On social media sites, bios in my books, and my website I
state that I am a multi-media author. Meaning I write stories in different
genre styles rather than mixing genre within one story, although there is
always overlap. This makes marketing
difficult because my website is not geared towards one type of reader, and in
my newsletter, I am always trying to be interesting to people who like
different things and still keep it short.
All the advice when I started to write books for publication
suggested this was a bad move. Authors whose websites were up there in the’
best author website’ lists were all one genre focused, or they wrote different
genres under different names. Good idea.
Did I take any notice of the advice? No.
Why not? It felt false to write under different names…no that’s not
true and I want to be honest with you. The real reason is I’d have to remember which
part of my personality would need to be at the forefront every time I wrote, and
as I am still figuring out who I am with one name, well, I think I’d be even
more of a mess with multiple names.
And imagine all the ideas for stories I’d have to fend off. It’s bad enough now with one open door, but if I had three doors open it would be a flood. I’d have multiple notebooks with a story premise, but nothing completed. I know some of you are thinking but surely an open door with multiple genres would generate more ideas than three focussed ones. Yep, you’re probably right, but one door means there is only space for one idea to come through at a time. Or that’s what I tell myself. ( Doors are fascinating, we'll chat about them another time though. I'm trying to stay focused.)
I also think readers are clever and can work out what genre each book is in and then decide to buy it or not depending on their preference. It does mean I may not get repeat buyers, which I should be aiming for as that is the point of a newsletter. Ah well.
Despite all the sensible advice, I write in different genres
under the same name, especially in my flash fiction books (again a big no no it
seems, but I enjoy the reviews and comments- one person liking the fantasy,
another the horror, another hating the weird stories!) I could continue to create more reasons why
but really, I didn’t have a choice.
You see, I cannot control which story wants to be written
first, it tends to be the character who jumps up and down waving their hands,
shouting ‘pick me, pick me,’ the loudest, or the most annoying character who distracts
me from anything else I want to do. And once the character is out, I cannot
twist their tale to fit a specific genre other than the one it is. It’s bad enough having characters in my head
arguing with the words I use, convincing me their tale needs to be told first,
and sulking when I make life hard for them, but how much worse would that be if
they started a rebellion due to genre prejudice? Or, and this is a horrifying
thought (my hand is shaking, and I pause, should this even be put in black and white,
will it give them ideas?) What if they left me for another writer?
It’s not worth the risk, so marketing continues to be a
struggle, but I keep sane. I think.
Recently several famous and well-known authors have slipped
from their comfort zones and write in new genres. I guess after you have
written thirty plus books in the same style it could get boring, so I don’t
blame them for following my lead and making my bad choice look trendy. They, of
course, already have cruise boats full of readers and fans, many of whom will
cross the oceans with the author because they like the writing style.
My fleet of rowing boats have different coloured striped awnings to keep off the sun and rain. They are more eco-friendly than a cruise boat. Quieter. More personal. Not as safe in a storm, but they do link together with my name which creates stability. Sort of.
I’ve always read different genres, because it’s the story that’s important to me not the style it is written in, although I do tend to keep and reread more fantasy books than any other. Re-reading a mystery or crime novel when I know the answers is not so much fun as being immersed in a fantasy world where I tend to forget what is going to happen next.
The benefits of being a multi-genre author are… there are always benefits...
Whatever genre you write in, your voice will be
recognisable, the questions you explore, the emotions you evoke will be in each,
and if readers like your voice and identify with your characters and their problems,
then they may decide to step from one genre rowing boat to another.
You can experiment with genres and cross overs too.
You are writing what you want to.
Your characters will love you, forever, because you listened
to them.
It doesn’t matter to me which genre my character’s stories
are because I just love to write. It energises me, but that’s another chat…
Thank you for reading my Blog, you can find more about me here...
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