Is There a Genre Barrier?

THERE'S A RULE IN PUBLISHING that has been around for a long time. Usually it’s an acquisition editor or agent giving advice to the writer. It goes something like this:

Writer: I have this great idea for an action-suspense novel.

Editor: But you’re a mystery suspense author.

Writer: So. A story is a story and that’s what I do. I write stories for people to read.

Editor: But if you switch genres it will confuse your audience.

Author: Why?

Editor: Because it will. Everyone knows that.

This isn’t an effort to make editors sound stupid. They’re not. They’re very bright and extremely talented, but they, like all of us, are a product of the industry. As such, certain ideas creep in and stay.

Is it wrong for a novelist to write across genres? Is it career suicide for a mystery writer to pen a western? Is a gritty crime writer tricking her readers if she writes suspense/mystery? What if a science fiction author has a killer idea for political intrigue?

It is true that some well known novelists have sneaked over the wall of their chosen genre and had a go at something different and met with trouble. I think of Robin Cook, a bestselling medical-thriller man, but who also tried his hand at other things (Sphynx, Abduction, and Invasion). Did those books hurt his later sales? Only Cook and his publisher know for certain but I doubt it.

The late Michael Crichton has stretched his wings with other genres and even screenplays (as well as being the creator of the TV hit ER). True, almost all have some connection to technology gone wild, but there is a big difference between Jurassic Park and State of Fear.

I wonder about these things. Some authors take on a pseudonym when crossing the invisible boundaries of genre. Stephen King wrote as Richard Bachman; Dean Koontz wrote science fiction before settling into his sometimes horror, sometimes suspense, sometimes supernatural-thrillers. A man of Koontz’s talent can’t be expected to sit in a box.

Maybe it’s because I grew up in the seventies that I resist being pigeonholed. For me, it’s all about the story. Story is what matters in this business. I think readers are smart enough to know that writers are artists and artists have to peek over the hedge from time to time.

Al

Comments

[DanzierLea]

Mark Twain managed to jump genres, too. I suspect it's an ingrained marketing ploy editors, agents, and publishing houses use to hang on to their genuine producers.

[Lois Hudson]

I appreciate your comments on genre here. I have just finished one stand-alone novel, but I have four more "in the works" that will be a different genre, but will relate to each other. Thank you for your encouragement.