I've also noticed instances of poor character development, but I think I've seen an equal amount of extraordinary character development in the same genre (and I read a lot of YA). I think the problem might be more that certain sub-genres, like paranormal romance for example, are so popular that pretty much anything is getting published. Does anyone have any thoughts about the sudden increase in 1st person present tense in YA? It seems to be everywhere now, when not too long ago it was almost taboo and never published.