rachel gardner

This article is a tribute to two people: Johnny Cash, who has forever given us a tune by which to walk the line, and to the publishing professionals who deal on a daily basis with the interaction of genre and market. Okay, so it’s a tribute to many, many people.

The question on genre and trends comes down to this: as a first-time author, should I write based on what genres or styles are popular now, or should I create something original and hope it appeals to a large audience?

The frustrating, but generally true, answer is a little of this, a little of that. There are a few guidelines that can assist you in making the choice of what to write, but they are guidelines only. Very few things are hard-and-fast in this industry. But as an unknown writer, consider these things:

1. Choose one genre. You have a dozen ideas in as many genres? That’s wonderful. Now choose one. Yes, just one. You may not decide which one it is until after writing a couple of books and getting a feel for your style and strengths and even interests. But it is very rare to successfully cross genres, and then only once you’ve established yourself in one. When you query agents or publishers, choose your best writing. Be honest.Read Rachelle Gardner’s “Ask the Agent: Writing in Multiple Genres”: http://cba-ramblings.blogspot.com/2009/02/ask-agent-writing-in-multiple-genres.html
2. Be passionate about your genre. The last thing you need to do is pick a ‘popular’ genre that you really could care less about and try to write that genre. Readers can sniff out ignorance and apathy from a mile away. Especially if it’s nonfiction, but most certainly in fiction as well. If science-fiction or paranormal romance or political thrillers aren’t your cup of tea, don’t try to write them because they’re ‘hot’ or selling well.Read Alan Rinzler’s “Finding Your Voice”: http://www.alanrinzler.com/blog/2009/03/22/ask-the-editor-8-tips-for-finding-your-voice/
3. Consider your genre’s audience. Even once you have a genre in mind—be it historical romance or urban fantasy or dystopian sci-fi—you haven’t yet cleared the hurdle. You must understand the audience of these types of books. What are they interested in reading within the genre? What do they like and dislike? Do your research: find out their favorite blogs, magazines, websites, TV shows, etc. All will give you ideas for formulating your book to match their expectations.Read through the posts of the Query Shark, who looks first and foremost for who is going to read this book: http://queryshark.blogspot.com/
4. Know the genre of bestsellers, past and present. Take a look at the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers, as well as bestselling books on Amazon.com or at your local bookstore. A few years worth of data (which can often be found in easy, condensed form) will tell you the current trends, last year’s trends, and so on, and so forth. You need to be knowledgeable about those trends, and once you are, certain patterns will emerge. Some books don’t go out of style, or have metamorphosed over the years but remain essentially the same content.Read Agent Kristin’s “Market Savvy”: http://pubrants.blogspot.com/2007/03/market-savvy.html
5. Target agents or publishers who specialize in your genre. I’ve seen agents and publishers complain about this time and time again: authors who don’t do their research and blindly submit or query to multiple people in hopes of getting a yes. There are people or companies who focus on certain genres. Because they do so, they know more about the market, about how to package and how to sell, and these are your best bets as an unknown author. Read Colleen Lindsay’s “Query Dissection”: http://theswivet.blogspot.com/2008/08/query-dissection-kelly-gays-better-part.html
6. What once was, may not be again (for a while). You know what’s hot. Twilight. James Patterson. [Insert celebrity confessional here]. Business books with clever titles by crazy-haired men. But that’s today and today is, especially now, ever-more fluid and changeable when it comes to what genre or style the audience has a taste for. A certain predominant genre will certainly influence the market for a few years, but not forever. Consider that books can take from 12 to 24 months to be published and enter the marketplace, and this is after you’ve found an agent or a publisher. Think about that timeline. Will your book still be timely, relevant, excite peoples’ interest?Read Rachelle Gardner’s “What’s In, What’s Out”: http://cba-ramblings.blogspot.com/search/label/Trends
   
7. Be original. The popular saying is that no idea is original, and that may be so. It’s all about execution—especially when you’re writing in a trendy genre, and especially when there may be similarities between storylines, characters, concepts etc. Angst-filled vampire teens? A cook’s experience in France? Freaky economics? Readers don’t want the pale pastiche of a beloved book. They want a familiar subject recreated into something entirely new. And as for creating an original genre—do try to avoid this. It happens very rarely. You’ll find that most of your ideas fit into one particular genre or sub-genre.Read Nathan Bransford’s “On Concepts”: http://blog.nathanbransford.com/2009/04/on-concepts.html

Again, these are only guidelines with which to help you walk the line of the genre you write and the market you write for. You have to find the most comfortable balancing act between the two.