Trends in Young Adult Fiction

Like all fiction, there are very distinct trends in YA, and even if you aren’t interested in “writing to” any particular trend, it’s important to know what’s trending at any given time. So here’s a breakdown of what’s currently hot in YA fiction:

1) DystopiaMockingjay Young Adult bookn — Right now, dystopian is probably the hottest trend in YA, partly fueled by the massive success of series like Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games trilogy and James Dashner’s THE MAZE RUNNER and SCORCH TRIALS.  In the past few months, several  dystopians have gotten  a lot of attention–particularly Ally Condie’s debut, MATCHED, and Lauren Oliver’s sophomore effort, DELIRIUM (both of which I read and really enjoyed–and both of which really reminded me of Lois Lowry’s classic, THE GIVER), and even Catherine Fisher’s dystopian/fantasy/steampunk mash-up, INCARCERON .  There are also several  2011 titles following the trend–Veronica Roth’s DIVERGENT, Julia Karr’s XVI, Elana Johnson’s POSSESSED, and Jeff Hirsch’s THE ELEVENTH PLAGUE, just to name a few.  Expect this trend to continue for quite a while, as many of these books have been optioned to film.

2) Angels — After the huge successes of Becca Fitzpatrick’s HUSH, HUSH and Lauren Kate’s FALLEN
(plus the sequels to both, CRESCENDO and TORMENT), it’s safe to say that angels are now trending heavily in YA.  Titles like Alexandra Adornetto’s HALO have continued the trend, as well as Cynthia Hand’s recent debut, UNEARTHLY, and upcoming titles like Jocelyn Davies’ A BEAUTIFUL DARK.

3)  Vampires — Yep, still trending, though definitely on the decline.  Still, I don’t think vampires will ever die (pun intended).  I probably don’t need to mention the TWILIGHT saga, or even Richelle Mead’s VAMPIRE ACADEMY series.  There’s also some more “quiet” series, like Claudia Gray’s EVERNIGHT series, and Melissa De La Cruz’s BLUE BLOODS series.  There will be more in 2011, I promise.

4)  Werewolves — To go along with the vampires, of course.  In addition to TWILIGHT’s wolf pack and Maggie Stiefvater’s excellent Wolves of Mercy Falls series (SHIVER, LINGER, and the upcoming finale, FOREVER), there have been several notable recent releases, including Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ RAISED BY WOLVES
(I loved this one–great insight on the pack mentality!) and Andrea Cremer’s NIGHTSHADE.  A werewolf also played a big part in Kelley Armstrong’s DARKEST POWERS series.  I don’t think we’ve seen the end of this trend yet–we’ve got the RAISED BY WOLVES sequel to look forward to this year, plus a 2011 debut that I won’t name because I don’t want to give away what’s kind of a plot “secret” at first!

Some books, like Kiersten White’s PARANORMALCY, manage to combine pretty much all of the above trends into one unique tale!

I can’t quite put my finger on any “trends” within contemporary realistic YA, but I almost want to say there’s a slight trend in “unsympathetic narrators” (aka “mean girls”) who are skillfully *made* sympathetic through the course of the story–books like Lauren Oliver’s wonderful BEFORE I FALL, or Courtney Summers’ SOME GIRLS ARE and CRACKED UP TO BE.  I’m also noticing a recent trend in books set in France/Europe, and I think this one’s going to pick up speed fast, partly based on the huge success of Stephanie Perkins’ fabulously wonderful debut, ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS (if you haven’t read it yet, RUN to your nearest bookstore!!).  Other titles in this trend include Maureen Johnson’s 13 LITTLE BLUE ENVELOPES
and the upcoming sequel, THE LAST LITTLE BLUE ENVELOPE, as well as the *fabulous* upcoming (paranormal) debut by Amy Plum, DIE FOR ME
(which will probably lead to a *new* trend, revenants!).

Any other trends in YA fiction that you’re noticing right now?  Any predictions for what we might see trending next?

7 Comments

  3. Jenna, do you have some to recommend? I have noticed more gay and lesbian characters in YA than you would have seen even five years ago, but I can’t think of any where the main character is gay or lesbian.
    One of the major characters in my new YA is gay and it is a fairly major plot line, although kind of an unknown one until fairly late in the book.

  4. To Jenna & Lori:

    I agree that the market needs to tap into more of the gay/lesbian theme, but perhaps without the major tendency to pigeonhole the literature into only that niche within book store sections.

    My novel which I’m hoping to publish as an ebook very soon entitled “Blue Car Racer” deals with that theme set in rural Montana where one of the major characters is gay, though is also somewhat of a sociopath in nature. It deals with bullying as a major theme, which I believe is also significant for YA literature.

    I haven’t seen much YA literature with gay themes, though I’m sure some exists. As with television shows though, I’m certain it will be on the rise very soon. It is extremely important that libraries and public schools lift some of their censorship, because a lot of struggling gay/lesbian/trans teens need something they can relate to on their level.

    And as always, it can be worked into any genre. Just have to keep our eyes open, I suppose. Since I’m gay myself, I’ll be working with such themes as much as I can. Thanks for raising an important point =)

  5. Gay/Lesbian Themes can really go in either direction. I think that might be a reasonable prediction in trends for YA fiction and possibly some non-fiction.

    How their sexual identity might clash with their spiritual identity or at least one will curtail the other significantly. And whether this alone, completely separated from the social and cultural stigmas on being gay, this internal struggle has just about as negative effects on young people as say… schizophrenic disorders or other deeply rooted developmental problems and psychological unbalances and disorders.

    Maybe it can lead to it, maybe the disorders lead to the inability to cope with this internal (and external) struggle.

    I have gone through this struggle myself, and I have chosen to be heterosexual for personal reasons. But I still went through this very struggle that young adults, teens, and young children possibly too, go through when discerning their sexual and spiritual identities.

    This very well might be a big up-and-coming trend across all genres in children’s fiction demographics. Other commenters have touched on good points too. Anyway, everyone keep writing outside the trends of today, and who knows maybe you’ll spark a trend of tomorrow.

  6. Claire

    Peter, I’m a librarian in a major urban centre in Canada and I can tell you from personal experience that libraries, at least here, are very queer positive. I am a selector of teen materials and we make sure to include LGBTQ materials within our mix. My branch has a big queer materials display each year to coincide with Pride week, and our system has hosted many queer authors over the years. Give your public library a chance and it might surprise you! We librarians are a very inclusive bunch.

  7. Liz Berges

    GLBT Books:
    • Garden, Nancy. Annie On My Mind. New York : Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1982.
    This was the first LGBT novel for teens that had a happy ending, it would probably be more appropriate for the 8th grade students.
    • Hartinger, Brent. The Geography Club. New York : HarperTempest, 2003.
    About a group of kids that try to start a GSA .
    • Moore, Perry. Hero. New York : Hyperion, 2007
    About a superhero who is also gay.
    • Peters, Julie Anne. Luna. Boston : Little, Brown, 2004.
    One of the first, and certainly the best book about Trans teens.
    • Woodson, Jacqueline. After Tupac & D Foster. New York : Putnam, 2008.
    • Kluger, Steve. My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins, & Fenway Park. New York : Dial, 2008
    • Harmon, Michael. The Last Exit to Normal. New York : Knopf, 2008
    • Sanchez, Alex. The God Box. New York : Simon & Schuster, 2007
    • Lockhart, E. Dramarama. New York : Hyperion, 2007
    • Hartinger, Brent. Split Screen: Attack of the Soul-Sucking Brain Zombies / Bride of the Soul-Sucking Brain Zombies. New York : HarperTeen, 2007.
    • Garden, Nancy. Hear Us Out: Lesbian and Gay Stories of Struggle, Progress, and Hope, 1950 to the Present. New York : Farrar Straus Giroux, 2007
    • Peters, Julie Anne. Between Mom and Jo. Boston : Little, Brown, 2006.
    • Levithan, David. Wide Awake. New York : Knopf, 2006
    • Hartinger, Brent. Grand & Humble. New York : Harper Teen, 2006
    • Papademetriou, Lisa and Christopher Tebbetts. M or F? New York : Razorbill/Penguin, 2005.
    • Peters, Julie Anne. Far from Xanadu. Boston : Little, Brown, 2005.
    • Howe, James. Totally Joe. New York : Atheneum, 2005
    • Hartinger, Brent. Order of the Poison Oak. New York : HarperTempest, 2005.
    • Sanchez, Alex. So Hard to Say. New York : Simon & Schuster, 2004.
    • Peters, Julie Anne. Keeping You a Secret. Boston : Little, Brown, 2003
    • Levithan, David. Boy Meets Boy. New York : Knopf, 2003
    • Howe, James. The Misfits. New York : Simon & Schuster, 2001
    • Appelt, Kathi. Kissing Tennessee, and Other Stories from the Stardust Dance. New York : Harcourt, 2000.
    • Garden, Nancy. The Year They Burned the Books. New York : Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1999.
    • Bauer, Marion Dane, ed. Am I Blue? Coming Out from the Silence. New York : HarperCollins, 1994
    • GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Queer and Questioning Teens
    by Kelly Huegel (Free Spirit Publishing)
    • What if Someone I Know Is Gay? Answers to Questions about Gay and Lesbian People, by Eric Marcus (Price Stern Sloan)
    • Pedro and Me : Friendship, Loss, and What I Learned, a graphic novel by Judd Winick (Henry Holt)
    • Queer 13 : Lesbian and Gay Writers Recall Seventh Grade, edited by Clifford Chase (Morrow)
    • A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend by Emily Horner (Penguin)
    • Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Leviathan (Dutton)

Comments are closed.