The Muse & The Marketplace 2020

Fiction writers in 2020 are surrounded by contemporary topics that demand attention, and yet challenge honest treatment. Grounded in his own experience writing about the aftermath of a school shooting, author Joseph Moldover will explore the power of Young Adult literature to addressing difficult, seemingly intractable topics, and the ability of the young voice to find unique perspectives on these problems.

We will ask what it means to address adult issues from a young perspective, how this differs from books about similar topics written from adult perspectives, and whether it makes sense to differentiate young adult from adult material in a world in which the older generations bequeath so many problems to the young.