YA vs. MG
I love working on multiple projects at once. Instead of feeling like my attention is split, navigating different storylines and writing styles inspires me. Right now I’m working on two novels and a poetry collection. Progress is slow, but I’m learning so much from each one. Their differences teach me how to handle challenges across genres. I take creative breaks from each project, returning with fresh eyes and a different perspective.
Up until now, every novel I’ve drafted has been YA. And while I’m still revising a YA novel, I’ve also embarked on something new: middle grade. There’s a story I’ve been struggling with for years. I love the main character—maybe more than any other character I’ve created—but when I wrote the book as YA, it wasn’t right. Her narrative was too young for a YA audience. I put the book away for a long time, and now I’m returning to rewrite it in (hopefully) the right age category.
It’s strange, changing the age of your main character. At first I was worried that switching the book to middle grade would limit its emotional depth. Things are more immediate for a 12-year-old than a 15-year-old, their stories told with more straightforward language. Tangible settings, relationships, and events direct their narratives more than abstract ideas. They may need more guidance from older characters as they move through emotional challenges. And while they may not spend as much time grappling internally with who they are and their place in the world, they feel things deeply and live complex lives.
Several aspects of the novel have shifted in this version. The plot is more streamlined and grounded in surface action. Also, my character’s queerness is just beginning to take shape. I’m not sure it will be labeled throughout the book—I don’t think queer feelings and experiences need to be defined in order to be valid and real. And that’s part of why writing for this age group is exciting. While YA tackles the transition out of childhood, of navigating adult situations and ideas, middle grade takes place before those major transitions, when the seeds of who these characters will become are beginning to root and take shape. Instead of major transformations, middle grade characters learn about themselves, what empowers them, and what they value. And they often do so in familiar settings with family and friends. By the end of the book, there is still a lot left to discover.
Just like I still have a lot to learn about writing middle grade. But I’ve loved the experience so far. And I think writing in different age categories can be both enlightening and exciting.