Spänningslitteratur för barn och vuxna: När målgrupper och genrer korsas i verkens paratexter

Abstract

Title: Crime Fiction for Children and Adults: Crossing Target Groups and Genres in the Paratexts of a Work

Many of the established Swedish crime writers write for both adults and young readers. These authors are successful in the two literary market segments that are dominating the contemporary Swedish book market: crime literature and children’s literature. Can certain developed trademarks in their authorship for adults be used in order to market books for other age groups and to what extent do the authors use this possibility? This article specifically addresses three authors writing for both young and adults: Anna Jansson, Kristina Ohlsson and Åsa Larsson. Their novels for a younger audience are analysed based on how they are packaged and marketed through paratexts such as covers, illustrations, and other texts, using Gérard Genette’s theory of paratexts and theories of genre and marketing. The analysis shows that these authors and their publishers use similar, but also different strategies to hold on to their former target group while also reaching out to new readers. The adult crime genre has an indirect influence over the market of mystery books for children, which is also seen in how different aspects of the crime market for adult crime fiction have become more important on the book market for children, involving agents, events and tourism.