Bologna fair: YA trends and rights
Agents and rights directors at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair say 'romantasy' remains a leading category in YA deals while middle‑grade appears to be staging a comeback, according to Publishers Weekly. (publishersweekly.com). BolognaBookPlus also opened with a seminar on rights and licensing that covered options, shopping agreements and what organizers called the industry’s 'great divide' in rights practice. (publishingperspectives.com)
At the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, young adult rights buyers are still chasing fantasy romance, while agents say middle-grade is drawing fresh attention again. (publishersweekly.com) Publishers Weekly reported on April 13 that agents, scouts, and rights directors at this year’s fair pointed to “romantasy,” dystopia, and fantasy as the hottest requests in young adult deals. Stimola Literary Studio’s Erica Rand Silverman also said buyers were showing interest in older middle grade and younger young adult books. (publishersweekly.com) Writers House’s Alessandra Birch said the young adult fantasy market is dominated by a few big-name authors, making new breakouts harder, and pushing interest toward genre blends such as fantasy-thrillers and horror. In middle grade, she said the strongest sellers are short illustrated series of about 30,000 words or less, with humorous plots and doodle-style art. (publishersweekly.com) Those conversations matter because Bologna is one of the main global marketplaces for children’s publishing rights, where publishers test what can travel across languages and territories. The 2025 fair drew 33,318 trade visitors and 1,577 exhibitors from 95 countries, according to fair organizers. (publishingperspectives.com; bolognachildrensbookfair.com) The 2026 fair runs from April 13 to 16 in Bologna, alongside BolognaBookPlus and the Bologna Licensing Trade Fair/Kids. Organizers describe the three events as a combined hub for copyright exchange across publishing, licensing, illustration, animation, and multimedia. (bolognachildrensbookfair.com; bolognachildrensbookfair.com) BolognaBookPlus, now in its sixth year, opened with programming aimed at the business side of rights, including training on how to sell rights and understand licensing in children’s books. Its 2026 agenda also added WritersLab, a new area for authors that includes workshops on rights handling. (publishersweekly.com; bolognachildrensbookfair.com) That rights focus reflects how many book deals now stretch beyond translation into film, television, games, and brand licensing. Publishing Perspectives reported before the fair that Bologna’s rights structure has expanded into multiple dedicated trading hubs, including areas for general trade publishing, licensing, and screen adaptation. (publishingperspectives.com; publishingperspectives.com) Agents also described pressure inside the international market itself. Birch said growing English-language export sales are eroding some translation sales, leading some foreign publishers to make sharply reduced offers or no offers at all. (publishersweekly.com) So the fair opened with two linked questions: what kinds of children’s books buyers want now, and what kinds of rights contracts can still make those books pay. In Bologna this week, both answers are being negotiated at the same tables. (publishersweekly.com; bolognachildrensbookfair.com)
