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young adult

ANNOUNCEMENT: The Rules and Regulations for Mediating Myths & Magic, by F.T. Lukens

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The Rules and Regulations for Mediating Myths & Magic

QSFer F.T. Lukens has a new MM YA Fantasy tale out: Desperate to pay for college, Bridger Whitt is willing to overlook the peculiarities of his new job—entering via the roof, the weird stacks of old books and even older scrolls, the seemingly incorporeal voices he hears from time to time—but it’s pretty hard to ignore being pulled under Lake Michigan by… mermaids? Worse yet, this happens in front of his new crush, Leo, the dreamy football star who just moved to town. Fantastic. When he discovers his eccentric employer Pavel Chudinov is an intermediary between the human world and … Read more

ANNOUNCEMENT: The Tiger’s Watch, by Julia Ember

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The Tiger's Watch

QSFer Julia Ember has a new MM YA fantasy book out: Sixteen-year-old Tashi has spent their life training as a inhabitor, a soldier who spies and kills using a bonded animal. When the capital falls after a brutal siege, Tashi flees to a remote monastery to hide. But the invading army turns the monastery into a hospital, and Tashi catches the eye of Xian, the regiment’s fearless young commander. Tashi spies on Xian’s every move. In front of his men, Xian seems dangerous, even sadistic, but Tashi discovers a more vulnerable side of the enemy commander—a side that draws them … Read more

Announcement: Familiar Path, by AM Burns

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Familiar Path

QSFer A.M. Burns has a new contemporary magical YA book out: Lugh’s mother packed up and moved them from sunny Florida to tiny Steamboat Springs, Colorado after his father’s accidental drowning. Resigned to his mom having to work a lot, and only just beginning to deal with his dad’s death, Lugh is disappointed when she is called in to work on his fifteenth birthday. After an unnerving dream, he decides to head to the nearby river where he ends up following a strange, urgent, internal pull. When another boy helps him rescue a young cat from the river, Lugh discovers a … Read more

Announcement: Hold, by Rachel Davidson Leigh

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QSFer Rachel Davidson Leigh has a new YA sci fi book out: Luke Aday knew that his sister’s death was imminent—she had been under hospice care for months—but that didn’t make her death any easier on him or their family. He returns to school three days after the funeral to a changed world; his best friends welcome him back with open arms, but it isn’t the same. When a charismatic new student, Eddie Sankawulo, tries to welcome Luke to his own school, something life-changing happens: In a moment of frustration, Luke runs into an empty classroom, hurls his backpack against the … Read more

Announcement: As I Descended, by Robin Talley

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As I Descended

QSFer Robin Talley has a new YA FF horror book out: From the acclaimed author of Lies We Tell Ourselves, Robin Talley, comes a Shakespeare-inspired story of revenge and redemption, where fair is foul, and foul is fair. Maria Lyon and Lily Boiten are their school’s ultimate power couple—but one thing stands between them and their perfect future: campus superstar Delilah Dufrey. Golden child Delilah is a legend at exclusive Acheron Academy, and the presumptive winner of the distinguished Cawdor Kingsley Prize. But Delilah doesn’t know that Lily and Maria are willing to do anything—absolutely anything—to unseat Delilah for the … Read more

For Writers: Pen Names and YA

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Pen Name

Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Denise Dechene: If you are an author and write contemp MM romance and want to branch out into YA or NA should you have a new pen name or just tag it as adult, curious as to the authors thoughts. It’s a good question, especially for those of us who write toward the more erotic end of the LGBTIQA pool… I know we have a number of authors here who have done just that. Wanna talk about your thoughts and reasoning for it? Join the chat

For Readers: Sex in YA

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Love Hunks - 123rf

Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Denise Dechene: What are your thoughts about sex in YA books (dealing with teens 15 and older) should there be sex on page or do you think it should be fade to black? This is always a tricky one. Let’s approach this with our usual (trademarked) QSF calm and collective reasoning. :) Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat

For Readers: Who Decides It’s YA?

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Gay YA

Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Richard Wood: Who makes the decision whether a LGBT book or story is YA suitable or not? Is it the author or the publisher and do different publishers have different standards of what is suitable as far as depictions of sex in a LGBT YA rated story? It’s a good question. For instance, I’ve often heard that works with fade-to-black sex scenes… you know: “Christian took Skylar by the hand with a wicked grin. He pulled him down onto the bed as the door slowly closed behind them…” …are “suitable” for YA because there’s … Read more

Announcement: Rediscovery, by Sandra C. Stixrude

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Rediscovery

QSFer Sandra C. Stixrude has a new sci fi book out: An inhabited planet is not what an interplanetary mining company hopes to find while in search of rare mineral deposits, but the low-tech natives should be won over by a few ‘miracles’, right? Emily Nandi, the mining company’s legally mandated xenologist, isn’t so sure. The planet’s social structures are complex, fascinating and frustrating – she advocates research and caution rather than the seat-of-the-pants first contact the company president wants. Investigator Shadow is convinced ghosts are watching him until a fellow investigator disappears, plucked from his harduk’s back without a … Read more

For Readers: YA Fiction for Girls

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Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Angel Martinez: Are we seeing the things we need to see? Recommendations and how spec fic can help. MM seems to be the dominant force in the LGBTIQA fiction market these days. But for young girls, especially girls who like girls, we ought to be encouraging more YA fiction. So what’s out there now that’s good in YA FF speculative fiction? And what would we like to see more of? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join … Read more