The Effect of Online Influencers on Young Adult Literature and its Audience; The Negative Response to Veronica Roth’s Carve the Mark

Abstract

Young Adult literature and the position that its audience takes in in the publishing industry have been largely neglected in scholarly research. This thesis researches the impact that online influencers, who are part of the audience, can have on the YA community's opinion of a new and highly anticipated YA novel. As a case study, the reaction to Veronica Roth's YA science fiction novel Carve the Mark is taken. Although the initial response to the novel by online influencers was positive, one negative review was actively spread through the community, causing a chain reaction that eventually resulted in online influencers changing their opinions. This circular and constant process of opinion formation, which is constantly open to revision, illustrates the lack of authority in the YA publishing industry. Trends that helped to create the possibility such opinion formation, namely a focus on diversity and '#ownvoices', also caused the publishing industry to alter its approaches.