YA may have blown up over the past decade, but it used to be a small section of bookstores. In the early nineties, it consisted mostly of "teen thrillers," which mostly featured dark mysteries and serial killers, although there was some supernatural fare as well. The authors of those days were ahead of their time and built an audience in teenagers, and paved the way for the YA that is beloved by so many today. I think that what drew me personally to YA was my love for horror movies. Growing up, I would stay up late watching Friday the 13th marathons and renting slasher films from the video stores. I think that when I actually read some teen thrillers and realized that they were in the same vein as the movies that I loved so much, I became obsessed. I'd always really enjoyed reading, but I become a voracious reader with YA books, and blew through the teen sections of bookstores quickly. YA Pioneers Nicole Davidson was one of my favorite YA authors growing up,