What Genre or Subgenre would you like in NYCM? |
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MattrickBT
NYC Midnight Addict Joined: 15 Jul 2017 Location: Oshawa Status: Offline Points: 1270 |
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The secret to writing good YA stories is you have to make sure you're telling the reader they're special and unique and important. They crave the validation.
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Hollyvict
NYC Midnight Addict Joined: 01 Nov 2013 Location: Los Angeles Status: Offline Points: 538 |
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It's probably considered a category in publishing, but I think there are certain elements that are required in order to satisfy reader expectations in a way that's similar to genre. Publishers that specialize in romance, for example, have lists of requirements that the novels have to meet. If suspense/thriller can coexist, surely historical fiction/western can coexist! @Suave: RE being penalized for adding elements of another genre -- I dunno, I've been penalized for adding other elements, but it depends upon the judges, and probably the assigned genre. Some judges think that certain genres are sacrosanct (I find horror judges are among the least willing to accept any divergence from the expected format), and others are more flexible. |
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Hollyvict
NYC Midnight Addict Joined: 01 Nov 2013 Location: Los Angeles Status: Offline Points: 538 |
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Yes, create a world where the "misfit" is simultaneously the most attractive/powerful/admired, and BOOM -- you've got a Twilight!
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MattrickBT
NYC Midnight Addict Joined: 15 Jul 2017 Location: Oshawa Status: Offline Points: 1270 |
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Don't forget the love triangle...it's really important to empower young women that having two hot dudes fighting over you (and have two hot dudes to choose from) is something to be admired. |
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You guys are right about the shallow features of YA. I've been trying to find an agent for a YA novel I've written (not self-published--I'm sitting on the manuscript), and I think it's all working against me, because I can't in good conscience create characters like that who are "special" and "instaloving" with love triangles and other ridiculousness.
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Another thing that drives me crazy is that your male lead MUST be named Lucas. Please, enough with the Lucases!! And Derek!! Good grief. You know, I should probably switch genres.
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roccapia
NYC Midnight Addict Joined: 21 Mar 2017 Location: Poulsbo, WA Status: Offline Points: 1061 |
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YA (and also MG - middle grade) aren't genres, but then, like others have mentioned, they have certain themes associated with them. For example, in YA, there usually has to be some romance and a defiance of authority, simply because that's what teenagers want to read about. Likewise, MG is geared toward younger kids, so the themes are about beginning to question things, maybe a hint of romance, but much tamer than YA. So they aren't genres like horror, drama, sci fi, etc., they're more like age brackets for the different genres.
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MF1: Dirty Fingers
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I've noticed in MG books that there's almost no character development. The characters are always sickeningly normal kids who go on adventures. Of course, there are some exceptions.
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GallifreyGirl
NYC Midnight Black Belt Joined: 30 Jan 2016 Location: Phoenix, AZ Status: Offline Points: 1653 |
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YA isn't that much better. I read the Maze Runner books with my nephews (I try to read one of their books every few months just so I can a) see what they're reading and b) talk about it with them) Let me tell you: the first book (which is the only one I made it through) is LITERALLY a bunch of amnesiacs running around trying to understand how they became amnesiacs. Do you know how boring amnesiacs are as characters? They LITERALLY have no backstory, no motivation, nothing. Imagine 100 Twilight Bellas in an enclosed field. That is that book. /endrant
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FFC20 R1 Born of the Sea
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Zblugg
NYC Midnight Black Belt Joined: 25 Apr 2017 Location: Cantley, Canada Status: Offline Points: 4256 |
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Memento (movie with Guy Pearce) would like to have a word with you about amnesiacs. If it remembers. Never mind. It forgot. (I agree, mind you, mostly. But Memento kicked ass.)
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MF100 R2G16 Marv and Mary Have Flower Issues
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