Where does my book fit?

What's the main story, the element that makes the novel? Is it the romance? Or the time travel? Or something else? That's your genre. It might be romance with fantasy elements, or it might be fantasy with romantic elements, depending on which is stronger. Of course, it doesn't really sound much like fantasy, just based on what you've said. Time travel tends to be sci-fi, but there may be other elements you haven't mentioned, as well. Not sure what other genres this might be.

I don't write YA, but I believe the characters do need to be teens for it to qualify. Could you just de-age the characters a little, make them younger? If not, it will probably have to be adult fiction.

How about this: does the romance take up more pages (which is "Fantastic Romance" if the plot is only to drive the romance, or "Romantic Fantasy" if it serves another purpose) or does the quest to save the world (which would be fine to just say "Fantasy"--no need to get insane deciding high or low, mythic or dark, etc)?

There are also a million sub-genres, but the only reason to go there is if you want to. You might fit into historical fantasy or even one like portal fantasy (depending on how she goes back in time). DO NOT stress over a subgenre though. No agent is going to freak out if you don't tell them a sub-genre.

I don't think 20 is too old. The YA genre isn't just about being a teenager, the subject must appeal to young adults as well.

Age matters big time in YA from my understanding because it's about how teenagers view the world. If the characters aren't teenagers then the story isn't about a teenage view of the situation and that's why it's not YA even if a teenager might also enjoy the story.

As to genre, is the romance just one among many things that happens, as in character falls in love and character saves the world and travels back through time and each of these are sort of their own adventures (which would point toward fantasy with a romantic subplot), or is the romance the center of the story with the time travel or saving the world being the way the lovers meet, what keeps them together or draws them closer to each other, and what results from their love (this would point toward romance)? I'm not sure there's any definitive way for someone who hasn't read your manuscript to tell you what it is, but these might be things to think about.

Hi! So, this may be the wrong spot to ask this, but as my question is pretty much the exact inverse of Delvianna01's I figured I'd ask.

The question specifically is this: Does a (fantasy) novel which deals heavily with arguably adult themes such as class prejudice, the value of human life, and the universal fear of mortality automatically fall under YA simply because the protagonist happens to be seventeen? I'm talking about a rather dark and, quite frankly, gory piece of work here. Is the age of the protagonist the only factor in defining the line between YA and adult fantasy?

No, you can have an adult fantasy with a 17 y.o. MC.

According to agent Kristin Nelson, the defining characteristic of YA fiction is when the protagonist begins the story as a child/teenager and by the end of the story has passed irrevocably into adulthood. There's no going back to being a child again. This journey is not a reference to age so much as it is the maturing effect the events of the story have on the protagonist.

Write your story the way you envision it. Worry about how to market it later.

Thanks you guys. I have very little experience with YA, and have been...I don't want to say "worried", but definitely curious if I've been writing something I didn't intend to. It's just sort of a control issue. Your advice has been most helpful.

BethS said:

Write your story the way you envision it. Worry about how to market it later.

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I second this.

I was told a YA protagonist could be aged up to about 21 by the end of a series, but probably not older than that.

The driving desire in a romance is his or her desire for him or her. If that is not what drives the plot, then it's not a romance. Fantasy and sci-fi is setting. It's not what drives the plot. You can have a romance in any setting, sci-fi, fantasy, old west, etc.

If the desire that drives the story is to save the world, then it's not a romance. That can be a secondary desire, but the driving force of the story must be for the main character to get the other.

I haven't read any YA with a 20-year-old, personally.

Make her 18.

And in the past, into where she is going, girls prob. were married and had their first child by 15.

YA readers can understand and accept this.

The protagonist at the beginning of the series needs to be a teen. There is absolutely no getting around that. But at the same time you can have dark mature themes in YA, just as you can in adult, V Rose.

But just because you have a teen protag doesn't mean that your book is YA. The best way to find out if your book is YA? Read some YA.

jaksen: indeed. My friend wrote the WONDROUS STRANGE series which is set in contemporary NY. The main character is 17, has left school to pursue an acting career. She's living on her own, and there is nothing about highschool in the book at all. It's still YA. My book features two 16 yearolds and one 17 yearold. It's set in 1900 London, and as such they have full time jobs and while their thoughts have all the insecurities of a teen, and their story arc sees them "growing up", they are still treated as adults in their world.

YA is more than just age, it is tone. And tone you can only truly understand by, you know, actually reading the genre. But yes, your main character must be a teen.