--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only thing that makes a book YA is…" description: "\"The only thing that makes a book YA is that it is about teenagers, and it is written in a very conventional, non-artsy, non-pretentious way. YA is not ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a68/russell-smith-9877_about_the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-t_2616304.jpg" --- # The only thing that makes a book YA is that it is about… ![“The only thing that makes a book YA is that it is about teenagers, and it is written in a very conventional, non-artsy, non-pretentious way. YA is not the place for the oblique or the cryptic. If it is in any way experimental in form, it is not YA.” quote by Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a68/russell-smith-9877_about_the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-t_2616304.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a68/russell-smith-9877_about_the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-t_2616304.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a68/russell-smith-9877_about_the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-t_2616304.jpg) > “The only thing that makes a book YA is that it is about teenagers, and it is written in a very conventional, non-artsy, non-pretentious way. YA is not the place for the oblique or the cryptic. If it is in any way experimental in form, it is not YA.” [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. YA books are defined by teenage protagonists and straightforward, conventional storytelling, avoiding experimental or cryptic styles. **In simple terms:** YA focuses on teen characters and clear, non‑artsy writing. Key Takeaway Write for teens with direct, accessible language. Themes young adult literature genre conventions readership writing style Mood pragmatic analytical Type critical observational When to use this quote - school curricula - library collections - author workshops - publishing guidelines Key Concepts Narrative simplicity target audience literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - How do you keep a YA story fresh without becoming cryptic? - Can experimental elements ever fit YA expectations? A Different Perspective Experimental forms can still appeal to teens if balanced with clarity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Oblique](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oblique/) [Teenagers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teenagers/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Scott Bradfield writes weird, oblique, unsettling stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-giles/scott-bradfield-writes-weird-oblique-unsettling-stuff/) [Jeff Giles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-giles/) > [It was always a false assumption that white American writers cannot write novels about race unless they're approaching it from a very oblique angle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jess-row/it-was-always-a-false-assumption-that-white-american-writers-cannot/) [Jess Row](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jess-row/) > [All that a city will ever allow you is an angle on it, an oblique, indirect sample of what it contains, or what passes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-conrad/all-that-a-city-will-ever-allow-you-is-an-angle-on-it-an-oblique/) Peter Conrad > [An oblique angle,” Jack said, and his bout of jealousy was quickly replaced with glee. “Ha! I told you I would work that in!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-hocking/an-oblique-angle-jack-said-and-his-bout-of-jealousy-was-quickly/) [Amanda Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-hocking/) > [My best-known book remains 'Henry and Clara,' a novel about the couple who were with the Lincolns at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-mallon/my-best-known-book-remains-henry-and-clara-a-novel-about-the-couple/) [Thomas Mallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-mallon/) > [I'm fond of implied narratives, oblique angles, and leaving a little room for the viewer to finish a picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-carter/i-m-fond-of-implied-narratives-oblique-angles-and-leaving-a-little/) [Keith Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-carter/) > [There's always the pressure on the director of how to transition from one scene to another, especially when it can really be oblique on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-graves/there-s-always-the-pressure-on-the-director-of-how-to-transition-from/) [Alex Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-graves/) > [Our relations to each other are oblique and casual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/our-relations-to-each-other-are-oblique-and-casual/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“Personal life, expression, knowledge, and history advance obliquely, and not directly, toward ends or toward concepts. That which is sought too deliberately is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-merleau-ponty/personal-life-expression-knowledge-and-history-advance-obliquely-and/) [Maurice Merleau-Ponty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-merleau-ponty/) > [I'm an oblique guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-penn/i-m-an-oblique-guy/) [Michael Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-penn/) > [I'm interested is the oblique as a concept deeply connected to human lived experience, not separate from it. I was listening to an interview…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-lundy-martin/i-m-interested-is-the-oblique-as-a-concept-deeply-connected-to-human/) [Dawn Lundy Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-lundy-martin/) > [I am oblique; I think that has to do with my own nature. I like trying to do things which work on many levels,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-j-pakula/i-am-oblique-i-think-that-has-to-do-with-my-own-nature-i-like-trying/) [Alan J. Pakula](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-j-pakula/) > [“Life’s easy. It’s living it that’s difficult.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-sasso/life-s-easy-it-s-living-it-that-s-difficult/) Mike Sasso ## More by Russell Smith > [If you tell your husband or boyfriend for his whole life that he needn't worry about his clothes, that he couldn't possibly understand them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/if-you-tell-your-husband-or-boyfriend-for-his-whole-life-that-he/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [Canadian writers don't live in gated mansions; you can just talk to them when you see them lining up at the Second Cup.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/canadian-writers-don-t-live-in-gated-mansions-you-can-just-talk-to/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [I was given a thick paperback copy of the 'Guinness Book of Records' when I was 11 years old, and I read it gluttonously,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/i-was-given-a-thick-paperback-copy-of-the-guinness-book-of-records/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [I would rather be nuts than unattractive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/i-would-rather-be-nuts-than-unattractive/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [What I would love to see is art that explicitly addresses not personal intimacies but anonymous intimacies: the vast collections of facts about you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/what-i-would-love-to-see-is-art-that-explicitly-addresses-not/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [Indeed, the whole point of the man bun, I have surmised, is to assert a high proficiency at yoga. There are no yoga-achievement badges,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/indeed-the-whole-point-of-the-man-bun-i-have-surmised-is-to-assert-a/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [Anything that encourages a boy to open a book, in a world of more violent and therefore more compelling video games, is something I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/anything-that-encourages-a-boy-to-open-a-book-in-a-world-of-more/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [Verisimilitude is something I am constantly seeking in fiction. I am looking for surface detail that makes something seem real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/verisimilitude-is-something-i-am-constantly-seeking-in-fiction-i-am/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [Increasingly, to dismiss any popular artistic style is seen as the worst kind of snobbery. And snobbery, it goes without saying, is unacceptable in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/increasingly-to-dismiss-any-popular-artistic-style-is-seen-as-the/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [What I don't understand is why men have decided that they like wearing hats indoors. It makes no sense to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/what-i-don-t-understand-is-why-men-have-decided-that-they-like/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [I am indeed completely nuts, but that doesn't mean I don't care about how I look. Sometimes, I admit, I will privilege appearance over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/i-am-indeed-completely-nuts-but-that-doesn-t-mean-i-don-t-care-about/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [Everyone likes to hear that their eccentricities and their addictions are simply evidence of their sensitive artistic nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/everyone-likes-to-hear-that-their-eccentricities-and-their-addictions/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [There is actually no such thing as an Artist type. 'Artist' is just an economic designation, a box you tick on a form. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/there-is-actually-no-such-thing-as-an-artist-type-artist-is-just-an/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [One of the qualities essential to writing exciting stories, whether for page or screen, is an ability to abandon one's morality. We simply cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/one-of-the-qualities-essential-to-writing-exciting-stories-whether/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) > [I have never, ever, not once, met a writer who said he or she would never read a mystery or a story set in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/i-have-never-ever-not-once-met-a-writer-who-said-he-or-she-would/) [Russell Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) [Explore all 69 Russell Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/) ## More About quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [I talk to my mates about our kids, being too tired and being worn out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-willoughby/i-talk-to-my-mates-about-our-kids-being-too-tired-and-being-worn-out/) [Holly Willoughby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-willoughby/) > [With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/with-pretty-girls-i-saw-the-opportunity-to-talk-not-just-about-crime/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [I write about presidents. That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/i-write-about-presidents-that-means-i-write-about-guys-so-far-i-m/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/) [Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/) > [I learned a lot about myself at Oakmont.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-lowry/i-learned-a-lot-about-myself-at-oakmont/) [Shane Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-lowry/) > [I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Sport is not just about entertainment. It is equally about winning and losing, pooling and galvanising the energy of the youth, upgrading people's physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-ambani/sport-is-not-just-about-entertainment-it-is-equally-about-winning-and/) [Nita Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-ambani/) > [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/) [Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/) > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/i-didn-t-want-to-do-fashion-police-because-i-thought-this-is-stupid/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [I just worried about my weight. Worried about my appearance and thought I wan't pretty enough to be a pop star. It was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-durham/i-just-worried-about-my-weight-worried-about-my-appearance-and/) [Judith Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-durham/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [There are a lot of kids out there copying and distributing movies - not because they care about seeing the movies or sharing them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/there-are-a-lot-of-kids-out-there-copying-and-distributing-movies-not/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I have no physical genius about me. I can't dribble a ball and run at the same time, I can't do lay-ups - I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-mullins/i-have-no-physical-genius-about-me-i-can-t-dribble-a-ball-and-run-at/) [Rich Mullins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-mullins/) Browse all 26,122 About quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only thing that makes a book YA is that it is about teenagers, and it is written in a very conventional, non-artsy, non-pretentious way. YA is not the place for the oblique or the cryptic. If it is in any way experimental in form, it is not YA.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Russell Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-that-it-is-about-teenagers-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "About" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-that-it-is-about-teenagers-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a68/russell-smith-9877_about_the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-t_2616304.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a68/russell-smith-9877_about_the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-t_2616304.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a68/russell-smith-9877_about_the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-t_2616304.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The only thing that makes a book YA is that it is about teenagers, and it is written in a very conventional…” — Russell Smith", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Russell Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The only thing that makes a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-that-it-is-about-teenagers-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-smith/the-only-thing-that-makes-a-book-ya-is-that-it-is-about-teenagers-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```