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I see you answered while I was typing my question. You might try contacting small literary presses who market primarily to schools.
Linnea
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Anytime you make up something, it becomes fiction. (Changing names and locations, however, is allowed -- for example, in a memoir.)
I don't know --- are your intentions anything like the Magic Schoolbus series (books and TV)? In that, an imaginary classroom was created in order to teach children about science. I'd call that non-fiction.
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Fiction, definitely fiction.
If there's a villain in it, you'll want to pop over to some of the villain motivation threads to help avoid "Captain Planet Syndrome." One of the problems that show suffered from, sometimes to the point of being laughable, was villains who wanted to pollute the world for no discernable reason. Not that such a book needs a villain, and it sounds from the title that it doesn't have such a villain, but I just wanted to mention that one.
If there's a villain in it, you'll want to pop over to some of the villain motivation threads to help avoid "Captain Planet Syndrome." One of the problems that show suffered from, sometimes to the point of being laughable, was villains who wanted to pollute the world for no discernable reason. Not that such a book needs a villain, and it sounds from the title that it doesn't have such a villain, but I just wanted to mention that one.
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Just Google 'small literary presses' and you'll find boatloads of them. Do your research, though. Make sure they've been around awhile, have a look at the books they publish, check them out as thoroughly as you can before submitting.
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agentyquery.com is a fantastic resource. Powerful search capability to drill down to just those agents who deal with your genre.
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I just checked Scholastic and Amazon, and neither makes clear whether they consider Magic School bus is fiction or non-fiction (those categories seem uninteresting to Scholastic) but I'd say that if the main goal is that the science be completely accurate and presented in such a way that children can be taught (if the point is the science, not the story), the books are going to be sold to a publisher as non-fiction, not fiction.
Math textbooks contain invented story problems, but I wouldn't call them fiction because of that.
ETA: The specific genre you're looking for is probably "educational."
Math textbooks contain invented story problems, but I wouldn't call them fiction because of that.
ETA: The specific genre you're looking for is probably "educational."
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Fiction can be educational. Magic School Bus is fiction. I can't believe anyone would think otherwise. Have you ever seen the tv show or read one of the books?
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Educational is good. Maybe they're their own genre.
I worked at Scholastic. I don't really think they consider Magic School Bus "non-fiction" at all. Children's books, definitely.
I worked at Scholastic. I don't really think they consider Magic School Bus "non-fiction" at all. Children's books, definitely.
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If the point is where these books are going to be shelved, it might be that they end up in the Education section, rather than the Fiction section. Depends on (a) how good they are as stories and (b) how overt the environmental message is. If you've got lots of lengthy digressions on climate change (for example) with statistics and so on, then that's Education, even if it is dressed up in a story.
I'd say the best thing to do is go to a bookshop and look for books similar to yours. See where they're shelved and who published them.
I'd say the best thing to do is go to a bookshop and look for books similar to yours. See where they're shelved and who published them.
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The Library of Congress records for the Magic School Bus science chapter books characterize them as "Children's stories" and "{Topic}--Juvenile literature." (See the record for Twister Trouble for instance.)
So I think that's a pretty definitive indication that they're fiction.
But you know what, berylanne? It doesn't really matter: I've never encountered a children's literature agent who specialized in only fiction or only non-fiction. And as Ray (maestrowork) says, the key thing is that they're educational.
So I think that's a pretty definitive indication that they're fiction.
But you know what, berylanne? It doesn't really matter: I've never encountered a children's literature agent who specialized in only fiction or only non-fiction. And as Ray (maestrowork) says, the key thing is that they're educational.
I can say I've personally read most of the Magic School Bus and Magic Treehouse books. They are fiction.
They are also considered chapter books. Not YA. My son read them in 1st-3rd grades.
Here is a link to an educational resource, Renaissance Learning, where you can find everything about specific children's books, including reading level, word count, and AR points.
They are also considered chapter books. Not YA. My son read them in 1st-3rd grades.
Here is a link to an educational resource, Renaissance Learning, where you can find everything about specific children's books, including reading level, word count, and AR points.
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