Genre defined: A category of artistic, musical, or literary composition characterized by a
particular style, form or content. — Merriam-Webster Dictionary
I
have been plagued by this term since my first novel, Echoes of Ellen, was published in 2007. Prior to its being accepted by SynergEbooks, I
sent out twenty-four query letters to publishers of fiction. The specifications
posed by each publisher included my placing Ellen
in a genre. I looked for genre descriptions in writers' journals as well as on
the Internet; Ellen's content did not
fit into any genre and finally I placed it in the catchall genre, Contemporary Literature
(and that turned out to be wrong also). I believe that this cast the shadow of
doom on my work although none of the rejection notices listed the lack of a
correct genre specifically as the reason for turning down my novel. The only
reason that Debi Staples, publisher of SynerEbooks, accepted Ellen was because she liked my writing
style. Ellen went through two
editions.
Since
Ellen was published the ebook market
has leveled off and now is on a par with print books after eclipsing them in
sales for five years in a row. In order to keep abreast of this change I have
decided to put seven of my eight works into print. So the question of which
book belongs in what genre has come up again. Since my initial research in
2007, the core ingredients within each genre have changed little, however a
flexibility that broadens each category has arisen that favors five of my seven
books; (see the genres listed on my business card above.) The two books that do
not fit comfortably into any genre are Ellen
and The Rental, both similar in
nature, both having very positive reader reviews, but both are enjoying,
unfortunately, a very limited readership. But I am afraid that Mainstream
Fiction will have very little meaning for genre addicts, who appear to make up
the largest share of the book-buying public.
This
opinion is based on my considerable experience presenting myself and my works
at book signings, meet the author, and book fairs. A potential buyer will approach
me with the question, "What kind of books do you write?" I usually
answer, as humbly as possible, "Very good books." The questioner's
immediate response issued with a look that implies,” ‘No you idiot, I mean...'
Do you write Mysteries, Romances, Science Fiction, etc.?" And I don't know
how to answer that question because none of my books follow the classic,
lock-step formulas that are indicative of the books in each of those and other
genres. If it were not for the current flexibility, my titles would all have to
be relegated to Mainstream Fiction instead of just two.
As a
novelist, I must read almost as much as I write. My workday generally includes three
hours each of reading the works of other authors and writing my own books,
short stories, or recently my blogs. I read eclectically American and British
classical and modern authors, in a number of genres including Sci-Fi, Mystery,
Teen Lit, Romance (usually classical), Horror, and I've even read some Chic
Lit. The majority of authors seem to follow the formulae prescribed by the major
tenets of their respective genres and the outcomes of their stories are usually
very predictable. For readers to limit themselves only to authors within one or
two genres is to deny themselves the opportunity to discover a good author and
a great book because it is classified as General Fiction. [Recent popular
General Fiction books listed on goodreads
that I have read are The Da Vinci
Code, The Lovely Bones, The Help,
Life of Pi, and The Kite Runner to name a few. So Echoes of Ellen and The Rental are in good company.]
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