Reading My Crystal Ball: An Editor's Take on Current YA Trends

Trends in YA

One of the most fun - and challenging! - parts of editing books for children and young adults is trying to figure out what’s going to be popular in a few years. Book publishing isn’t instant; it takes at least a year (and often much longer!) for a finished manuscript to hit the shelf in book form. So, as editors, we have to not only take in what’s popular now, but look at what genres and trends are bubbling up and will pave the way for next year’s bestsellers. 

Here are three YA trends that I see making waves in my inbox right now. 

YA? Adult? Who Can Say?

We all know that a huge part of the readership of young adult novels are adults; that’s certainly not new. But what is new is that so many young adult books are explicitly riding the line between young adult and adult fiction. It’s not at all uncommon now to receive a submission that’s being shared with both children’s publishers and adult houses. Most often, these are romantasy submissions, with protagonists between 18 and 22 years old and at least some "spice" (sexual content) to them.

It’s been fascinating seeing how even two editors at the same publishing house can read the same submission and emerge with different conclusions as to if it should be published as YA or adult based on the content, the themes, and the spice level. With so many new imprints popping up to publish to this “crossover” (or “new adult”) space, this trend shows no signs of slowing down. 

Dystopian Is Back (No Surprise) 

Anyone who has access to the news will not be shocked to hear that—for some reason—dystopian novels have made a comeback in the YA space in recent years. Unlike vampires, which have really never gone away, dystopian YA novels felt like they fell out of favor in the last decade, only to come roaring back to life in 2024 and 2025. These dystopian novels have teeth, with real, biting commentary about society, gender, violence, and more, and they feel perfectly tuned to the times we live in. It makes sense that the themes of dystopian novels would resonate with today’s teens, and I’ve loved seeing how today’s dystopian novels bring a different spin to the genre than they did in the post-HUNGER GAMES era. 

High Concept in High Demand 

No matter what genre authors are writing in, a high concept pitch is a must in today’s submissions. Gone are the days of what I call, “teen boy and teen girl fall in love working on the school newspaper.” Now, be it contemporary, mystery, horror, or fantasy, a high concept hook is a must for every submission. Is the book similar to a popular movie or TV series? Is there a ticking clock that increases the stakes and tension? Does the book offer some twist on the genre it inhabits or even offer a mash up of genres?

“Packaging” a book has always been incredibly important, but now more than ever, YA novels have to have some sort of high concept book to rise to the top of the pile. 

Now that I've taken you through three trends in YA, remember that writing to trends can be a tricky business given the long lead time of book publishing and the shifting winds of interest. However, I encourage you to put on your "business hat," as I call it, and think about how your project can capitalize on what's hot right now. You got this!