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It's Time for Young Teen Lit

@youngteenlit.bsky.social

660 followers 810 following 140 posts

We believe 12-15 year olds need books published just for them. Moderated by Christina Chatel & Marcia Kochel, MS librarians who implore the publishing industry for books meant for grades 6-9. #youngteenlit #itstimeforyoungteenlit www.youngteenlit.com

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · Nov 18

#youngteenlit #itstimeforyoungteenlit #mglit #tlsky

#Publishers, we are asking for a new category of literature that falls in between middle grade and young adult. Middle schoolers need Young Teen Lit and librarians are eager to purchase! #youngteenlit should have the following 5 elements (1/6)

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 2d

The only promising #youngteenlit from 3 months of reviews seem to be realistic books.

We have a Goldilocks problem here: it's increasingly difficult to find what's "just right" for our young teens. What are we left to purchase that will entice our 7th and 8th graders? #itstimeforyoungteenlit 4/4

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 2d

As for the Middle Grade Reviews, July's issue had 7 novel reviews, 4 with 12 year old narrators and 1 with an 11 year old. August had 12 novel reviews, with 2 featuring 13 year old narrators, 1 with a 12 year old, and 6 with 11 year old narrators. 3/4

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 2d

In comparison, @slj.com July and August issues each had 4 titles in the "Middle School" subsection in YA. However, half of these titles had age 17+ characters and 7 out of 8 were 300 to over 400 pages long. 2/4

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 2d

Disappointing to see the sparse options for #youngteens in the Sept issue of @slj.com. There has been a "Middle School" subsection in the YA reviews, but in September, there was NONE. In the Middle Grade reviews, 2 out of the 5 reviews had 8th grade characters, but both were reviewed for gr 5+. 🧵1/4

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Reposted by It's Time for Young Teen Lit

Jennifer Harris @mypbjam.bsky.social · 6d

My undergrad English class on Young Adult Literature has just decreed Isaac Blum’s THE LIFE AND CRIMES OF HOODIE ROSEN meets the criteria for Young Teen Lit.... Thoughts? @youngteenlit.bsky.social

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 6d

Sorry, you are the prof!! Thanks for talking about YTL with your students.

It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 6d

How could we have forgotten that one! 🤦‍♀️ That was part of Christina’s Troybery program in the past. It’s the right length, right ages, humorous and definitely edgy. Definitely yes and keep the ideas coming. Would love to talk to your class or prof—happy that you’re including #youngteenlit

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 7d

Kudos to @simonandschuster.bsky.social for publishing MEET ME AT WONDERLAND and NOT IF YOU BREAK UP WITH ME FIRST, and @penguinrandomhouse.bsky.social for UNDER THE NEON LIGHTS. We would love to see more like these!

It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 7d

SWIPE to see some of the fantastic #youngteenlit romances that we've read recently and enjoyed. It feels like there are so many more options with characters ages 13-16! Thanks to @juliadevillers.bsky.social GF Miller and @arriwrites.bsky.social for writing books young teens will love.

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 7d

@penguinschoollib.bsky.social Thank you for being the only publisher so far to acknowledge what we’re doing and provide lists to support! #itstimeforyoungteenlit

It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 14d

Check out our website. We have a section about what you can do to support us. Www.youngteenlit.com. Thank you!

We are Young Teen Lit

What is Young Teen Lit?

Www.youngteenlit.com

It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 18d

Thank you for recognizing the gap and offering suggested books for young teens. We welcome younger YA books, especially murder mysteries, horror &humor! sites.prh.com/pyrmiddlesch... @penguinschoollib.bsky.social @penguinteen.bsky.social #youngteenlit #yalit #tlsky @penguinrandomhouse.bsky.social

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 18d

Agreed! Tommy Greenwald’s sports books really fit the YTL criteria #youngteenlit

Reposted by It's Time for Young Teen Lit

Marcia Kochel @overbooked.bsky.social · 27d

I think a big reason that middle grade is struggling is that it tries, often unsuccessfully, to meet the needs of too wide an age range. Let’s let middle grade be unabashedly for 8-12 year olds and give us #youngteenlit for our 12-15 year olds #tlsky #mglit

It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 27d

While we firmly believe that young teens deserve a publishing category of their own, we noticed @publisherswkly.bsky.social aimed the spotlight on MG publishing. The interviewees echoed what we have been saying ad nauseum since spring 2024 (see our articles and podcasts at www.youngteenlit.com). 🧵

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 27d

P.S. Josh Sippie, we’d love to join your group.

It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 27d

We see many commonalities between #youngteenlit and Josh Sippie's Save Middle Grade, and we hope we can connect with the publishing industry using our experience with kids in the trenches over what Sippie says is a “unified desire for kids to be reading…for the sake of the country and the world.”

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 27d

One @publisherswkly.bsky.social article mentioned how agents are looking for “plot driven,” “shorter attention grabbing”, “high interest” books “that are ‘easy entry’ that any kid can pick up." MG horror writing and verse novels are on the rise. (See our Six Criteria for YTL: we said all of this.)

It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · 27d

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · Aug 25

We're excited to announce that our #AASL25 poster session was accepted! Christina will be representing us in St. Louis during the poster presentations on October 16. Stop by to chat about #youngteenlit and learn how to support our movement.
#tlsky #skybrarians #schoollibrarian #AASL2025

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · Aug 14

The best thing about Greenwald's books is that ANY kid, whether they like sports or not, still enjoys them. If you're new to Tommy Greenwald, start with GAME CHANGER; his books take place in the same town but do not need to be read in order. #tlsky #skybrarians #skybrarian #itstimeforyoungteenlit

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · Aug 14

In terms of our six #youngteenlit criteria, Tommy Greenwald consistently knocks it out of the park: his newest THE RIGHT CALL is no exception. 15 yr old narrator, a compelling story about injuries in youth sports, less than 300 pages, eye-catching cover, multiple formats, and heavy on mass appeal.

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · Aug 10

This Judy Blume-inspired book about a 7th grader's first crush is both hilarious and wise and will be LOVED by young teens and by Gen X librarians and moms. It's on the younger end of #youngteenlit and recommended for collections serving middle schoolers. Thanks @kristinnilsen.bsky.social #tlsky

Cover of The Scott Fenwick Diaries by Kristin Nilsen

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · Aug 10

We're summer dreaming about what we'd love to have written and published. MSers want to read the books below, but some may not be developmentally ready for the content (since it was written for an older audience). We would love to see #youngteenlit comparable to the following.
#tlsky #skybrarians

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Reposted by It's Time for Young Teen Lit

Anne McKernan @libraryanne.bsky.social · Jul 30

#youngteenlit
#itstimeforyoungteenlit
@NealShusterman
www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8kBuJNV/

#youngteenlit #itstimeforyoungteenlit @NealShusterman

TikTok video by libraryannemckernan

www.tiktok.com

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It's Time for Young Teen Lit @youngteenlit.bsky.social · Aug 5

You’ll blast thru and won’t be able to put them down!