July 30th wasn’t just the one-year anniversary of the release of I Loved You First by Reena Jacobs, it was also the reveal of the brand new cover (gorgeous!). Since I’d already cornered her for a copy of the book to review and New Adult/YA-Mature is one of my new fascinations, I had a chance to ask her what got her interested in the category.
I Loved You First was a deviation from my prior works. My daughter, Alex, is the one who pushed me toward a younger theme. You see, I deemed my earlier works as “Not appropriate for children,” and she wanted the opportunity to read something written by me.
Thing was, I had no experience with the young adult genre. I don’t even recall reading the genre during my teen years. I finally gave the genre a try, starting with The Hunger Games. Wow! I couldn’t believe a young adult book could be so exciting.
My daughter got her wish… I wanted to give YA a shot. Only thing… I was so out of touch with the age group, I didn’t know where to start.
What do teens think these days? How do they spend their free time? I know my teen days weren’t nearly exciting as what I’d read in the books. School, friend’s house, home. Rinse and repeat. I didn’t attend one single party. Definitely didn’t try drugs and didn’t drink outside my parents’ supervision.
Once I left high school, that’s when the party started. Those were the days. I still smile when I remember my late teens. I wanted to experience them again through books and in my writing, which is why the characters from I Loved You First ended up in college rather than high school.
I had a time finding a place for I Loved You First in the literary world. With the characters in college, it didn’t really seem to fit in the Young Adult genre. Despite the young “ADULT” label, YA is very high school. But I remember my after-high school years, and definitely didn’t feel like an adult. Shoving I Loved You First into the regular adult section just didn’t seem right.
I cannot tell you how happy I was to find a place for I Loved You First —New Adult. Bummer there are so few New Adult books on the shelves. Perhaps one day NA will have its own section in the book stores.
Anyone want to share a theory about the huge gap between YA and adult books? Though I see more and more of NA works today, why has it taken so long for the genre to really take off?
~Reena
Reena Jacobs is just a writer who loves to see her words in print. As an avid reader, she’s known to hoard books and begs her husband regularly for “just one more purchase.” Her home life is filled with days chasing her preschooler and nights harassing her husband. Between it all, she squeezes in time for writing and growling at the dog.
Connect with Reena:
Email: reenajacobs@reenajacobs.com
Website: http://www.reenajacobs.com
Blog: http://www.reenajacobs.com/blog
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4392112.Reena_Jacobs
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Reena-Jacobs/460417660477
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/ReenaJacobs
It’s giveaway time! Reena is keeping the anniversary party going. For the next 48 hours (starting at 12:01 a.m. Friday Eastern), you have a chance to enter to win a book from The Book Depository (up to $15 value) at four different blogs (just follow the Rafflecopter crumbs below). For one measly ol’ comment (see me put on my beggy face?) you have a chance to win a $25 Barnes & Noble gift certificate at the end of the tour on Sunday.
And as a little something you can enjoy right now, you can get I Loved You First at Smashwords for a song:
Promo Price: 99¢
Regular Price: $4.95
Coupon Code: XY82H
Expires: August 5, 2012
Also available at | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | Amazon |
(check out my review of I Loved You First below)
I don’t really have a theory about the gap between YA and Adult genre. I haven’t given it much of a thought. But according to what is being processed in my brain right now, I think Adult just comes out of YA. Like, for eg., in YA, you can’t exactly be sure of a happy-ever-after, and that’s completely believable, because, in the end of the day, the protagonists are just adolescents. They just have a happy-for-now sort of ending. However, when I read Adult books, I definitely want the guy and girl, or rather, man and woman, in this case, to get their happily-ever-after.
That makes a lot of sense, Sarika. I find a lot of individuals are looking for that happily ever after (HEA).
My theory is those in the new adult age (18-25ish) are too busy enjoying their newfound freedom to worry about reading. I know I was. By the time they’re back into reading, they’re old enough to enjoy some of the more adult stuff. Still, I think there’s a huge audience for the NA genre. The teens who’ve get found their freedom and folks like me who love to revisit the past vicariously.
I think there is a gap between Young Adult and Adult because the time between being a teenager and full adult- people in their twenties- is so varied. In Young Adult, you have to go to highschool. Maybe you’re thinking about your future, a romance, friends. It’s pretty standard for kids that age. In full adulthood, it’s most likely work and kids and marriage. In your twenties, that time between both you could be doing a lot of things. You could be thinking about kids and marriage. Or just getting through college. Or working full time. Or traveling. It can range so much. That’s why I think new adult is great because I remember in college, a whole two years ago, that I couldn’t find anything with people my age, in my situation. I don’t know. That’s why I think there’s such a gap.
Great point, Markella.
It is a kind of between age–the bridge between being a kid and becoming an adult. For me it seemed like EVERYTHING happened between high school and 25. In fact, it wasn’t until I was 25/26 when I had the revelation… I’m an adult now. Haha
I too LOVE New Adult:) There aren’t many titles available yet, although lots of self-published authors write New Adult – I hope publishers catch up soon.
I think the gap is there because it’s hard to market to New Adult – it’s mostly targeting college-age readers, and in college you have so much studying you don’t always have the time to read outside of classroom texts. Also, many girls jump that age-range in books and go directly to adult chick lit or mystery or romance books – maybe because in college you look forward to getting a job, being really independent with your own apartment, your own life outside of college, being a real grown up.
I think it’s a shame because the college years are so unique, they should be represented in literature.
Another good theory.
I know I was too busy during the NA years to worry about books.
I also can see readers looking for books which represent their future. I’m thinking NA could be a hit with the YA crowd for that same reason.
It really depends. In paranormal books this gap is REALLY visible but I don’t really see it in contemporaries usually.
I think it depends on the the reader if there is a gap. I think of YA as just another preference in taste and not something I think of as for a certain age group to read.
I think that the gap between adult and young adult books is because of the definition of ages. Young adults are teenagers and adults are people who are out of college and in the world. There is no in between because once we’re in college, we’re not really teenagers anymore, but we’re not experiencing the full responsibilities of adults yet. We’re practically stuck in limbo, leaning both ways because there’s no books to define us. Now, new adult books came along though, and it’s getting better!
It’s great to see readers want the gap filled. Sometimes that’s all it takes to help publishers take notice.
It’s not really a theory but I simply believe YA is more of genre for people who are looking for something fun to read. YA is the very definition of fiction, it’s often cliched, filled with cute boys, high school forever and always kind of romance and saving the world.
Adult novels tend to be more realistic. Readers of YA are looking for fun fiction, readers of Adult novels are looking for a good novel.
Very interesting take.
I have found YA to be a lot of fun, particularly the contemporary ones. I think it’s because the rules are different before the age of responsibility. There’s the opportunity to make those mistakes and not be held accountable in a way which will land you in jail. 
It gives the sense of innocence.
I think the big difference is, no one writes for college age people, it is either adults or teens. The New YA genre is starting to attract more of the college age people that don’t have anywhere else to fit in.
The big gap I think is in age difference. Youg Adult books are for the younger audience, while Adult books for.. well, adults
I read mostly YA books, even if I’m not a teen anymore. I just love that those book remind me of my earlier years. I don’t really like any horror or blood-filled books, so I read YA because of that reason too. And another gap is between the two genres that Adult book contain “mature” elements.
Ali ~ Hopefully we’ll see more and more of those books.
Veronika – I’m with you. Reading NA and YA is like taking a trip down memory lane.
I don’t have a theory but there is a large gap between YA and Adult. YA is centered around teenagers who are in high school, perhaps college. Where as Adult jumps straight into the thick of things with a 20-30+ protagonist who works, dates and that sort of thing. Until recently there’s been nothing inbetween – until New Adult, which focuses on the transition between being a teenager and adulthood.
I don’t really see why the gap between YA and Adult books is so big. I guess I just don’t read very many adult novels to know.
I think the biggest gap would be the sex life. I don’t like to read about sex in YA books because I DON’T think a sixteen-year-old should be doing it even though people do it with 15 or 14 these days. There aren’t many people who share my opinion on this topic but I don’t care.
I write erotica, but I’m like you when it comes to sex and young people. With YA and even NA, I like it clean. For YA, I like dealing with the emotional aspects that comes with building a relationship, but at the same time, I want kids to make wise decisions about sex (preferably abstinence). It’s what I teach my kids, and I want books my kids read to represent my values… and if not the values, at least realistic consequences.
When sex starts entering adult books, I classify them outside the NA realm.
There is definitely a HUGE gap between YA and adult books.Obviously the two are completely different genres but I think that nowadays the YA books are well promoted which makes them more attractive to readers.
New Adult / Mature YA is definitely my preference over YA or Adult, although I love than all. I’m in my 40′s but I still enjoy reading about being younger and falling in love for the first time. The YA books can be frustrating because they’re trying to be a good influence on the younger generation so they’re not always realistic. A kiss on the cheek is about all we get sometimes. I don’t think that should change because it’s important to influence our younger generation in positive ways. On the flip side, the adult books can get way too graphic. That’s why I prefer a college setting. You still have the innocence of the characters, but the writer can be more realistic with the physical aspects of the relationship. I really have no idea why there aren’t more books in this genre. Please write more
All great answers!
Dee ~ I’m finding these days more YA books deal with the sexual aspects of a relationship. The details are behind closed doors though. It’s starting to mirror the media where “everyone’s doing it,” which they’re not.