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Genre
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NeilBarker
 13 Dec 2008, 15:10 #52815 Reply To Post
I just wanted to quickly post this to ask whether the writers on here feel as though they are typecast by genre, (even though most aren't published, nor mainstream).

The reason that I ask is because my first novel is a fantasy novel more than anything, but (as you can see from my website) I don't just want to be stuck in one genre feeling as though I always have to write about that kind of work. I am in the middle of reviewing a piece on here and it is about a writer who is asked about a follow up book to his first book and when it's said it's not in the same genre as the first and he doesn't want to be labelled, they don't want to know.

I have just started writing my second novel "Pieces of a Dream" and it is a crime novel (I hope), which will be completely different to the fantasy novel, The Angel of Darkness.

Do you think that will be a good thing, or a negative? I want to write all kinds of things, but how realistic is that really? Or will it all depend on how successful I may or may not become?
"Sometimes a little ambition goes a long way"


http://neilbarker.webs.com/

Ais
 13 Dec 2008, 16:20 #52824 Reply To Post
Perhaps this should be one for Cygnet over in the 'Let's Talk Agents' thread, but I think that writing as many genres as you like is a fine thing - how the publishers might see that, well... I think your proposed book is closer to the truth.

As far as I understand it, publishers want same-genre work from authors because of the guaranteed sales a genre or writer's name will bring in - if that is still the case, I'm not sure. Years ago Gore Vidal was a Nebula Award nominee, and another genre author (can't remember the name) won it some years later, neither are noted for being SF/F writers.
Work as if you live in the early days of a better nation - Alasdair Gray
timellis
 13 Dec 2008, 16:48 #52828 Reply To Post
Neil

From what I've read, agents/publishers don't like you to switch genre. Many authors do, but they have another name. With my two books I've used Tim Ellis for my sci fi novel, and TS Ellis for my historical. But I also write in other genres as well (Fantasy, Crime, Horror, etc). I was reading the profile of Iain Banks (SciFi) and he's swapped genre and writes as IM Banks, so I thought I'd do the same.
NeilBarker
 13 Dec 2008, 17:45 #52838 Reply To Post
Thanks for the replies. I thought that using another name for different genres of novel would be the way to go when approaching publishers, I know of a lot of authors who have done it - I just wanted to see what others thought.
"Sometimes a little ambition goes a long way"


http://neilbarker.webs.com/

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