Look at who the publisher of the first book quoted is. With their recent debacle, I can't say I'm surprised.

If it was only one piece, I might be saying the same thing. It isn't! This is a trend. I was in Barnes & Noble today and saw nearly a dozen books with sexy covers out on a table with a sign declaring them Young Adult! I think one didn't trip a sensual level in my head. The picture was from the torso down of two people. One was clothed like a guy, the other like a girl and they were just sitting next to each other. It didn't trip it, that is, until I read the title. It was "Doing It."

And adult erotica and erotic romance authors have to put disclaimers on their websites to make sure everyone knows their books are NOT for anyone under 18. This is terrible. As the mother of an 11-year old, I'm appalled. I'm pretty liberal but here's a set of authors I think should be ashamed of themselves.

What gets me is the idea the publishers have that ALL parents/adults are checked out. We know teens have sex, we just don't think they should. I doubt a book that talked about the way sex can destroy a girl's self-worth when she isn't ready for it would even make it out of the slush pile.

We face enough troubles raising our children without the media (and who is letting their 13yo watch The OC -- I didn't realize it was aimed at the young adult audience *shudder) actively inflaming the issue.

On the other hand, with sales of these books as brisk as they are, maybe more parents have checked out than I think.

I'm soooooo glad that sleazy, idiotic "Rainbow Party" book did poorly sales-wise in spite of all the controversy. When I first heard of "rainbow parties" ballyhooed on all the talk shows - "heavens above, ALL the teens are doing it!" - I asked a 22-yr-old friend if she'd ever heard of this phenomenon. She hadn't. Neither had several teenaged friends of hers (in different states) whom she asked during the course of our IM chat.

So is it just me, or does the media (in all its dense-itude) deliberately pick on a few sensational cases from a handful of schools and imply it's an America-wide phenemonon? (anyone remember the "multi-colored bracelets as secret sex code" debacle?)

This is not to say that teenagers don't engage in sexual activity - of course they do, but the media deliberately chooses the most lurid, outrageous things to focus on (nothing new there... *rolls eyes*)

The media is out for sales and will do anything that causes conflict or shows conflict becuase, as Donald Maas says, Conflict keeps people reading.

And I understand what you mean. If this were the U.K., the books would carry a rating, much like our TV shows, movies and video games do. Not a censoring, just a heads up that this is the audience and maturity level the book is aimed at.

I know a woman whose mom gave her romances as a 12 year old, sex scenes and all. Opened her eyes quite a bit.

The thing that pisses me off royally is this--I have a fantasy romance where, originally, the main characters have sex at the age of consent in the U.K., which is where the characters reside.

The age of consent in the U.K. is 16. I worked that fact into the story. I was willing to put that in a forward. In the U.K. the book would have a 16+ rating (or whatever that rating is called, can't say as I'm terribly familiar with the system) because it would be considered adult, for the most part. I met objections from my critique partners and published authors at the age of the teens. Not that they personally objected, rather, the publishers wouldn't buy my MS because the teens were having sex. When a team of erotic romance authors spoke to my local RWA chapter in January, they emphasized that, in spite of any historical accuracy of a person in their late teens being able to have sex, the publishers of erotic romance prohibited any sex in their stories if the parties were under 18.

And that's erotica! What chance does a lowly unpubbed with a paranormal modern fantasy romance have if two 16 year olds in her MS have sex, even if it's legal for where the characters live! I was aiming at Dorchester, or a similar house. If the erotic publishers woudln't do it, how could I expect the others to do accept my MS?

So, I felt compeled to trade up the ages of the characters in my story in order to get it published.

Now I find out I might have been published if I'd sent it to a YA house because there's this gap? WTF?

I do think there should be heat ratings on books, because adults are still surprised when they find certain levels of sexual content in romances aimed at adults. I think that would solve a lot of issues and parents would have more control over what the kids read, as well, just like TV and movies and video games.

Aries: The whole deal with the "rainbow parties" seems to vary by location. I'm on a couple boards (temporarily administrating one) whose membership is almost totally girls ages 13 - 21. While many said they'd never heard of the "rainbow parties" happening around their schools, quite a few others did. So while they're quite real, I don't think that it happens to the extent that some people would lead you to believe.

Sandra: Actually, it depends on where you market it. I've read plenty of fantasy novels where the (steamy) romantic subplot was between two teenage characters.

Erotica seems to have more limitations in regards to age than regular romance/fantasy publishers do -- I think that's partly because they have more at risk, being openly erotic, what with the whole crazy "War Against Porn" and such. *rolls eyes*

I really think you could get away with it in traditional romance or fantasy, but it could be a tough sell. *shrugs*

These feel like marketing ploys - you got hot and angry and you're telling your friends. Not that I don't blame you. There has to be a drawn line and I think they have not only pushed over it, but are going to suffer for it. It just won't happen fast enough to do a bit of good.

But it does make the consumer more aware. Nancy Drew sure didn't read like that, so why would I assume it's changed any in 25 years? Thanks for the heads up. YA definitely needs to reevaluate.

Nonny: Steamy romantic sub-plot. I think that's the keyword. These are the Hero and Heroine in mine. So which publishers were those books you read put out by, anyway?

Sandra: It's been a long time, but I want to say DAW, Tor, and Roc -- all of which are fantasy publishers.

I think it would fly with LUNA, which is fantasy/romance. One of their novels (On Fire's Wings by Christie Golden) actually has an incestuous romantic plot, so ... yeah, I would say they're open to "taboo" subjects.

The YA market tends to be quite separate from adult markets, including romance. The editors, agents, readers, and often even publishers are often different. So I'm not terribly surprised that what are "rules" in one market aren't necessarily "rules" in another.

I think the erotic romance genre probably has its rules so that there's no chance of them being in trouble with child porn laws if some disapproving and aggressive prosecutor decides to go after them.

Also, I will say that the YA market is now marketed for a wider age range than it once was. In the 90's, YA books seemed mostly marketed to younger teens. Now, many of the imprints/publishers are opening seeking the older teen, and up through readers in their young twenties. (And, for those who are concerned, I'll just say that from the books I've read, I would not say that these books are preaching the message that teens having sex is good.)

Cara

Well, I should hope they wouldn't. Frankly, if it's just the teen characters having observations of the opposite sex based on their hormones, I can only say that's got to be more accurate than just about anything, especially with the POV of a teenage boy.