So much to think about here and so much I could comment on — with two intentional YA novels under my belt and with my agent, and several more adult-themed novels looking for representation.

When the major publishing houses did away with their gay or LGBT imprints, lots of LGBT genre authors felt pressure to either shoehorn themselves into YA or compete as “literary” novelists, with all that implies about selling to a more general audience and adhering to a sort of elitist way of writing.

The result has been that the bulk of good LGBT fiction being sold today is sold as YA.

I realize this isn’t entirely on point with what you’ve written, but it is a gripe I have and that other LGBTQ fiction writers have.