How To Move On After Reading a YA Series

I don't need to remind you that YA novels are having a moment — and frankly, have been for a while. The genre is no longer reserved for teens, and some adults have found their way in, admitting they do like reading novels targeted towards a younger audience. Indulging in the books is no longer a dirty literary secret reserved for cat ladies and those longing for their youths.

We've got YA series like Twilight to thank for the current, very open landscape of YA; The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins and the Divergent series by Veronica Roth have since continued to carry the torch. And if you're into 'em, you know these series can spark some passionate reactions when you flip the final page.

But as popular as they've become, not everyone has yet jumped on the YA bandwagon, so unless you're an adult with a lot of teen friends (which isn't creepy...), you may find yourself somewhat anxious when you finish a series and realize that you don't have anyone with whom to discuss the ending.

Here are five steps to moving on after finishing a YA series so you don't flip out.

1. Calm down

The first, and perhaps most important step. You cannot take the ending of the book personally. Each YA series I completed had me feeling like I had the wool pulled over my eyes. After reading Mockingjay, I was disoriented, upset, and blindsided. After finishing Breaking Dawn, I was upset I invested so many hours of my life with the Twilight series. And after Allegiant , I had so many questions.

Don't get me wrong, it's perfectly normal to have a strong reaction to a book — but you can't fixate on what you think the author did wrong/could have done better/shouldn't have killed, etc. Take a walk. Open a window. Most importantly, step away from the keyboard.

2. Know that you may be alone

At least for the time being. If you're like me, you've read these books way ahead of your friends, so you most likely will not have anyone to talk about the endings with for a while. The lack of discussion opportunities may drive you crazy, but you can pull through with a little patience. Which leads us to number three...

3. Suggest it to your friends

Simple step. That you won't have someone with whom discuss the series will force you to suggest the books to your friends at every opportunity. You're being a good friend by keeping them current and culturally relevant (or at least this is what you can tell yourself). But know that you may not convince all your friends to read the new vampire-dystopian-whatever novel. Pfft. Their loss.

4. Research the book… cautiously

If you really need someone with whom discuss the ending, you should look on the Internet to see what others have said. This is a perfectly healthy, logical step for those of us in the 21st century who use the Interwebs to connect to others. I suggest this cautiously, though, since you don't want to become an message board troll.

5. Wait for the movie to come out

YA books are currently hot-hot-hot for adaptation. The movie version allows you another opportunity to talk about your obsession and a window to convince your hold-out friend that she should read the book (because, naturally, you can't see the movie without reading the source material first).

And, when all else fails, just repeat step one.

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