Thursday 2 February 2012

Genres

Genres I understand

Webster’s Dictionary defines genre as a ‘… a category of art or literature characterised by a certain form, style, subject matter or atmosphere.’

It is a mystery to me that people who write, know so certainly which genre they are writing to. I am amazed that writers limit themselves to such a degree. Books might fall into certain genres, but I do not understand why a writer puts themselves there. I have a deep suspicion that these labels lead to formulaic writing, doomed to rejection through lack of freshness regardless of the writing talent. Genres have become the clichés of style.

I write stories. Where they fall depends on all those things but they do not define what I write when I start something new.  I don’t want to write to a recipe, I don’t want to conform for form’s sake. Surely it’s like saying to a chef, you can only cook fish entrees or only vegetable soups or tagliatelle or pork chops etc. Does this mean I have not found my niche? That my writing has not developed enough to master specialised disciplines? Perhaps. I don’t know. It’s like music these days – there are so many narrow labels and they all end up sounding the same in any one genre. Oh for the 60s and 70s when diversity reigned. In my youth there were broad categories which allowed originality within and crossover without. You were not defined by your music choices as people are now. I feel the same is happening to writing.

I understand the need for publishers and bookstores to create order and so genres for marketing, but that is the end product.

As a writer, you sit down and begin to write because you have an idea, be it a story, a character, a setting or a what if idea. Who knows the best form to realise that idea until you start? I am writing my first novel which started as the story of the dynamics between three sisters, but along came a murder and a policeman, who might fall in love with one of the sisters. He is a bad cop but he is a good man. So far nothing is resolved. Not sure if it will be. It’s not a crime novel, it’s not a romance, it’s not even well done. So far. But I will work until I have resolved those issues and made it as good as I can write it.
Check this website genre list - scroll down to the alphabetical list - oh please!

absurdist

Gothic

Sci-fi


paranormal romance



Space opera

Genre starter kit!

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