Fiction Sequels are on their way

[Andy Kappa]

I'm sure they can reply for themselves here as all the short story writers and novelists have access to these forums.

Lave Revolution is a bit violent in places, the swearing is minimal, there are no sex scenes (sorry to disappoint ).

Thanks for that. I'll pass it on.

 

[Darren Grey]

There is a small amount of sexual references and swearing in most of the books. Violence in a bit more prevalent, though none of it disturbingly violent (no torture, sexual violence or delight in violence). The only book that's all-out adult is Nemorensis (one of the Gollancz books) - it contains many explicit sexual scenes.

Overall I'd say all the stories are teenager-friendly. Docking is Difficult is all ages friendly. The target audience for all of the novels is clearly adult, both in content and style of writing/story.

 

[drew]

There is a small amount of sexual references and swearing in most of the books. Violence in a bit more prevalent, though none of it disturbingly violent (no torture, sexual violence or delight in violence). The only book that's all-out adult is Nemorensis (one of the Gollancz books) - it contains many explicit sexual scenes.

Overall I'd say all the stories are teenager-friendly. Docking is Difficult is all ages friendly. The target audience for all of the novels is clearly adult, both in content and style of writing/story.

Elite: Reclamation does feature a bit of torture (a young pilot at the hands of hardened criminals) and physical abuse (a young woman at the hands of religious nutters). There is one scene where sex is present, but implied more than described. Mine is very light on swearing. I doubt any of this would alarm a 15-year old though. It's not too graphic, but it is there and has been mentioned in a couple of my UK reviews.

Elite: Reclamation also contains the occasional long word, which has been mentioned in a couple of my US reviews.

As for the sequels, my recall is that Michael said "Maybe next year". What he actually said appears to have already become myth and legend!

Cheers,

Drew.

 

[Andy Kappa]

There is a small amount of sexual references and swearing in most of the books. Violence in a bit more prevalent, though none of it disturbingly violent (no torture, sexual violence or delight in violence). The only book that's all-out adult is Nemorensis (one of the Gollancz books) - it contains many explicit sexual scenes.

Overall I'd say all the stories are teenager-friendly. Docking is Difficult is all ages friendly. The target audience for all of the novels is clearly adult, both in content and style of writing/story.

Thanks for that Darren. It's what Jan is after since her company specialises in the children/teen market, and books that can be made available to this market will get reviewed as a matter of course (although she will I think review all the books anyway). Odd as it may sound, the target market is not as important for their purposes (although it is a factor of course).

Just a random thought, but has anyone considered writing something specifically for the teen market?

Edit after consultation: for clarity, the reviewers make their own recommendations as to target market based on suitability, so they will still recommend a book if they think a teen market will pick it up. Mild/moderate swearing and some mild sexual content in older teen novels is actually fairly common.

 

[Dung Beetle]

My story also has a brief torture scene, though it's no worse than you'd see in a lot of PG rated films. Most of the stories contain the occasional swear word but pretty much blink and you'll miss it

I think the target market is essentially aimed at all ages despite some of the content. The idea is to bring the Elite universe to as wide an audience as possible, though that is largely limited to Elite and SF fans in general at the moment.

As for sequels, we're all in the same position - patiently waiting to see how things go. All of the books written so far are to a very high standard, so we've all got our fingers crossed that more can be produced in the future. One step at a time...

Edit after consultation: for clarity, the reviewers make their own recommendations as to target market based on suitability, so they will still recommend a book if they think a teen market will pick it up. Mild/moderate swearing and some mild sexual content in older teen novels is actually fairly common.

Some teen books are pretty explicit in all areas (drugs, sex, violence) they don't hold their punches. Have you ever read the teen book "Junk"? That is very explicit for a teen book, makes the Elite books seem very tame in comparison.

 

[Allen Stroud]

Just a random thought, but has anyone considered writing something specifically for the teen market?

Considered, yes, not done. Although I would say Wisimir is pretty teen friendly.

And Here The Wheel is probably the most YA of the books, whether by intention or not.

 

[Andy Kappa]

Some teen books are pretty explicit in all areas (drugs, sex, violence) they don't hold their punches. Have you ever read the teen book "Junk"? That is very explicit for a teen book, makes the Elite books seem very tame in comparison.

I haven't read it but Jan has, and would definitely agree with your assessment! From what's been said so far I doubt most of the books would cause a problem on that score (although I think Kate feels that Mostly Harmless is definitely an adult title!)

 

[Flavio]

As for the sequels, my recall is that Michael said "Maybe next year". What he actually said appears to have already become myth and legend!
.

My enthusiasm for wanting something so am reading positively between the lines, that "maybe next year" could mean that if things go swimmingly with the release of ED and the books sell well then they could even talk about it this year or if there is a big delay in the games release and other things crop up, it may be left for the following year and so did not take the maybe to mean might not happen at all.

Anyway good luck with your sequels Drew

 

[Flowswithdrek]

No swearing, sex or anything silly that gets in the way of action in my story ' A Game of Death'. Any violence is mostly ship to ship combat, and a quick clunk on the head with a piece of a ships antenna in one scene.

 

[T. James]

Slightly OT Allen but is there any way you could ask around the authors in regard to the age level (as in 'age restriction' considerations) of your books? Janette will take it into account anyway as part of her review process, but it might be nice to know what you guys think.

Elite: Out of the Darkness has violent scenes and swearing (not gratuitous, in that they fit the characters and the scene, but it's not a kids' book). I'll be recommending a reader age of 14+ on release.

 

[Andy Kappa]

Thanks for the fulsome responses guys. Jan will be working her way through all the books in due course with a view to having them added to her company's stock database if appropriate. Dan has a business card giving details of the company and it's operation, but in simple terms they do a lot of work with schools and local authorities and have a significant international presence. For a variety of reasons it isn't possible to give a timescale given the volume of material, but in any event she has said that she will provide reviews of everything come what may. Also given the weight their customers attach to these reviews, the company is protective of its intellectual property. This means I may not be able to publish full reviews on the forum, but synopses shouldn't be too much of a problem.