The Genre Mix

For works of fiction, multiple genre listings are encouraged in hopes of expanding readership prospects. Last year, my Goodreads Reading Challenge selections included a novel with ten genres tagged by readers! My first novel, UNEARTHING CHRISTMAS, had a Goodreads listing of one genre “Christmas.” For marketing purposes, my former publisher classified it as Young Adult, Fantasy, and Southern Fiction on her website. The UNEARTHING CHRISTMAS press release mentioned the target audience as ages 13 and up, young adult, and mature adults of all ages who enjoy American history, Christian inspirational, fantasy, and adventure. In 2022, UNEARTHING CHRISMAS hit the Amazon Best Sellers’ list in the Teen and Young Adult Christian Sci Fi subgenre.  What a surprise since the novel was depublished in August meaning only a limited number of used copies were available for purchase!

Yet, many literary agents wag a finger at the multiple genre query letter. If pitching your story as, “a little bit of this, a little bit of that and a smidgen of some other genre” the mix could leave agents believing there’s really NO inherent audience! I discovered a Writer’s Digest online article from July 12, 2010 entitled “The Do’s and Don’ts of Combining Genres by Joanna Stampfel-Volpe.  (Yes, it’s dated but still relevant!) She quoted Diana Fox of Fox Literary, “Genre is essentially a marketing tool. It’s a category marker that tells us in which section in the bookstore your book will be sold.” Well, I have my own story on that one too! When UNEARTHING CHRISTMAS was added to the shelves of a few local Barnes & Noble stores, I found it under Young Adult Romance. Huh? The story doesn’t hit the inherent romance tropes, i.e., enemies to lovers, childhood sweethearts, second chance love, etc. I wondered if it related to the original publication’s back cover blurb. The last sentence said, “Lori’s and Peggy’s worlds collide with a meeting ground between the past and present and a fate-filled adventure to self-awareness, forgiveness, and redemptive love.” Hmmm…. Could that be interpreted as romance?? The description was meant to be on a spiritual level with a healthy dose of fantasy in the plotline.  So, when it was republished, I changed the blurb. Now, I’m hoping its modest success and positive reviews, thus far, will attract the interest of a new publisher.

As a reader, I’m open to any and all genres.  I intersperse whatever my sister’s book club is reading with anything that catches my interest, old or new. I also adopted the habit of checking out “Little Free Libraries” that popped up in neighborhoods, notably during the first years of the COVID-19 pandemic. The “take a book, share a book” concept was great fun. One urban “Little Free Library” was so creatively constructed that it drew me in like a magnet. I’d check out the contents a few times per week.  Of course, I ended up with more books added to my “to be read” pile.

According to the aforementioned article, most readers adhere to their favorite genres. As Stampfel-Volpe stated, “Genre fans turn to their books for a particular kind of escape, whether it be solving a mystery, becoming lost in another world, or feeling swept up in a romance.”  Obviously, as a fiction writer, to know your genre is to READ your genre. In her article, Stampfel-Volpe added, “Reading other books like your own will help you figure out where your story falls, provide you with a good sense of the conventions of the genre, and give you an arsenal of comparison titles to use in your query when the time comes.”  Many publisher submission forms will require a list of books similar to yours and even ask why you believe so!

First, Stampfer-Volpe recommended identifying the base genre before splintering off into subgenres. She likened it to a soup with a “base flavor” of the most recognized being mystery, romance, fantasy, science fiction, literary, horror, historical, thriller, comedy, and drama. Once you’ve decided upon the primary genre, the subgenres are the added ingredients for enhanced flavor! I think of a pumpkin pie that would be quite bland without the added pumpkin pie spice which is really a blend of about five different spices!

Subgenres are being invented and reinvented all the time! I checked some of the most popular subgenres to date. For instance, under the genre Science Fiction, you’ll find several subgenres: Alien Invasion, Dystopian, Colonization, Cyberpunk, Time Travel, and several more. I chose Science Fiction since my first novel UNEARTHING CHRISTMAS landed in a subgenre of “Teen and Young Adult Christian Sci Fi” which defied any search but, no doubt, does exist!

No work of fiction fits neatly into a genre. I recently read CLOUD CUCKOO LAND by the gifted author Anthony Doerr. I found it difficult to classify, as if it were without a base genre! So I looked it up on Goodreads and discovered it’s listed as historical fiction, fantasy, and science fiction by readers who shelved it. But what is the main genre? If you’ve read it, you decide. I’m still trying to figure out the genre, although I enjoyed the diverese story threads!

When pitching your book to an agent or publicist. Stampfel-Volpe gave great advice in her article, “Agents would rather hear about a good story than be pitched a book an author has tried to label as something it’s not.” I think story development is more important than the genre. If you’re solely focused on hitting all the tropes you might miss the story’s most essential ingredient—character!!

If you go the traditional route with your novel, the publisher will, most likely, determine the genre and subgenres. If you self-publish, defining your genre will fall upon you as the writer, publisher, and marketer.! Either way, write the best story possible, and the readers will show up with glowing reviews! Believe in your story! Be your first best reader!! Happy writing!