Courtney Cole and Rachel Van Dyken: What is New Adult?
Authors Courtney Cole and Rachel Van Dyken answer some questions about the New Adult genre and what readers new to and familiar with the subgenre can expect. Rachel's Elect comes out Tuesday (Dec. 19), and Courtney's Before We Fall arrives Dec. 17. (Questions provided by publisher Forever.)
Q: What do you think the biggest challenge is when writing New Adult vs. contemporary?
CC: I think my biggest challenge is making sure the NA issues that I write about are relevant. While I definitely amplify my characters' issues for the sake of entertainment, I still want to make sure that what they are going through is relatable to my readers. Even if they haven't been in the exact same place as my characters, I want them to still be able to empathize with them. To do that, I have to make sure the issues are real and plausible.
RVD: I have to agree with Courtney, a lot of NA issues are somewhat far-fetched — I mean, take the trend in writing about rock stars and millionaires falling for everyday women (totally guilty of doing this by the way), it isn't normal — it's escapism at its best, but when you write about "fictional" situations, it's possible to add in real-life drama that makes the story believable. That's what makes writing NA so fun — yeah, some of it is far-fetched, but as an author your job is to weave in the truth of everyday life so that when a reader picks up the book, they don't think, "Yeah, right." They think, "Yeah, I'd totally fall for a Mafia boss." Contemporary tends to focus more on everyday life — I don't think that necessarily makes it easier for me to write, but it does take the focus off the impossible and really puts the focus, at least for me, on the main characters and their day-to-day issues.
Q: Each of you has books out this month — Before We Fall for Courtney and Elect for Rachel. Was there a moment/scene, etc. that you were particularly nervous about coming across for your audience? Maybe it was themes, language, etc.?
CC: Ha ha. I had a bunch of moments, because my main character, Dominic Kinkaide, is a troubled guy. He's also fairly polarizing. I knew that readers would either love him ... or hate him. And so there were a ton of times when I questioned whether I was taking him too far.
RVD: The whole book makes me nervous! I'm not going to lie, writing about the Mafia freaked me out a bit, and especially the more research I did. Elect really focuses on the day-to-day lives of Nixon and Chase. It's scary, violent, and in my opinion wildly fascinating. I think if I could name one part that makes me nervous, it's the fact that the villain from the first book has POV in Elect. I don't think it will make readers forgive him for what he did, but I do think it will help them understand the reason behind the choices he made. I'm excited to see what people think!
Q: Both of your recent books are New Adult. How do you define writing in this genre vs. contemporary?
CC: For me, I feel like New Adult needs to have a lot of meat. It's about growing-up issues — the kind you have when you hit your twentysomethings ... and those particular issues are meaty — and sometimes even life-changing. I think it's a tricky balance of being angsty, heavy and deep — but at the same time, not utterly depressing your reader. That's my challenge with NA. I have written some contemporary adult, as well ... and it has entirely different feels, or at least, my books do. I have a dark romance thriller (Of Blood and Bone), which is dark, but it isn't filled with angsty growing-up issues. That's the major difference, in my opinion.
RVD: Courtney hit the nail on the head ... New Adult is intense; it's a lot darker than contemporary romance. When I write New Adult, I'm always thinking about the span of emotions you feel when you're in a new place, don't fit in, have a giant chip on your shoulder, and truly don't know what your future holds. NA is gritty, it's raw, and it doesn't sugarcoat anything. Readers don't go to the NA genre because they want rainbows and butterflies — they go to the genre because it's addictive in the way it sucks you in and doesn't let go. Writing contemporary has a lighter feel. Granted, as an author you're still really emotionally invested, but a lot of times the main focus of the book isn't on giant misunderstandings, or messing up because you lack the maturity to make good solid decisions. Most contemporary characters are older so the miscommunication you may see in NA doesn't really happen in contemporary. The fights are going to look different, the tension between the main characters is going to be different, and the setting is usually in a workplace environment or hometown rather than a college.
Q: What is the question you get asked the most about writing New Adult, and how it is viewed differently than contemporary?
CC: I've been asked a LOT: What exactly is New Adult? And I simply answer that it is a genre (or subgenre) that centers around twentysomethings with growing-up issues. To me, that's it in a nut shell. Can it be explicit? Yes. Can it be angsty? Yes. But when it boils down to it, New Adult is just about twentysomethings going through growing-up pains.
RVD: I often get asked the same thing as Courtney. People want to know what it is ... and a lot of times I explain it the same way. It's a coming-of-age genre that focuses on characters who are insecure, messed up, dark, learning to live, love, and making mistakes along the way. It's like taking a snapshot of your first few years out of the house, away from your parents and the life you've known. If that still confuses people, I just say it's contemporary romance but for a bit of a younger audience and with a lot more grit. ;)
To read more of Rachel and Courtney's conversation, visit www.facebook.com/ForeverRomance.
Find out more about Courtney at courtneycolewrites.com. Find out more about Rachel at rachelvandykenauthor.com.