But it hasn't been talked about by me yet, and certainly not in reference to my book, Fixed on You (out June 24th, shameless plug), so now you get another epistle.
Let me begin by posting a few definitions from some well-known sources.
“The Transition from child to adult doesn’t happen overnight--just ask as anyone who is or has been (or is a parent to) a teenager. But the transition from teen to adult doesn’t happen overnight either. There’s a period of time where adulthood feels like a new pair of shoes. The expectations of independence and self-sufficiency are still new, still being broken in. New Adults are the people who have just begun to walk in those shoes; New Adult fiction is about their blisters and aches.” -from Kristan Hoffman, winner of St. Martin's Press New Adult Contest
"Protagonists generally fall between the ages of eighteen and twenty-six, though exceptions may apply. NA characters are often portrayed experiencing: college, living away from home for the first time, military deployment, apprenticeships, a first steady job, a first serious relationship, etc." -NA Alley: What is New Adult
"New Adult (NA) fiction is a developing genre of fiction with protagonists in the 18-25 age bracket. The term was first coined by St. Martin's Press in 2009 when they held a special call for “…fiction similar to YA that can be published and marketed as adult—a sort of an ‘older YA’ or ‘new adult’.” New Adult fiction tends to focus on issues such as leaving home, developing sexuality, and negotiating education and career choices." -Wikipedia
Here's the thing. I started writing Fixed on You last fall with no thought to New Adult or regular Adult or any of that. I simply had these characters that were floating around in my head and I wanted to put them down on paper. When I was finished, one of my critique partners said, "Oh, you wrote a New Adult book!" And another of my critique partners said, "This is not New Adult. No way."
Let's take a look and see what the difference in opinion may be. My main character, Alayna Withers begins the book on the eve of her MBA graduation. She's twenty-six years old. She's swamped with student loans. She's beginning her career. She has never had a successful relationship with a man. She's cut off from her family and hence alone for the first time.
So far, we have a New Adult book, right? Fresh out of school, dealing with new adult issues. Alayna's possibly a little two old for the age range, but total new adult.
Except the main man in the book is not a new adult at all. He's Hudson Pierce, a twenty-nine year old business genius in the likes of Christian Gray, Gideon Cross, and Ethan Blackstone. And the issues that Alayna and Hudson deal with are not related to any of the new adult elements in Alayna's life.
Where does that leave me classifying this book? New Adult or Adult? I've seen Naked by Raine Miller and Fifty Shades of Gray by E.L. James and Bared to You by Sylvia Day all classified as New Adult in one place or another. Take a look at the greatest New Adult Books lists on Goodreads and you'll find them all there.If you are one of those people who considers these books New Adult, then I think you'll put Fixed on You there too.
Truthfully, I wouldn't care about this except that so many things you have to fill out as an author require you to label your book. You have to put keywords in Amazon, you have to describe your book on Goodreads and to your blog tour host. So I have to call my book something!
Therefore I'm calling it New Adult Crossover/Adult Romance. Because that's as good as I can get. It has elements of New Adult, but it has an Adult theme. How's that for compromise?
And since you sat through all that which was basically me rationalizing anything I ever say about what category Fixed on You fits in, here's a giveaway! It's actually a 2 weeks until release giveaway, but right now I'm so excited about the impending birth of my book that I'll celebrate anything. Enter and pass it on!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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