It’s a selfish month here at Fully Booked, because we’re talking about one of our favourites: Young Adult Fantasy. Throughout the month of May, we’ll be talking about the genre that keeps on giving. Arguably one of the most popular – at least according to the world of social media – YA fantasy continues to dominate bookshelves across the world. We’re tackling themes, popularity, and some lesser-known adaptations to expand your horizons and hopefully continue your love of the young adult fantasy universe.
We begin with a discussion about the cyclical trends that emerge in young adult fantasy fiction over time. Certain archetypes like vampires, werewolves, and witches seem to come in waves, with each wave putting a new spin on the portrayal of these supernatural beings.
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Looking back over the past couple of decades, we observe how vampires have gone through quite a transformation in YA fantasy books and media. They started out as legitimately scary villains, then became brooding, romantic antihero types like Angel in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This led to the era of beautiful, “vegetarian” vampires like in Twilight, who tried not to feed on humans. Now, we may be seeing vampires circle back to a darker, edgier archetype – not as romanticized and sparkly as the Twilight vampires, but also not as unsophisticated as the earlier villains.
Werewolves have also evolved, often situated as a counterpart to vampires with opposing attributes. Where vampires are calculating loners, werewolves rely more on brute strength and pack mentality. Werewolves tend to get short shrift compared to vampires when it comes to lead roles and love interest potential in these stories. We’d love to see confident, well-adjusted werewolf protagonists rather than constantly tortured souls.
Beyond vampires and werewolves, witches are common fixtures in YA fantasy books and media, particularly as the stories progress into higher fantasy realms. Witches have transformed from the creepy, ugly crone archetype to more nature-based magic practitioners in tune with Wicca. There’s also frequently a dichotomy between good and bad witches.
As things escalate to high fantasy, the stories incorporate more sorcerers, fairies/fey folk and demons. Sometimes they bring in mythological gods or deities and put new spins on classic figures like Hades and Persephone. Recently there has also been a rise in fantasy tales with strong romantic or erotic elements.
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Looking ahead, we speculate on some new directions YA fantasy could go to keep things fresh:
- Spotlight werewolves as main characters for once, with vampires in supporting roles
- Explore more unique mythological creatures – ghosts, banshees, necromancers, etc.
- Fun takes like a lighthearted necromancer who accidentally raises people
- Expand gender representation e.g. non-binary werewolves
In essence, while we expect the cyclical nature of YA fantasy trends to continue, we hope to see more diversity and imagination in the lead roles. The brooding vampire and tortured werewolf tropes have had their time in the spotlight. Focusing on innovative new spins for ghosts, necromancers, banshees and other supernatural beings could breathe new life into the genre. YA fantasy has the potential to represent a wider range of voices and experiences.
Overall we observe how portrayals of mythological archetypes change to reflect the times, but often repeat themselves in a cyclical fashion. Vampires may come full circle back to darker tones after a period of romanticization. But we believe there is ample opportunity to showcase more diverse, unconventional protagonists from the wide arena of supernatural folklore and mythology. The next wave of YA fantasy could tap into rich, unexplored territory beyond the classic vampires and werewolves.
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