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Your genre

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Chase Gamwell

Chase Gamwell

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I joined Litopia with a firm grasp on what I perceived my preferred genre to be - Science Fiction.

Now that I'm part of a community that is helping me to grow and develop, I'm finding myself branching out into other genres and writing styles (thanks daily flash fiction!). This year, I decided to take part in NaNoWriMo. I took an idea for a science fiction story I had in mind and somehow turned it into a mystery novel. The genre is really enjoyable and I see myself developing other works in this field moving forward (maybe I can finally do a Blade Runner-esque noir mystery novel now :D ).

My question for everyone is this: What is your preference genre of writing? Is that different from when you first started writing? How did that change happen?

I'm really interested to hear what everyone has to say since I had little interest in mysteries not too long ago...now I'm thinking about reading heavily into the genre to see what I've missed!
 
I originally started writing Middle Grade focused on sci-fi. Then a young girl called Alys began entering my thoughts and she stared to display a special set of skills an ability to 'read' people through their body language so precisely that she started using her skill to solve mysteries in a series of stand alone stories for YA - Mystery genre. Set in Tudor times in and around Wales, the Arcanes of Alys began to form in my thoughts. Her over arching mystery is to solve the one beguiling case - the death of her parents. The one case that haunts her with clues scattered in each novel.

I am a planner as you can see from the above. I like to 'see' the big picture and know where I am going. I think try to focus on the minutia detail. I visited Wales and collected material to support a slither of beginners research. Once I complete the Elemons novels I will continue with the Arcanes of Alys mysteries.

So although I like to plan once I have an idea - I don't actually plan on having an idea until I do! :D
 
Personally, I've recently decided that I don't much care for the genre designation. Every fiction book I've read was a mystery of some sort, they just happen to take place in Space. Or they have higher tech level than we do now. All fiction takes place in space...the space between your ears...o_O (in my case it's a vacuum).

I have turned my hand to a Sci-fi with magic in it (still in progress), but it is different than I usually write. I've recently taken to answering "What genre do you write?" with "Fiction".
 
I thought it was just plain ol' fantasy but then I learned it was urban fantasy that was a little on the surreal side. I'll take it! That being said, I'm currently cowriting a gothic horror and once I've written QND, I'll move to the YA mystery I've been thinking about. I don't think I want to just stay in one genre, kind of like what Stephen Drake said, I just like writing fiction I guess. Well, and non-fiction turn kinda fiction (I had a blog about caring for axolotls written by one of my axolotls). I think the genres I'll most likely always fall back in are fantasy and horror. I would be rubbish at Sci-fi because I know so little about it.
 
Stephen Drake said:
Personally, I've recently decided that I don't much care for the genre designation. Every fiction book I've read was a mystery of some sort, they just happen to take place in Space. Or they have higher tech level than we do now. All fiction takes place in space...the space between your ears...o_O (in my case it's a vacuum).

I have turned my hand to a Sci-fi with magic in it (still in progress), but it is different than I usually write. I've recently taken to answering "What genre do you write?" with "Fiction".
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I know what you mean. I don't look at genre when I buy and in a bookshop would head for the general fiction shelving. I said so to @AgentPete once and was told it's for Marketing reasons. It comes down to shelving. Publishers have shelves in mind when they consider a title. Where in Foyles/Waterstones etc would this be displayed?
 
Mainly fantasy for me; elves, faeries, witches and dragons. However, I've deviated from this several times into horror and supernatural -from vampire fiction that never pans out right, to a zombie short story I scribbled down years ago. I'll give anything a go, if I think of an interesting character or plot.
 
Scottish Mythical Fantasy full of Scottishy Scottishnes :D I kinda decided that there was no specific shelf I would put my books on, and seen as there are so many of them (my books not shelves lol) I decided to make a shelf of my own :p the Scottish Mythical Fantasy Shelf :D for Adult books written in YA style that are not YA or NA but Adult and that are a blend of history and mythology and fiction.

I always wanted to write fantasy, glad I eventually did :)
 
1408 said:
gothic horror
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Love the idea of this genre, but wouldn't even know where to start. Either way, I love it when the atmosphere is a character...mmm gothic. :)

Karen Gray said:
blend of history and mythology and fiction
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Do you incorporate local mythology? I can't say I know anything about Scottish mythology. Sounds interesting. Also...you could have just said "I'm a badass and made up my own genre." :P
 
Chase Gamwell said:
Love the idea of this genre, but wouldn't even know where to start. Either way, I love it when the atmosphere is a character...mmm gothic. :)



Do you incorporate local mythology? I can't say I know anything about Scottish mythology. Sounds interesting. Also...you could have just said "I'm a badass and made up my own genre." :p
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Haha! I sooo am! POW!

Lol Yes I do. I have local history, Celtic mythology and even my own take on creation theory ;) @Jason Byrne has had a read at the rough for that because we start back then in the 3rd series (books 11-15)
 
Katie-Ellen Hazeldine said:
I know what you mean. I don't look at genre when I buy and in a bookshop would head for the general fiction shelving. I said so to @AgentPete once and was told it's for Marketing reasons. It comes down to shelving. Publishers have shelves in mind when they consider a title. Where in Foyles/Waterstones etc would this be displayed?
Click to expand...
Yeah, that's the reason they ask for genre, which is also why authors should have a very clear understanding of where their book fits. Agents don't like to hear four different genres nor do they like to hear "I don't know."

As for me, all of my novels are thrillers, but my short stories are all over the place. Police procedural, suspense, children's superhero, etc. I love the suspense genre; I just also love blowing things up, so thrillers is the best fit for me. However, I would love to try my hand at horror. Maybe just a short story or maybe a full book, but one day I'd like to be able to scare people like Stephen King ;)
 
Karen Gray said:
Because it keeps me sane dear ;) I had a really rough year last year. REALLY rough. Know what I did? I wrote 3 novels.
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I hear you. That's why I started writing - catharsis. Had a rough year the year I started writing too. Before that, I was apathetic enough about my skill to get frustrated and quit, but I pushed through and look at me now! I've completely filled up my gmail inbox emailing my own stuff to myself! :eek:
 
Chase Gamwell said:
You totally had me here. Also, for some reason I picture you writing books that play out like the movie True Lies. :D
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I've never seen True Lies, but it has Schwarzenegger in it so it's now on my list :) And anything with him in it is probably pretty close to what I write... minus the sci-fi piece of Terminator. :)
 
Nicole Wilson said:
I've never seen True Lies, but it has Schwarzenegger in it so it's now on my list :) And anything with him in it is probably pretty close to what I write... minus the sci-fi piece of Terminator. :)
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WHAT? How can you not have seen that movie?!?!?!? It has Arnold AND Jamie Lee Curtis! And it is a James Cameron film! I cannot stress how important this movie is to people who love...well...anything. It's so good! SO GOOD!

*ends rant*

I'd honestly suggest you take a look. Probably one of my favorite action films of all time...
 
When I closed my business in order to write (well, and so I wouldn't start swearing at my clients, which I was about to do...), my plan was to write non-fiction--I've got a dozen half-written non-fiction book proposals sitting in a file. But I had started a YA novel years before, and wanted to finish that first...next thing I knew, I had a dozen MG/YA fantasy/scifi novels knocking around in my head. Ack! I wrote one adult, chick-lit sort of book--barf! It totally didn't turn out like I wanted it to, but it was a good exercise in developing character arcs--I was too plot-oriented before. Some day I know I will write those non-fiction books--but it takes so much confidence to create a proposal! I don't have that sort of confidence...yet.
 
Carol Rose said:
I think it's fun to try new genres, but some (most?) of us are drawn to writing certain ones, and I believe there's a reason for that. It's what we're meant to write. :) I know when I try to force the writing, it doesn't turn out well. Sometimes we have to let these things take on a life of their own and see where they lead us. :)
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True. If you're forcing it, it's probably wrong for you.
 
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