Young adult novels heating up the charts

Publishers, stores embracing trend

November 16, 2011|By Meredith Goldstein, Globe Staff

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Cambridge writer M.T. Anderson, author of the successful Candlewick series “The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing,’’ says that while adults were interested in his books before “Twilight,’’ the publication of the vampire novel brought him - and other YA novelists - more attention from grown-up readers. He has been approached about his books by members of adult book clubs. In the early days of his career when he told people he wrote YA, they often assumed he was writing about the prom. Now, Anderson jokes, “They assume that you’re the one actually making money.’’

Anderson, 44, believes one of the myriad reasons his peers in Generation X started turning to YA is to escape their destinies. “We as a generation are having trouble coming to grips with being adults.’’ He also believes that in a post-“Twilight’’ world, some authors who would have sold their books as an adult novel with young characters are now pitching it as young adult because that’s where the money is.

“I honestly think that people will look back on this as a historic literary moment,’’ Anderson said.

Lauren MacLeod of the Strothman Agency, who is followed by more than 10,000 young adult novel fans on Twitter (she’s @BostonBookGirl), said that the goal of the YA agent now is to find the book that defies easy characterization, the YA book that’s actually for grown-ups. She has her fingers crossed about her client Jodi Meadows’s romantic read “Incarnate,’’ which comes out in January.

Reviews have already been posted on Goodreads.com by members whose pictures show they are, in many cases, middle-aged women. To those adults who might give the book that magic YA crossover status, the ones who are discussing “Incarnate’’ and its merits, it’s not about borrowing from a genre; it’s about finding a good story.

After all, that’s what Meyer was trying to do with “Twilight.’’

“She never set out to write a YA novel,’’ Tingley said of Meyer, who was 29 when she wrote “Twilight.’’ “She wrote for herself.’’

Meredith Goldstein can be reached at mgoldstein@globe.com.