Middle Grade & Young Adult

Young Adult Books 101

What is a Young Adult Book?

Fiction and nonfiction for ages 12 and up or 14 and up. Books tend to be 150 pages or longer. Manuscripts are generally 40,000 words and higher.
Fiction can be any genre. Some of the most popular are fantasy, paranormal, dystopian, cyber punk,

Understanding the “New Adult Fiction” Category

What is new adult fiction?

New adult fiction bridges the gap between young adult and adult books. It typically features protagonists between the ages of 18 and 26. The label was first used in 2009 when St. Martin’s Press hosted a contest looking for stories that could

Writing for the Gifted Education Market

In recent years, gifted education has become a big field. Every year the National Association for Gifted Children hosts a meeting attended by thousands of teachers, parents, and administrators. There are many opportunities to publish in the field of gifted education, ranging from newsletters to books. Before hitting the keyboard

VIDEO: Alice Kuipers Talks About How Writing Picture Books Makes Her a Better Novelist

Alice Kuipers, the award-winning young adult author, sat down with Laura Backes to chat about her transition to picture book writer, and how writing picture books helps authors learn the craft for every age.

Check out all of Alice Kuipers’ books at alicekuipers.com.

The Basics of Young Adult Fantasy

Though its popularity waxes and wanes, as does any genre fiction, YA fantasy continues to delight and enchant readers of all ages. In fact, many adults admit to reading YA fantasy. The cross-over appeal of the books works in the other direction as well as younger children dip their “fantasy

Author Tamera Will Wissinger Talks About Gone Fishing, A Novel in Verse

interview by Anne Tews Schwab

Novels in verse are most often written for young adult readers and typically tackle difficult subjects. But Gone Fishing: A Novel in Verse by Tamera Will Wissinger is a novel in verse written for a different audience (the middle grade crowd) and covers a

Five Ways to Write Romance into New Adult Fiction

In this exclusive Insider bonus video, Deborah Halverson, author of Writing New Adult Fiction, gives five pointers for adding romance (and sex!) to your fiction for readers age 18-25.

To see Laura’s entire interview with Deborah Halverson, go to writeforkids.org.

Drawing the Line in Edgy YA

Profanity. Violence. Drugs. Sex. It seems as if nothing is off limits in Young Adult fiction today. But what if you don’t want to write a novel packed with swear words or sexual content? Is there a place in the market for books about nice kids who aren’t living on

5 Steps to Building a World in Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Building worlds in science fiction and fantasy involves more than simply deciding upon the name of that world. It means creating a language, a culture, rules and mores, dress and styles, a past or history.

Does that sound intimidating? It needn’t be.

Just as in eating an

Interview with Middle Grade Author Tom Angleberger

Editor’s Note: Beginning in March 2012 with The Strange Case of the Origami Yoda, and continuing through Darth Paper Strikes Back; The Secret of the Fortune Wookie; Fake Mustache: Or, How Jodie O’Rodeo and Her Wonder Horse (and Some Nerdy Kid) Saved the U.S. Presidential Election from a Mad

Writing a YA Fantasy Series: an Interview with Karyn Henley

From the Harry Potter books to Christopher Paolini’s Eragon novels, fantasy series have long been teen favorites. I asked author Karyn Henley, author of the Angelaeon Circle novels, to give you some tips about writing in this popular genre.

The Angelaeon novels center on a young priestess who is drawn

Mastering Fantasy

She was a liar. No one in middle school believed her stories and she knew it, yet she kept lying to them. It wasn’t until she met the unicorn in the supply closet that she discovered she had to find a way to make them believe she’d seen the creature,

Ask the Author: Dian Curtis Regan

One of the most versatile and accomplished writers in children’s literature shares her advice!

Over the years, we’ve given readers, aspiring authors and lovers of children’s literature the opportunity to interact directly with some of their favorite writers. The result: a number of revealing conversations with some remarkable authors. We’re proud to present a few of the best

Up & Coming YA Authors on How They Get Story Ideas

Probably the question published authors hear most often is “Where do you get your ideas?” For a writer, ideas are a precious commodity. Some writers seem to have an endless supply of them, while others – myself included – find them to be few and far between. I’m as

VIDEO – Helen Landalf’s Tips for Writing & Marketing Young Adult Books

Join in as Laura and Helen chat about the Young Adult market, and how writers can gain a foothold:

What’s Hot In Young Adult Literature Right Now

It’s a great time to be a writer of books for Young Adults. According to a podcast on the YA book market by Michael Cader of Publisher’s Marketplace and Publisher’s Lunch, YA is the “bright spot in book publishing.” Not only are teens reading more than ever, but crossover titles

Middle Grade Books 101

What is a Book for Middle Graders?

Novels or nonfiction for ages 8-12 or 10-14. Lengths can vary from 84-200 pages (novels are usually over 100 pages long), or 20,000-40,000 words. Illustrated nonfiction may have fewer words.

Characters are children ages 9-14 (average character in middle grade

Middle Grade – Where We Are, Where We’re Going

I am delighted to be your CBI Middle Grade expert guide, with emphasis on the word guide. In fact, let’s call ourselves fellow flaneurs, strolling about in children’s literature.

As we are fellow pilgrims, it seems only fair to clarify my bias that a good story will

Kirby Larson’s Middle Grade Reading & Resource Master List

Kirby Larson’s highly selective suggested reading list*:

Al Capone Does My Shirts, Gennifer Choldenko

Alabama Moon, Watt Key

Alchemy and Meggy Swann, Karen Cushman

Amelia Lost, Candace Fleming

The Bamboozlers, Michael de Guzman

Belle Prater’s Boy, Ruth White

Chicken Boy, Frances O’Roarke Dowell

Word Counts, Page Counts & Age Groups: Middle Grade & YA

Middle Grade for Ages 8-12, fiction and nonfiction: Books are 84-150 pages long on average, with manuscripts of about 20,000-35,000 words. No illustrations in fiction; nonfiction may have photographs or black-and-white drawings. No restrictions on writing style, but characters in fiction tend to be 10-13 years old.

Upper Middle

Get a Clue! How to Write Middle Grade Mysteries

Writing a mystery is incredibly challenging and exciting at the same time. There’s no guaranteed formula to take you from the first clue to a solved case. Every great mystery novel includes a puzzle that readers solve along with the sleuth. So, how do you write mysteries for children?

PODCAST – Maggie Stiefvater’s Writing & Promotion Tips

The wildly popular author of Shiver, Linger and Forever shares some wonderful advice just for Insiders!

PODCAST – Writing YA for Dummies

Listen to Deborah Halverson, an award-winning young adult author and former Harcourt editor, talk about her newest book Writing Young Adult Fiction for Dummies. In this podcast, Deborah gives tips for writing teen dialogue and knowing if your book has the all-important “hook” that editors want. Check out

Ask The Author: Lois Lowry

Legendary author Lois Lowry discusses her writing process, and the one change she would make to The Giver.

PODCAST – Victoria Hanley on Writing YA Fantasy

In this podcast, Laura interviews popular Young Adult author Victoria Hanley about the ins and outs of writing YA fantasy novels.

The Novel Reimagined

How do you write a novel? When we think of a novel, we visualize the typical format: a chapter story that describes a linear chain of events, leading to a resolution at the end. Most novels follow this setup. But there are other ways to tell a story.

PODCAST – Middle Grade Author Donna Gephart on Reaching Young Readers

Laura chats with award-winning author Donna Gephart about writing humorous middle grade fiction, tapping into the concerns of that age group, and reaching her market. Visit www.donnagephart.com to see the trailer for her newest novel, How to Survive Middle School.

Listen now:

[audio:http://cbiclubhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Interview-Donna-Gephart.mp3]

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Our Young Adult Expert Audrey is Back With More Insight

Editor’s note: Audrey is a 13-year-old student from California who is currently working on her own novel between school, sports and choir. She’s also a Contributing Editor to Write4Kids, focusing on middle grade and young adult literature. If you have writing-related questions for Audrey, or want to suggest a topic

PODCAST: Author Ronica Stromberg on Writing for Tweens, the Inspirational Market, Blogging and More.

Laura chats with Ronica Stromberg, author of the Kirsten Hart series for tweens (from Royal Fireworks Press, http://www.rfwp.com/series96.htm), about writing for the inspirational market and promoting herself through school visits and her blog.

Learn more about Ronica and her work at http://www.ronicastromberg.wordpress.com

Listen now:

[audio:http://cbiclubhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Interview-Ronica-Stromberg.mp3]

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