WHY YA BOOKS SUCK...THIS SHOULD BE FUN

A blog post titled Why YA Books Suck came up when I was searching for people’s criticisms of both the YA science fiction and fantasy section and the Adult science fiction and fantasy section.
Preorders are now available for my book Peace and Turmoil: www.amazon.com/Peace-Turmoil-...
Amazon UK Link: www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1...
My Patreon: www.patreon.com/user?u=15204080
Here's the link to the charity Save the Children. Feel free to share this link with others!
support.savethechildren.org/si...
Instagram: / ebnovels
2040 S Alma School Rd. Ste 1
Box 515
Chandler, AZ
85286
USA
If you're a self-published author, I can include your book in a book haul, but I can't promise I'll be able to review it

[@BookInvasion]

All YA books are all the same!! UGH With their pages, front and back covers, chapters, characters and new IDEAS!! So unoriginal I mean like REALLY! Words amirite!?

[@ebnovels]

Hahahaha, yeah, why doesn’t someone scrape symbols into cardboard instead?!? Geeze!!!

[@elbraddock7711]

Yeah, they're all just different combinations of 26 letters. How unoriginal 🙄

[@acrimsondaisy5513]

i mean the only thing "all x is bad" articles tell me is that the author hasn't read enough of x

[@ebnovels]

Hahaha, I would say I find that to be the case often as well 😏

[@DryBooks]

Captain Book you PUT IT INTO WORDS! Thank you!

[@madpoetsociety2917]

That's called belief perseverance. Believe it or not, some people honestly don't like YA.

[@scionsilverbeat8149]

I'm pretty sure their only REAL point was that they don't enjoy YA as a personal preference...of course they failed to mention that reason and mentioned everything else that had no solid argument within them.

[@DryBooks]

I wanna understand how District 12 could EVER be classified as suburban!?

[@Ivielynn123]

Totally sounds like the suburban life to me 😂😂

[@lhk7006]

Because there are trees in District 12. Duh. Just kidding.

[@elrilmoonweaver4723]

@@lhk7006 That made me lol xD

[@monferno71]

THANK YOU for pointing out the fact that the YA section is filled with female authors! I personally have nothing against it, I read books by people, but every time someone brings the "there's really no female authors" argument I just cannot

[@ebnovels]

Yeah, I’m actually kinda bummed it doesn’t get brought up more. Sometimes it seems like male authors don’t want to go YA because of all the negativity people have toward it :/

[@jenniferpeterson530]

This whole article touches on my biggest pet peeve in life. The whole mindset of “a few are bad = all are bad”. I see this A LOT, whether it be books, race, religion, gender....literally anything at all. This mindset is so unhealthy and unfair. I have read some YA books that are just plain garbage but I have also read just as many adult books that are also garbage. That doesn’t mean they all are, I have absolute favorites in both categories. Just because you find something wrong with a few doesn’t mean you assume they are all horrible. 🙄

[@ebnovels]

Agreed!!! I can list off people that share my religion, skin color, political views, etc who aren’t particularly nice. There are jerks in every shape and size, and there are bad books in every section. What a concept 😆😆😆

[@16SF]

I really don't understand the "YA is all the same" argument that never dies. First things first, it's not even a genre per se. It's the target audience. This is why you have YA romance, YA fantasy, YA mystery, YA contemporary etc. etc. And second, every single genre has its tropes and commercial trends. But you don't hear people say things like "well, thrillers are all the same because there is a murder and someone who investigates" or "fantasy is all the same cuz there is magic and an evil overlord". And last but not least, just let people read what they want. People loooove to invalidate and crap on popular booktubers for everything. From reading YA to wearing makeup or having rainbow shelves. Jesus. Leave them alone. 🙄 Fighting for more diversity is great but hating, shaming and being a passive-agressive elitist is not the way to go.

[@ebnovels]

Ok, I think I might need to make a video all about your comment-in a good way! I 100% agree, and I tried to make an effort this whole video to say “section” and not “genre” because of the very thing you pointed out. Gah, so many great points 💖💖💖

[@liahsuemi]

Nikki 😍😍😍

[@SorryIcantIhavebookclub]

Nikki to me the problem is the wrong advertising. Like loads of ya fantasy are sold as high fantasy. Sorry but I cannot put SJM and Brandon Sanderson in the same category...

[@optimisms]

The other thing about "every single genre has its tropes" is that....that's the whole point of genres? Like if I read a mystery and there wasn't something to solve, I would be very mad. If I read a science fiction and a large part of it didn't involve space or tech or aliens, I would be very mad. The things that are common throughout each genre are literally what makes it a genre (not talking about tropes cause those are different). If it didn't have that core thing that's spread across most of the books, like your examples of thrillers and fantasy, then they wouldn't be a thriller or a fantasy.

[@sammyruncorn4165]

I agree with all of you for the most part. The only thing I'd add and would admit the author of this article and the people complaining about YA books are right about is, that the protagonists (especially 16-year-old girls in supernatural-romance novels) often lack diverse characteristics/ are the same. Otherwise it's just what basically makes those books the type (fantasy, sci-fi, romance, thriller) they are. And one has to consider as well that it's us (the readers), who decide through purchases, which books get popular. At the end of the day selling books is and stays a business.

[@tabagithiga]

The older I get the less I read YA, but not because of any of these points. The reason I stray from YA these days is because I feel removed from the ages of the characters and so often times I find myself disagreeing with their decisions or I find them hard to relate to. That doesn't go for all YA, I have just been getting more enjoyment out of books written about adults and that's okay! The author of this article seems pretty juvenile based on how they are writing. I hope when they grow older they realize that everyone has a right to love what they read whether it's picture books or Tolstoy.

[@chirodocglc3383]

So I dont get anything that is said in that Blog. George R.R. Martin had a fantastic response to the diversity issue, both in the books and authors. He said, as you mentioned, that (Not an exact quote) "There does need to be more diversity in books, but authors write about what they know. As many authors up until this point tended to be western european decent, thats what we tend to talk about. There should definitely be more diversity within those books and that is getting better, but right now there is a push for new more diverse authors, from African, to S.E. Asian. Right now it is up to you, the readers, to keep that diversity fueled. If these new authors succeed, you will see a shift and an expanded fantasy section." I completely agree with this, money talks. If you want diversity then check out these new authors and support them if you like what they write. The good thing is, right now it is easier than ever to self-publish as you have (waiting for the soft cover but cant wait btw) and that should help more diversity as well. But, as for copying??? I find it funny that the blog writer says everything copied Hunger Games, and Twilight, but didnt even consider that maybe Twilight got a little of its inspiration from classics like The Vampyre (1819) or Dracula (1897). And Hunger Games was notoriously called out for copying Battle Royal. I'm sure that without even reading your book yet, that you took inspiration from other works that you've read, it doesnt make yours lesser, it just means that you've taken past experiences and implemented them into your unique tale. Now I'm not trying to put down any title, theyre all unique. They all took time and creativity to generate, but to say that YA sucks because your limited library at home, is just ignorant and ridiculous. I personally bounce all over the place from YA, to Epic Fantasy, to even having a little dirty secret of liking SOME Fantasy romance. But Elliot, you put it well in past videos, if you like something then awesome! if not, then dont spend your time degrading it or others for liking it. There's no purpose for a blog like this other than to stir up the internet. Which, it absolutely excelled at.

[@ebnovels]

Hahahaha, it certainly entertained me 😂 I actually was hoping to find valid criticisms with YA, but I couldn’t find any. I so often see people say it’s just for angsty teenage girls, it’s filled with books that aren’t “real” books, or that people need to grow up who read it, and none of that is actually diving into anything of substance.

[@JashanaC]

I just . . . These arguments can go for literally any genre -- any genre has a lot of books that have similar themes/tropes/plot outlines/characters. There are essentially no truly original ideas left in the world. The Hunger Games and Divergent are not the same books... wtf. When was this blog post posted?! 2012??? There has been much more diversity in recent years??? I'm so confused. Also, going off of the examples they gave, how the heck were Katniss & what's-her-face (Tris?) upper class suburbanites?? Okay I'm done. LoL.

[@ebnovels]

I believe it was 2015. So a few years ago, but...not that long ago 😆

[@bia3924]

I hate the "if you read YA you're a child" mentality. People are allowed to enjoy whatever they want, on r/books there are tons of people like this who think Harry Potter books are not "real" books that adults should be reading.

[@ebnovels]

I’ve seen the “real books” comment before, and it’s so ridiculous. It-imo-is just people trying to feel better about themselves by putting others down.

[@ebnovels]

Merphy is a different person than me and that’s a different video than this one.

[@ebnovels]

jhjkhgjhfgjg jgjyfhdhbfjhg yup, I actually do care to help remedy some of the misconceptions about both adult and ya. And one of her favorite series is YA... Also, I’d honestly prefer if you spoke to me about me and didn’t bring my friends into the conversation. I know you once told my friend she was the kind of person who would believe 2 + 2 = 5. I’m happy to converse with you, but you don’t always say the nicest things to my friends, and I think it best they not be brought up since they might not see your comments and can’t speak for themselves.

[@daynabailen4331]

I have really enjoyed a lot of YA novels. That being said, there are some legitimate criticisms to be made. 1. A lot of YA trilogies make less sense by the 3rd book. It seems to me like the authors don’t really have the ending figured out when they start writing the first book so the plot just ends up going in a weird direction. The Divergent series is a really good example of this. 2. Relationships are incredibly immature and unrealistic in YA books. I would expect this to be true for teenage relationships, but it is true for adult relationships too. I think YA authors can do a better job at showing realistic and healthy relationships. 3. I don’t think it is realistic that a group of 5 or less 14-17 year olds are going to dismantle an evil regime by themselves or that adults would expect them to.

[@serenity2010sh]

I agree, I think most YA writers books were meant to be stand-alone books but the publishers push them to stretch it out into a 3 book series, that explains the extra filler. So it's no wonder the 3rd book is unfinished because it was never written to be one.

[@avalonwatchingvideos2683]

... Goodness, that was a lot. I generally don't like YA fiction because it tends to employ tropes that I'm not the biggest fan of, but that just means that I need to read other things, not that YA books are inherently bad! It's all just a matter of personal taste. Just because I don't like orange juice, that doesn't mean no one else is allowed to drink it.

[@johnterpack3940]

Just wanted to say "thank you" for having a sane view on diversity. It baffles me that the people pushing for diversity don't realize *they* are the bigots. They are effectively saying they can only relate to characters who look like them. I grew up in the '70s and '80s watching "The Jeffersons", "Chico and the Man", "Sanford & Son", "Wonder Woman", "Electra Woman & Dyna Girl", and a slew of similar shows I can't remember. Not once did it ever occur to me that I shouldn't be able to relate to the folks I was watching. We just watched "Terminator: Dark Fate" this past weekend and I had absolutely no trouble at all relating to the three female leads. Seriously, what is wrong with people that they can only relate to characters who look like them?

[@EnbyReads]

This WAS fun! I agree that sometimes YA books can be a little too simplistic, and I can easily tire if I read them in a row. But same goes for slow epic sci fi haha. What books you like and dont like say more about you than the books. But I loved this video, thanks

[@ebnovels]

Thank you! I agree-every now and then I have to put YA down and pick up something different. But like you said, I then do that same thing to other stories 😳 it’s all a matter of preference :)

[@BookishBabbles]

Is it bad that if I see a word that I don’t understand I never google it? I kinda just use context clues to figure out what it could mean 😂

[@charafrench2020]

I do that! Though when I was like ten I read a book with the word diorama and read it as diarrhea, which was awkward until I had my mom clear it up. You would think I would have learned from that experience. But no I still mostly just use context clues, or dismiss it bc I can still understand the rest of the story.

[@ebnovels]

I don’t think that’s bad! I do that too 😆 Also, I remember doing that in standardized tests in school. It’s a skill imo 💖

[@BookishBabbles]

I’m just too lazy 😂

[@cappuccinocrafts2412]

That is actually an important skill that good readers use. It is not laziness. It is strategy that works.

[@amn384]

I agree with your point about diverse authors. You can't always tell just from glancing at a name. I'm half-Korean, but my entire name is German. I also have a lot of friends who are POC with names that could be mistaken for "white" names. 🤔

[@ebnovels]

I know, this person...probably shouldn’t have said that. I think they meant well, but that point was troublesome 🤦🏻‍♀️

[@JoanieDoeShadow]

Like honestly a Black American's name is probably going to "sound" white.

[@Devou5]

It’s all down to opinion. If someone doesn’t like YA (or any genre for the matter) then that’s fine. But don’t go hating on other people for enjoying it. I’ll never understand people like that

[@ebnovels]

I agree :) I don’t read certain sections and/or genres, but I don’t see the appeal in turning around and putting those other sections and genres down when I have little to no knowledge of them 🤷🏻‍♀️

[@nasteho6614]

Elliot Brooks I feel like another point people keep forgetting about YA is that a lot use it as a bridge to adult fantasy, YA was all I read pretty much when I was younger and grew out of it. I probably couldn’t read through any of them now as an adult but they were important part of my reading experience? Speaking of female authors in fantasy, have you heard of The Priory of the Orange Tree

[@raevaltera6076]

30 years of someone mispronuncing my name both first and last made me chose a pen that was easier to say/spell for my author brand. As a half Hispanic woman who reads and writes, I find her points hilarious.

[@ebnovels]

I’m by no means saying we’ve got all the diversity we need, but the obviously ethnic names part *sigh*

[@raevaltera6076]

Elliot Brooks right! my real name is ethnic but it’s not easily identifiable as Hispanic and my first and middle name are French. Parents don’t go, what super ethnic name can I give my child? 😂

[@MistbornTaylor]

I kind of understand the problem with authors living out their fantasies. A good example of this is how poorly bully characters are written. This usually happens in a contemporary or paranormal setting where normal high schools are the main focus. These bullies are portrayed unrealistically and clearly only there for the protagonist to “defeat” them. You can see this in To All the Boys I Loved Before, Labyrinth Lost (a random 15/16 year old chucks a dodgeball at a girl’s face who does that???), When Dimple Met Rishi (these bullies might as well be made of cardboard, if you want a prime example of generic, badly written bully characters read this book). Even books that I really like, like My So-Called Bollywood Life has a one dimensional bully character.

[@ebnovels]

Hmm, that’s really interesting. I had a hard time finding valid criticisms, but that’s one I’ve not seen before and is definitely really thought provoking. Thanks for mentioning that and giving examples :)

[@MistbornTaylor]

@@ebnovels I haven't seen the entire video but it seems to me that the author just doesn't know how to communicate their problems with YA. Or is just uninterested because this feels more like click bait.

[@BimBamHeidi]

I've always been of the impression that YA has more diversity than most adult books, to a point where it sometimes feels a bit forced while adult books (especially adult fantasy) are very lacking of diversity. Same with authors: there are more female authors and authors of color than there have ever been in adult fantasy. Things are changing right now, sure but still. I really don't get his point.

[@ebnovels]

I think that’s very true! I’ve definitely read books where the diversity felt forced, but as you’ve stated, there does seem to be more diversity in general with the YA section. Adult sff has some, but it feels less than YA to me as well. Not that it can’t be better, but it’s an interesting point to have try and prove the faults of YA 🤔

[@BedtimeBookworm]

So snarky, love it! I feel like some of the points the author made about stories being repeated are just referring to a genre 🤔 like teens waking up in a world where the government is trying to control them just sounds like dystopian to me. And teens falling in love with supernatural beings - uh yeah that’s called urban fantasy or paranormal romance 😂

[@ebnovels]

I know! 😂 basically they want all books to be their own genres. Which would be...quite interesting 🤔

[@Woogzie32]

Why is it that every time someone doesn’t like YA books they feel the need to go justify it by announcing to the world why it’s so horrible. Why can’t they... just not like it... and move along... like most people do when they don’t like certain kinds of books. The writer of the blog semi-attempted to be constructive about the flaws of YA and it didn’t work lol

[@ebnovels]

I’m actually still searching for constructive flaws, but most people are too high up on their high horse to actually say anything valid 🤦🏻‍♀️

[@luxindreams]

I've noticed recently that it seems fashionable to publicly make fun of things that teenage girls enjoy.

[@robbien19]

I feel like it is less that people knock off popular books, and more that once a popular book gains recognition people begin to recognize books with similar tropes. Paranormal romance was a thing long before twilight came around lol

[@ebnovels]

I know! It’s interesting how a whole genre can be deemed cheesy or unoriginal because one book in that genre became popular 😆

[@cakt1991]

The points about lack of diversity though 🙄 You hit the nail on the head discussing most of my thoughts. And really, I don’t know what books the author’s seen, because there are a lot of diverse books and authors in YA across the spectrum of sub genres, like Tomi Adeyemi, Ibi Zoboi, Maurene Goo, or Sandhya Menon. And the thing about the “stereotypically ethnic name” is probably the worst. I’ve only read a handful of her books, but Sherry Thomas is an author of color (an immigrant even!) who writes in YA and adult, yet I imagine this author completely ignoring her existence due to her Western sounding name.

[@ebnovels]

Yeah, I don’t know how they didn’t think through the comment about “obviously ethnic” names. Will Smith, Serena and Venus Williams, Denzel Washington...all last names this person apparently wouldn’t count 🙄

[@SheIsAnOpenBook]

Ohhh my gosh! The SARCASM is just On Point!! 😂😂😂😂 freaking loved hearing your reactions to the article!

[@skijumpnose]

I wish i never wrote that blog now

[@ebnovels]

Hahahahahaha 😂😂😂 Yeah, how dare you :P

[@RosetheBookDragon]

I get where the person is coming from. I'm not as big into YA books as I was a couple years ago and I've been growing out of it mostly. But it is not okay to show so much hate for it online. No one is forcing them to read YA and they should read only what they enjoy.

[@ebnovels]

I think they were almost accurate with certain points, but I personally found their points to be true of many age ranges and genres 🤔

[@balkisrincon]

I totally agree with you! And regarding the diversity in authors, well... it maybe a little true, but you have to consider where are you buying your books and in which language. I am latin and I also read in Spanish, and for example, there are lots of GREAT Spanic authors that are not well known in the US and I have to buy their books online... and as you say, the last name doesn’t always say anything about their origen.

[@Ironworthstriking]

Your diversity point was such a good one. As an 8-year-old, I didn't identify with Luke Skywalker because he was a white guy, it was because he was a young person living a dull, average life who wanted something more. We identify with him because we all want to be a part of something larger than ourselves. It has very little to do with physical attributes.

[@nikib4586]

gave me the "if you aren't white don't write, cuz there's enough white authors" vibes

[@elrilmoonweaver4723]

It's sad that we live in times when ethnic minorities feel the need to tell white people to stop writing so they can have success themselves. Why does race, sex, age, or sexuality need to matter in the publishing industry? If a story is good then publish and market THE STORY, not the author!

[@nikib4586]

@@elrilmoonweaver4723 I agree whole heartedly!

[@lasteelix7519]

I’ve never heard of this¿

[@elrilmoonweaver4723]

@Lolice uwu I have reread what I wrote and I stand by that point. It's sad that we live in times where .... instead of having equality between peoples ... we have people complaining that there should be LESS of something. THAT was my point. I live in country where we don't discriminate based on the way we look. However it's really hard to get published in Romania because it's a costly process and not many people can afford it.

[@terskatti4994]

science fiction is good genre just for the fact that you can still read some very original and weird shit that no one else imagined to write.

[@ebnovels]

Hahaha, that’s true 😆

[@tahiramenendez1467]

I'm half Cuban too! Also, please do more videos like this, I'm LIVING for them

[@dpier6]

The “obviously ethnic” name thing really got me 🙄😂 I mean, come on!

[@enescustef6154]

Honestly if I were to read children's stories and pick on the fact that the ideas are quite similar and that the words are not long enough that would only say something about me, not the genre. And I feel like the same applies to this person.

[@klebyell]

Yeah but childrens stories are designed for children

[@AmaraFranklin]

I have had a rough day and this was exactly what I needed! I have so many thoughts I don’t know where to begin... yes, there are a lot of similar books out there. This is not new. Pretty much all stories are a different version of some classic archetype. It is not a bad thing. Every story brings something new and different- who cares if a lot of books have to do with Vampires. Vampires are hot... as long as they don’t sparkle....

[@biancavictoria8746]

In my opinion, it's absolutely ridiculous to make such sweeping statements about YA, when YA isn't even a genre!! It's like saying "all adult books suck". Just let people enjoy things... lol

[@ebnovels]

Yes! I had to make an effort to call it a section and not a genre 😆

[@GEORGIOARCADE]

Well i personally think a lot Authors & their books get inspiration from other popular books. There's nothing wrong with that as long as the author offer a different span on it. Heck a lot people outside of books; do it. I have no problem with the twilight vampire type of stories. Then again we are all entitled to our opinion & this person that wrote this article was clearly sharing an opinion lol. I love YA books cuz they are easy to get into, the writing is well paced & the book size & characters aren't too much to handle. Not to mention the rough life stories. Great video & topic of conversation Elliot. Have a nice day!💜

[@ebnovels]

You too Georgio! I agree that YA-just like any other section-has elements about it that make it a valuable part of bookstores. If someone doesn’t want to read it, that’s fine, but that doesn’t mean they “suck” 😂 Well, at least in my opinion :)

[@magnumbeef]

While I tend to agree with the general premise of the article you're talking about, based on my (admittedly limited) experience with YA literature, I have to say that your response to the "lack of diversity in characters" point was spot-on. Some of the most relatable characters I've ever read have looked nothing like me and come from a place in life that is totally different from everything I've experienced. The key to relating to a character is not having a character that is practically identical to the reader! Obviously, it is important that the writer is able to craft a believable character with life experiences that make sense in the context of their world, but I think arguably the more important factor is the ability of the reader to empathize with people from different walks of life than themselves. Maybe it's just me, but I've learned more about myself from putting myself in the shoes of characters in fiction who are very different from me, because the juxtaposition between their experiences and mine highlights universal truths about the human condition that I may not have seen from my perspective at my current stage in life. It's one of the most powerful effects of literature and stories in general, and it always makes my heart sink a bit when I hear someone say they couldn't relate to a character, not because that character was poorly written, but because "they didn't look like me." So yeah. Sorry for the wall of text, but it was super encouraging to hear another reader say that for once. Maybe I'm not actually crazy for thinking that way! XD

[@LupeLopez920]

Hi Elliot, I recently discovered your channel (actually, thanks to Merphy) and I am really glad that you mentioned that you were half Cuban. The article you were reading made a good point in regards to diversity, though I don't think they had good examples to back up their statements. That being said, in the Booktube community, I feel like there is also a big lack of diverse Booktubers who have a high subscriber count. So when you said that you were part Latina, that made me feel a bit more connected to you!

[@leithskilling552]

First, you are hilariously funny 😆 Second, that article is just...wow.

[@heathermalmal9943]

I have found more recently that adult books are less diverse than ya. There has been a HUGE push for diversity in all aspects in ya and I just “personally” haven’t seen the same in adult books.

[@sophiasthoughts]

"Waking up, looking in the mirror and going . . . 💁‍♀️ . . . Look how white I am" 🤣🤣 oh my gosh Elle, you just kill me

[@daisytreloar9849]

Has anyone considered that most booktubers are YA-centric because, well, KZbin is YA-centric? As an entertainment platform, KZbin is predominantly used by Gen-Z so it makes complete sense that a majority of the most popular booktubers (but by no means all of them) cater to what their audience enjoy.

[@ebnovels]

That’s a good point :) I’d add too that it’s not just what their audience enjoys, but what the booktubers enjoy (which I think you were kinda implying anyway).

[@daisytreloar9849]

@@ebnovels Yep definitely. I just meant that they're often popular because what they love happily coincides with what KZbin's biggest audience love (and of course because they make great content, you included!)

[@ziziari8045]

Their point on being more diverse-I hear this a lot pertaining to authors including more ethnicities into their books. While this is a very good point and we should have diversity, I don't think we should be forcing authors to include more diversity just beacuse, it takes away from the story and often times that diverse character is simply thrown in the background. As for them saying they are Hispanic and can't relate to protagonists because they're white, they should keep in mind that more and more authors of color are writing and publishing their own books. I think they misunderstand how many Europeans also have trouble finding characters of the reader's own ethnicity (I.e. italian or Czech or other eastern European countries). It's everyone, not just one or two specific ethnicities that need more diversity. And the amount of times i walk down the aisles of my bookstore and spot Asian or other authors of color, and how do i find them? I look at the name or flip inside to author bio in the back of the book (whether inside the back cover or on the back cover, it is in every single book).

[@ebnovels]

Your point about other European peoples is very true! I think it’s sad that people think anyone of the same skin color must have the same life experiences, which is obviously true or EVERY skin color. Blanket statement are just so unhelpful :/

[@beLIEver31415]

Thank you so much for your response. IMO they have completely missed the point of the genre altogether. Same plot... exists in every genre... So many obnoxious blanket statements that just appear to come from no thought whatsoever. Thank you for pointing out the need for diversity is so important and that does include a male voice and lead character. Their last point was so funny to me. They just want to get rid of the genre completely and just make the plots more complex and verbiage so pretensions the that it would completely eliminate the stepping stone YA gives to some people who eventually want that kind of writing out of adult books or the simplicity that I love when I read YA and can smash a 600 page book in 2 days because it is just an easy read that I need sometimes between more complicated adult books. Also, simple plots don't mean they don't address very important society issues or make you think about the story long after... There is a time and place for every genre and just trashing this one without considering any pros or why some of those things do exist in the genre for a specific purpose is ridiculous. End rant :)

[@ebnovels]

It was a good rant! I think referring to YA as a potential stepping stone was a really nice way to put it. The age range for YA is 12-18, and as someone who teaches a wide range of students, the differences between those ages is huge. One of my students was incredibly smart, and he loved middle grade. He’s in high school now and I think Percy Jackson is still one of his favorite series. And that’s an age bracket BELOW young adult. But yet if he were to start reading YA books, those would somehow be less challenging? I have a lot more to say about all of this, which is why this will be a series! :D

[@brandonwestfall3241]

The people who complain about not being able to relate to a character because of that characters race or social class or gender absolutely flabbergast me. The character I relate to the most in Stormlight is Jasnah; and I am about as far as you can get from an attractive, powerful, scholarly, wizardly 30-something woman from a royal house.

[@ebnovels]

Hahaha, exactly! Weirdly I see this argument used by people entirely opposed to diversity, which...doesn’t even make sense. If you don’t need to look or come from a similar place as the character, then why would you care if someone, you know, looks different or comes from somewhere different? 🤦🏻‍♀️

[@EponineReads]

And it ticks me off that people say "no one cares about your life story" That's the problem. Empathy vs Apathy Isn't it more vital that we care about the real people who inspired the story than that original fictional character?

[@FableForager]

Part of me wonders if some of the "YA is all the same" comments are less about the books themselves (since I've noticed a lot of people that hate on YA haven't read half of the books they're dragging) and more about the publishers/how they're marketed. You touched on it a little bit in the beginning with The Hunger Games, The Maze Runner and Divergent. Since Hunger Games was successful publishers began to push other dystopian novels involving teens against the government. So someone that doesn't read YA that much would see those books all promoted next to each other and think "oh they're all the same". I noticed this a little bit a couple years ago with YA sci-fi. I kept seeing Zenith, Defy the Stars and Empress of a Thousand Skies being compared to each other and pushed at the same time. Which makes sense because they're the same genre, but because they were pushed at the same time, someone could grab all three, read them, and then say that YA is all the same because those books had similar themes (because....yeah they would they're all YA sci-fi). It's like....batch publishing. Where they see that YA readers are enjoying a certain thing like love triangles or paranormal romance so they publish and market a whole bunch of books with those tropes/that genre and they all come out around the same time. So to someone looking in they just see a list of recently published YA fantasy novels and a handful of them involve love triangles, a girl learning she has powers and a kingdom that could fall into war. Which again leads into the whole "YA is all the same" thought. I don't know, I could be way out in left field with my thoughts ^^' But I think it's an interesting topic to think about.

[@AdegaOutlaw]

Gosh, I forgot your good analysis. I’ve been busy getting my books to paper and forgot all about it. Sorry. Great info here. Ty.

[@krystololsen2318]

I really enjoy when authors bring personal experience into the story because because it allows us to explore different themes and see things in a new light and adds another dimension to their writing. It's not like their plagiarizing own life if it is their experience

[@Demancer2]

I have to agree that diversity in books is important but it should be done right. I wasn't sure how to input diversity at first in my fantasy novel AeonHeart, but I decided to make the Humans with eagle wings, Avians, a blend of African and Hispanic mix while Elves looked East Asian. Humans in general though are a blend of all types of races in our modern world. There is definitely a tone about bigotry in my book and how it could be overcome in my book. Hopefully I do it well because we obviously still need to overcome bigotry in the modern world.

[@MaryAmongStories]

these arguments make me laugh 😂 love your shirt btw 💙

[@robertelder5770]

Thanks for the video!! I love YA and I read Adult as well. I love having choices. I don’t agree at all what the person is saying. I am excited to purchase your book soon!!

[@ebnovels]

Thank you! And I like having choices too :D

[@milestrombley1466]

I agree there are too many romances in the YA demograph because the female authors prefer to share their fantasies to older women whether than make relatable stories for teenagers. And you don't have to be a woman to write YA novels! James Patterson and R.L Stine wrote memorable YA books for kids.

[@emmanemsl]

YA could definitely stand to be more diverse, both in terms of authors, and in terms of character representation, but I actually think it's one of the more diverse genres. I read a lot of romance, and the more popular stuff is written almost exclusively by and about white women. I've also noticed that a lot of the more popular adult SFF novels are written by white men. People who love the genre and are more familiar with it will know all the women and people of color who are writing within the genre, but anyone who is just getting into the genre or even someone who doesn't read SFF is most likely to have heard of Gaiman, Pratchett, Sanderson, and Tolkien, but probably not some of the more diverse authors. Also, that thing about the "obviously ethnic" names is so dumb and also potentially harmful. It's like saying that someone isn't black enough or asian enough, etc. to count. Yikes.

[@ebnovels]

Yes to everything you said! That’s why it was so amusing to me that they were using the lack of diversity as a point against YA. Diversity is great and I’m excited that we’re seeing more of it, but being frustrated that there isn’t enough should be an issue they have with most books. And yes to your last point-I laughed because it was so obvious the person didn’t realize they were actually being quite offensive.

[@Uhlbelk]

In the past we had a system to evaluate quality and publishers worked really hard to only publish things that were good and would make money. With modern technology and publishing they can publish as much crap as possible and let the "market" determine if it is good or not. So while writing has improved because like any knowledge we stand on the shoulders of those who have come before, we have a lot of comparatively bad stories out there now, and almost by definition a YA is defined as lower vocabulary level, lower complexity level. So there are multiple ways to look at it that points to YA being mostly junk. It is the equivalent of "pulp" literature 150 years ago.

[@85transamlover]

Love that peace and turmoil book right behind you

[@agnesmetanomski6730]

😂😂😂😂😂 your comments to that blog post made my day.... still rolling on the floor.......😂😂😂😂😂

[@mafigo5144]

I am not really reading YA books anymore, I feel I have grown out of their style over the years, mainly the tropes and the "typical writing style" - if I might call it that (things/phrases that come up in a lot of YA books, I obviously do not mean, that every author writes the same way). Yet this article made me roll my eyes numerous times. So many of these points had nothing to do with the YA genre, like the lack of new ideas is something I see in adult fantasy enough, and it is not necessary bad - and let's be honest, there is not much room for completely new ideas anyway. Moreover every author is influenced by something, usually a mixture of experience and the books that have been read by the author together with personal interest and such. Without inspiration I imagine it fairly hard to write a book. Anyway, interesting video and I really enjoyed your responses and I do argee with them.

[@sinistermephisto65]

Young suburban white teenage girls is a personality type not actually about their class.

[@colinbowser7806]

The first series that I ever read was Ranger's Apprentice as a kid and I still enjoy it today as an adult.

[@ShalomDove]

“Not obviously ethnic enough”? *brain starts cataloging every black American I’ve ever heard of with the surname “white”, “Smith”, “Jackson “ or “James.” Heck, “William Smith “ and “Morgan Freeman” are two of the whitest names ever.

[@GraemeBell9864]

I expected, at the end' when you were getting steamed up for the glasses to come off, you to spin around and KAPOW! Wonder Woman!

[@gorgonzolastan]

The Southern Vampire Mysteries series that True Blood was based on was released before Twilight, but I remember thinking when True Blood first aired on HBO "wow this is so derivative of Twilight" So I think it's all sort of a self-reinforcing cluster. Themes and sub genres come and go. I'm not sure if it is because a lot of books get written to 'copy' what was successful, or if it is publishers that choose to promote what was recently successful I bet it is more on the publishing side of things, because their calculus probably emphasizes profit over art more than does the typical author. (Not that I haven't thought about trying to cash in with my own vampire romance novel 😆)

[@ebnovels]

Hahahaha, I completely agree. While I think publishers do a great job finding wonderful stories and authors, they are still a business at the end of the day. There’s a reason they put things like, “the African Game of Thrones” on books that are nothing like Game of Thrones 🤨

[@DryBooks]

Michael Graham PREACH! We can’t really know what is derivative a lot of the time, can we? I always loved greek mytology for example, and I remember being 10 or so and imagining myself living in that world and fighting those monsters, meeting the gods. Creating entire stories in my head about them. If I was a writer at that point and worte all the crazy greek based fantasies I had, I probably wouldn’t be able to publish them tradicinaly until Percy Jackson blew up. The market (of everything, not only books) goes in trends, as it should, and though that does cause a lot of lazy repetition, it really isn’t as bad as people make it out to be.

[@xiomysbooktales6279]

I think that if the person who wrote the blog had more concrete evidence and sustained their defenses then it could have been a great discussion. But I'm so tired of ppl hating on others just because of their reading taste, like everyone is entitled to enjoy that which they love. Also if that person wanted diversity they have to look for it because it is out there. I'm also Hispanic and am light-skinned so don't understand that comment either. Yes, I agree with you that one can relate to a character regardless of their skin color; especially if we can connect with them on any number of things. And yes I do want more male MC written by male authors.

[@mattjones6997]

Some people are ignorant and that will never change. Stories are going to have similarities to a certain extent. A genre is able to evolve because authors take similar topics and put their own spin on it. By this logic, you shouldn't have written your book because it's too similar to other fantasy books (which is ridiculous obviously). Anyway, great video and opinions like always! Looking forward to your new book!

[@ebnovels]

Thank you! I think that was all really well put :) Every story is going to be similar to something else, and that’s true of all age ranges and genres 😮

[@missmadyreads]

This was so contradictory. xD Pretty much all of the same points can apply to adult books too. I agree that there's actually not enough male authors in YA and there needs to be more!

[@zhisu2665]

I just wish that so many under the YA tag weren't full of sexual content especially when they're targeted towards teenagers.

[@Tony-hv8wz]

Lol love your sassy head nods

[@nuriablanco.bookreviews]

OMG this video was so funny. I'll take that Brandon was teleported into different worlds, I had my suspicions already xDDD

[@bohannon2692]

I like some YA, ever lost, scithe, fable haven, rangers apprentice, heroes of Olympus and honestly a bunch more. I'm 30 and enjoy ya still

[@annabanabanana]

YA goes so out of the way to be diverse it’s almost too much. Like literally every book has a gay or lesbian character. Every single book in YA is about LGBQ issues in one way or another it seems. As for race, many books don’t even say what the race of characters are but when they do half the time it’s not a white person. I can’t remember ever reading a book where it stated the characters where white so I don’t get the whole every protagonist is white. I think it’s insinuated by overly sensitive people because the author is white, and who cares if characters are white? How many black authors write about characters of other races? They don’t. I quit reading YA but I don’t think diversity is even an issue in YA. I think it’s the most diverse out of every genre. I say let writers, write what they want and how they want, otherwise books are going to all start sounding the same, which is how YA is going. When everything has to be politically correct and please everyone, the quality and creativity go down the tube.

[@blairk6156]

"How many black authors write about characters of other races? They don’t." No offense, but have you actually read works by black authors? Writers like James Baldwin were writing about characters of all races back before the Civil Rights Act was even passed. Stop acting like white authors are the only ones who write diverse stories....

[@Rashadmcka]

Sure I don't read as much YA as I used to, but there's always more than a couple of books that are in that category that I at least think seem interesting. I've sometimes read YA books thinking it will be similar to other books, but Im often surprised by the different characters and interesting take of the plot.

[@BelleRose11000]

Whoever wrote that blog post really badly needs to read some Newbury, National Book Award, and Coretta Scott King Award winners. Better yet, they need to read more, period.

[@quackaddict9810]

Looks in the mirror and says “look how white I am!!” 😂

[@melissamybubbles6139]

Well that was a hoot! That part about not knowing about historical fiction was especially funny to me. I was a history nerd growing up. I'll try to be generous though. If this person was serious, maybe they were never informed that they could ask a librarian for help finding what they feel they lack. That didn't connect in my brain at a younger age. I just wandered the aisles. I wish now that I'd asked for help.

[@sherilynlaurie1141]

As someone who has a European name but is mainly Indo-Caribbean, that ethnic name comment was so funny 😂

[@MortMe0430]

All other criticisms of the article aside, I get the sense that this blog person doesn't get that agents and publishers with aims of making a profit are part of that whole "all YA has same plot/tropes/etc" complaint. Like, yeah, if a gimmick in one book gets hugely popular, publishers/agents are going to want in on it, and chances are they'll be more receptive to "safe" premises that have already made a lot of money. So even if an author has a fresher approach to a story, they might get turned down if a publisher doesn't think it'll sell widely at the time.

[@NikkiBell10]

So. . .YA is a target audience. (Publishing companies seem to see it as ages 13-17). There are similar plot lines because of marketing trends. I recall reading once that publishing companies have research teams that simply watch trends. "Oh, Hunger Games is popular - quick find stories were a teenager stands up to their government. Oh, Twilight is popular - quick find romances were the normal girl falls for a supernatural being. Fairy tale retellings are big - get on that!" These trends come and go. If you look back far enough into YA - perhaps even before it was labeled YA - there were stories were the average girl and a vampire fell in love. Or where teens stood up to their government. If you go through the YA section of a major bookstore, you will see a lot of women authors. You will see a lot of authors of color. You will see diversity. Should there be more diversity in YA? Of course! (There should also be more women authors in "adult" Sci-fi/Fantasy and more authors of color there, too. But, that is another topic.) That said, diversity in YA has gotten a lot better in recent years. In short: I feel like whoever wrote that blog post a) hasn't read or really looked at a YA section in several years and b) is dumping on YA to look like a "superior" reader. And, that is a real shame - YA has some great authors, series, and stories.

[@k2u364]

What are the books on the right shelf… right next to the Full metal something ones ?

[@lisr1634]

It isn't just books. It is storytelling in general. There are certain themes and they are changed per the storyteller. Does that mean we should stop having books, movies, comics, etc., because the themes might overlap? Take Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings. How many storytellers and entertainers did they influence? Those people were inspired to create new and exciting tales. This isn't a bad thing. On the contrary, it means there is something for everyone. As for diversity, it doesn't just have to be race or gender. What about diversity in thought? There are books out there that are non-fiction... gasp...education, politics, history, autobiography, biography, etc. The writer of this blog needs to step out of her closed environment and expand her horizons.

[@danaadedokun21]

You deffinitely had fun filming this 🤣🤣

[@kylersmith6869]

Watching in 2020 and this is crazy! My favorite trilogy is the Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu. Two main characters, female and male, both of an Asian descent but that isn’t even mentioned but like twice. One of them is a street level orphan turned rebel and the other is a privileged military prodigy. The stories and experiences between these two is what makes it incredible, not their appearance. Their individual backgrounds are even a source of conflict within them each as well. Also I’m a guy that read Hunger Games, Divergent, The Testing, Maze Runner, and the Taken series. Each of them were dystopian; each of the had unique characters; and not once did the race or gender or ethnicity of the characters or author influence my decision to read them. Good story is a good story. And we need some more main character men in YA. I’ve loved the female main characters but the males just seem to fall short for me as far as development and compelling backgrounds are concerned.

[@Imaginetheday1967]

Rolling my eyes at that article... Read what you want to read and don't hate on what other people like. It's that simple. I read a little bit of everything, in middle grade, YA , and adult. (I started reading multiple age levels when I had kids those ages, and discovered I liked them.) I like non-fiction, mysteries, romance, fantasy, science fiction, paranormal, urban fantasy, historical fiction, and general fiction. I'm sure I'm forgetting something. :) If I don't like a book, that's about me, not someone else.

[@jasonrios697]

If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it. Toni Morrison This person in the article might want to challenge a writer to make a different YA book or write a new YA book themselves

[@colin1818]

A lot of books have been retconned as "YA" after the fact. For instance, Mistborn is frequently in the YA section but that was never the design when it first went into print. Harry Potter is another good example.

[@masoodvoon8999]

I would refer to the GRR Martin interview where he says one can't help to write what one knows (speaking of diversity) and that the best solution of the problem is for more people of different backgrounds to write (assuming that there are buyers and it's sustainable). I agree and like different perspectives but not Ayn Rand type preachiness (although her books are interesting in small doses). Which brings me to my critique-pet peeve of YA: They dumb down plots sometimes where they seem to be uncomplicated social/political commentary when most of the time it's probably unintentional.

[@safinan8008]

Have a great happy reading weekend!! 😄👍

[@hectorgarcia9480]

First comment that wasn't some kind of put down, or stepping on some one else. 😎 #bridge 4

[@RavenFirewind]

The short answer to my thoughts on that person's blog: They're an idiot. The long answer? They contradicted themselves (as you illustrated regarding writing stories incorporating our own experiences) multiple times, they sound like an anti-YA snob, and they show their complete lack of research regarding Historical Fiction. It would've taken them two seconds to find evidence of that genre in a Google search--but, y'know, then they wouldn't have been able to write a fraction of their half-baked opinion for all and sundry to see, and who wants FACTS nowadays? 😏 Loved your video, and I'm especially loving the awareness I'm seeing regarding diversity; so many people jump on the wagon when it comes to different ethnicity and sexuality--and that's great!--but too often, they seem to forget diversity is more than that. That no two people of any colour, creed, class etc. are the same. Anyway, excellent points as always. ☺

[@ebnovels]

Thanks! Yeah, I really do think diversity is important, but I think that diversity of all kinds is important. I find that many boys go directly from middle grade to adult because there aren’t very many male characters in YA. Not that only male characters can appeal to boys, but at that young of an age, many people are looking to relate to something, and feeling comfortable with their gender is part of that.

[@katyareads221]

Your point about relating to characters who don't share your own background/race/neighborhoods was very interesting. It reminds me of the argument that an actor can not play a part which is not of their own race/backgrounds....because they can't relate. While I think there is a lack of diversity in Hollywood and in novels, I do th ink an actor is someone who excels in relating to all sorts of characters..i mean that is their vocation right?

[@KayJ1721]

I agree I want more male author and male protagonists in YA books

[@MaeF1y603]

Honestly, I'm new to YA, so I haven't read enough to have really made my mind up about the genre. The one thing that I have found in some books (not all) is that the characters are painfully painted with teen stereotypes. Yes, I get that occasionally, a person might actually fit the stereotype, but usually not. Idk if that's a YA problem so to say, or if I just happened to pick a really bad book XD

[@ebnovels]

That’s interesting. Do you mind me asking what books you’ve read that’s YA? :)

[@MaeF1y603]

@@ebnovels One that I remember being specifically disappointed by was The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon I really wanted to like it, but just couldn't. I'm hoping that Priority of the Orange Tree will be better I will be reading that one soon. I recently tried reading Everyday by David L and ended up loosing interest. My husband went on a big YA kick a few years ago and I remember not being able to get into the stuff he was reading (mostly paranormal and contemporary). Semiosis by Sue Berk is one that I loved. I'm not sure that it was marketed as YA but it really felt like one to me and many of the POV characters were 17 or 18. I've decided that I'm going to look around for YA and NA SFF to read in the next few months, I really want to branch out and find some new authors and books :)

[@madcat1220]

So the author of the blog post didn't even bother to do ANY research on YA before writing this. He was told a bunch of things, he heard of a few popular books, he glanced at a YA section in a book store and didn't see obvious ethnic names and he wrote this garbage. I wouldn't even call myself a YA fan but this made me roll my eyes so hard.

[@ChristinaBooks]

Great video. I'd say they need to do a bit more research before preaching some of those opinions/assumptions. Twilight the start of paranormal romance, pah!

[@karinzohar9387]

You should make more videos like this!

[@2dimitropolis370]

I love twilight. I wish I wrote it. I hate 50 shades of gray, although that book was inspired by twilight. Originality wins.

[@8adeight]

Maybe Elliot Brooks just knows her audience, but I love almost everything she says. And now, she busts out with saying more male protagonists and more male authors writing YA would be a great thing. If only I had another pair of eyes, I would subscribe twice.

[@MagnaGresh]

1:48 Lord of the Rings AND the Dune Saga Edit: AND Asimov`s Foundation. Seriously in most sci-fis I read there is always , always some element that I found in Frank Herbert`s and Asimov`s books. I started to make a game where whenever I saw something like a secondary plot or character in a sci-fi, I would return to them and look for that element there.

[@MagnaGresh]

I have to say this before I get the hatemail again!! That does NOT make the books less entertaining!!!! Sometimes they take a concept and develop it further which I find exciting.

[@chameleonarcher]

Whoever wrote that should really look into where Shakespeare got his ideas. I think it would be enlightening. I have found myself disappointed with most YA books that I've picked up recently, though, and admittedly I'm not in the target audience. But there's been a thin feeling to them (the plot, the worlds, the characters) that I don't think is all to do with me being out of the market.

[@kb-ih7ni]

I'm not into YA either, just because it often has a love story/triangle as a main focus, and I don't care for it. But I don't agree with what the post says and how it was written. A few points in response to them and in addition to yours: 1. The first books in dystopian YA are often similar because the fact of its being dystopian means there is necessarily a circumstance the protagonist has to overcome (with current political climates, it's only logical to have that rich-poor gap and experimental society setting). Further into each series though, the stories digress and grow in different directions. Plagiarism and lack of originality is different from influence and inspiration. While I agree to an extent that the stories are too similar AT FIRST, I disagree that they're completely all the same. And like you said, t's the same with SFF! The evil alien invasion trope is everywhere! Dune, Ender's Game, Starship Troopers...do they really read? 2. Fulfilling personal fantasies (teenage or not) through writing stories??!!!?!??!!??! UNSPEAKABLE HERESY. 3. The fact that they only focused on the protagonist's labels (race, socioeconomic status, looks) as a basis for relatability, suggests they didn't bother understanding the books' plot and social commentary (which they often have, contrary to popular belief). I find myself relating to Thomas in Maze Runner even when I'm Asian, female, older, and I have parents. I relate to being thrown in a foreign place with people I think don't like me much, and also with knowing that SOMEONE (me or whoever) has to do something to change society's circumstances. Stop forced diversity! It's a real thing! I never thought about Hermione's race (though she was British-Hispanic in my child-mind) until Rowling said she's black and it felt like it limited my imagination. It was never relevant! The "racism" in HP was about blood, not race! 4. The post was poorly written, barely researched, poorly argued, and superficial. And...oddly racist? "Obviously ethnic names"?? What. Do you expect every black person to have a name like Lupita Nyong'o, Mahershala Ali, or Asians like R.F. Kuang? I know someone who's 75% Asian but his name is Smith. Dude. 5. Honestly, I think they just need to read wider. I think they just read the most popular ones and judged the entire genre based on that. They seem to be a lazy reader. They expect the "highfalutin" books to be thrown on their lap, instead of reading more to actually find them. I didn't want to read The Poppy War because it was getting so much hype from some booktubers, and I generally shy away from too-good hyped books, but it turned out to be my new ultimate favorite. 6. They could have mentioned other points. Like writing. Although not limited to YA books (ehem 50SOG ehem), I've read quite a few YA novels to know that the writing isn't always beautiful. It's often too simple or trying to be complex and profound, telling not showing (or too MUCH irrelevant showing a la Strange the Dreamer), or sometimes poorly edited. grumpyreader in IG often shares lines from YA books that are ridiculous. While this does happen with other genres, it's very prevalent in YA. 7. People can read what they want. But if you're going to write a post arguing a genre's quality, make sure you pose your arguments well.