Is it okay to write a romcom in MG? #AskDV #F #MG

I’m going to give a major caveat that ALL of my answers on #AskDV are just my opinion! They are most certainly *not* publishing law 😂

Can’t wait to see those questions!

Format is the kind of thing you can fix, but wrong genre or category, I’ll often pass because if that’s the writer’s vision for the book, I’m not going to chime in to question it.

It’s pretty important to know where your work belongs before sending it out and about. #AskDV

#AskDV Can you share any examples of DV pitches that you think were a perfect example of what you as an agent are looking for in a pitch?

Technically I would say MG is most often 8-12 and YA starts 13-18, however sometimes we see “upper middle grade” fudge these ages slightly.

#AskDV

When an agent requests additional picture-book manuscripts, what are they hoping those additional texts reveal about the writer and their potential as a client? #AskDV

#AskDV with mysteries with speculative bend is 70,000 as word count too low?

Considering that MG is skewing shorter lately, how do you balance minimizing the word count with adding enough detail, introspection, etc. to bring the characters and story to life? #AskDV #MG #F #ND

I wish I knew! I'm seeing a lot of interest in interactive and gameified formats for kidlit and adult genre fiction. Editors seem tired of stories about AI gone wrong. Maybe 2027 is the resurgence of YA sick lit? #askDV

#askDV what makes a writers portfolio stand out?

The book "What will people think" by Sara Hamdan dealt with Palestinians being kicked out of their homes, but never mentions who did the kicking out (Israel). Do agents/publishers demand that Israel is never blamed for anything? do you make authors take stuff like that out? #AskDV

#askdv What age demographic has the biggest audience/biggest growing audience currently?

Not the maximum, but I do need extra convincing when a MG fantasy query has a word count above 50k. #askDV

My main character is 14 years old. Will my novel be upper middle grade or young adults? What is the age range for each category? #AskDV

Hi there!

I would send them a nudge on whichever platform you originally queried to let them know they requested on DVPit. Perhaps even worth asking whether they’d like you to resubmit in another way (sometimes we group subs from a pitch event). #AskDV

I think we’re gonna see a continued hunger for cozy, especially in unique genres, and several editors have asked me for dystopian books (in kids and adult!) lately.

Also horror, cause I don’t think the supply can meet the demand. I think it’s the hardest thing to write. #AskDV

I'm writing a #MG fantasy where the main character is neurodivergent (as am l) which means she sometimes acts younger than she is. This is intentional for disability rep, but what should I do while querying so agents understand the intention & don’t just assume she's acting too young? #AskDV #F #ND

I've seen publishers requesting shorter and shorter word counts. The guidelines I give my clients are 45k or under for MG fantasy, 60k or under for upper MG fantasy, and 95k or under for YA fantasy, which is on the conservative side so nothing is rejected on word count alone. #askDV

#askDV

Is it ever acceptable to chase an agent if you've not heard from them?
Or to update them if anything has changed? (Eg I'm writing non-fiction and I now have more chapters written than I did when I started querying)

Do you have any advice on how to incorporate romance in MG novels? #AskDV #F #MG