The Spectrum of Genre

Whenever I meet a writer for the first time, the conversation often turns to what genre we read and write. Will we be able to find some common ground from which we can build a connection — other than the fact that we're both writers?

When I first started out on my editing career, I would encounter the odd person who insisted that they didn't write a genre. They wrote fiction. To this, I would nod and smile — and gauge whether they would be receptive to a quick education. But now, the writers I encounter seem to understand that fiction is marketed based on genre. It is important for a writer to understand the ins and outs of their specific genre and subgenre. Get it wrong, and the fans of those subgenres will flay you alive.

In today's post, we going to take a quick look at the spectrum of genre.

The Main Genres of Fiction

The main genres of fictional literature are:

• Romance
• Women's Fiction
• Fantasy
• Science Fiction
• Comedy
• Tragedy
• Mystery/Crime
• Horror
• Suspense/Thriller
• Historical (i.e. Western, Edwardian, Medieval, etc.)

Each of these genres has a list of subgenres and crossovers that can seriously do the head in just thinking about it. But in today's post, we're going to look at some of the subgenres found in romance, fantasy, science fiction and thrillers. We'll also take a brief look at what women's fiction actually is.

Trust me when I say that the list presented in this post is far from an exhaustive list. New subgenres are always on the rise and traditional genres are constantly redefined based on trends in the marketplace.

Before we get too carried away, I should mention that there is another classification for fiction which is not really a genre per se, but it describes the nature of the writing included. That class is literary. I won't go into detail of literary fiction here, except to say that it is a poetic style of narrative and often experimental. For this post, we will stick with commercial genre fiction. I know it can be confusing, but there really is a logical difference between literary, commercial and upmarket fiction.

I also want to mention creative nonfiction can also read like commercial genre fiction, blurring the lines a genre even future. Some common creative nonfiction subgenres include memoirs, biographies, autobiographies (which memoir is a subset of), and true crime.

Today, for the sake of my sanity, we're going to focus on fiction. So, let's see if we can make some sense of the genre spectrum.

Romance

The main plot of any romance novel focuses on the romantic relationship between two (or more) characters — traditionally dubbed the hero and the heroine. The story must finish in a positive and optimistic way with the main characters hooking up in the end, or it is NOT a romance. Romantic stories that end with the romantic parties going their separate ways (even if one character dies) are classified as Women's Fiction. (More about women's fiction in a moment.)

There are so many subgenres of romance that I've lost count, but here are just a few.

• Contemporary romance involves any romance that takes in the modern world. You will encounter some definitions that say that contemporary stories are any stories that are post-World War II, but as we move further and further away from the 1950s and 1960s, those stories have taken on the historical category. (Personally, I would say that any setting that exists prior to an author's lifetime would be historical. That means that for me, the 1970s is borderline, because I was born in 1976.)
• Historical romance is a broad category as the historical period can be in any era, ranging from ancient societies through to the early-20th century. Regency romance is a particular subset of historical romance, as too is gothic romance.
• Romantic suspense is a romantic story that contains elements of mystery, crossing the romance genre with Suspense/Thriller. However, it is important that the romance thread is pivotal to the story. Without the romance thread, the story should fall apart. Romantic suspense often has a crime component, but not always. Edge of Trush by Brynn Kelly is a romantic suspense novel that centers around a journalist trying to escape imprisonment in Africa with the aid of a French Legionnaire.
• Paranormal romance is a blend of fantasy and romance. In these stories, the supernatural takes a front-row seat. (But for the sake of everyone's sanity, please think outside of vampires and werewolves.)
• LBGTQ+ romance are romance stories where the romantic couple is something other than a heterosexual couple. The full spectrum of sexual orientations can now be found in romance, and there is something for everyone.
• Sweet romance is any romance story that keeps the physical aspects of the romance to just hand holding and the odd kiss. There is no mention of sex, and certainly not on-screen.
• Erotic romance is the exact opposite to sweet romance, where the sex is open door and often leaves nothing to the imagination. However, do not mistake erotica for erotic romance. In an erotic romance, the story still needs to center around the emotions associated with the romantic thread. Without the romance itself, then it is not an erotic romance. Erotica tends to center around the sex and does not necessarily include a romance thread.
• Romantic comedy contains all the elements of romance, but presented in a comedic way. Laughter is the key here. Romantic comedy was big in the 1980s, and has recently seen a resurgence.

And that is only a few of the subgenres.

If someone was to say that they write category romance, what they mean is that they write stories that fit into one of the category lines published by Harlequin Mills & Boon. Each category has strict criteria, dictating not only the length of the story but the overall shape of the story and the tropes that can be used. They can be formulaic, but writing category romance takes a skill set of its own.

Be advised that category romance is traditionally 50,000 to 60,000 words, but standalone romance novels can be up to 100,000 words. Historical romances can be longer, depending on how much world building is required.

Women's Fiction

Women's fiction is an odd genre to define, because it's not really genre, but rather a generic classification that is often given to contemporary stories where the main character (often a female) must come to terms with some sort of loss.

Any romantic story that ends with tragedy is a women's fiction, but that doesn't mean that all women's fiction has a romantic plot. Sometimes, the story is one of self-discovery after the main character has had some tragedy in their lives, e.g., dealing with the death of a loved one.

Personally, I hate the term women's fiction, because it implies that only women read these books, which is sooo not true, but it is what it is, and if nothing else, it does tell us the nature of the story.

Triumph after tragedy is a common theme.

Women's fiction novels typically clock in somewhere between 80,000 to 100,000 words, but they can be as short as 50,000 words.

Fantasy

Fantasy uses magical or other supernatural elements as a main plot element within the story. Many fantasy stories are set in imaginary worlds, but they don't always have witches, elves, or magical rings. Again, there are many flavors of fantasy that one can easily get confused.

• Urban fantasy stories are set in a contemporary urban setting, most commonly within a city. Any supernatural creature in your modern-day city, and you're looking at this sub-genre. However, contemporary fantasy includes stories that are outside of the city.
• High fantasy (sometimes called epic fantasy) is where the stories are set in a "secondary" world that may have elements that resemble our own but is notably different. High fantasy stories commonly involve elves, goblins, dwarfs, demons and other such like creatures, but it is not necessary. One element that will always be found in a high fantasy is magic. A subset of high fantasy is sword and sorcery, which is where the steel of a blade is often pitted against magical creatures.
• Mystical realism will be a story set in the "real" world, but a small element will contain some magical quality. The magical element within this subgenre will be subtle. These stories need to possess a contemporary/historical feel with a twist.
• Portal fantasy stories start in the real world — until the main characters step through some sort of portal into a secondary world. The Wizard of Oz is your classic portal fantasy.
• Fairytale retellings are just that. They draw on fairytale elements, twisting them to suit the story.

Fantasy stories will clock in anywhere between 80,000 words and 120,000 words, sometimes more, depending on the reader age category and the level of world-building necessary.

Science Fiction

As the name suggests, science fiction contains scientific elements within its main plot. One can be talking about space travel, or virtual reality, or even just internet monsters who goggle up all the data on your computer. (Hmm... I might have to write one of those.)

The science can be soft or hard: filled with hand waving over the science, or getting down to the nitty-gritty of how the science works. An example of hard science fiction would be The Martian by Andy Weir. However, Isaac Asimov wrote soft science fiction.

Hint: Most readers of science fiction and fantasy prefer soft science fiction, but a good way to create believable hand-waving over the science is to focus on the science of one story element (ideally a semi-simple element), providing the hard details. That way your reader just accepts that you know the details about the more complicated stuff.

Regardless if you write soft or hard science fiction, the science background must be evident.

Common subgenres of science fiction include:

• Dystopian is traditionally a post-apocalypse setting, where the characters are trying to build the world again. In some dystopian stories, magic will play a role, bringing in the fantasy elements.
• Steampunk examines worlds where the machines, architecture and clothing designs are based on the 19-century industrial revolution.
• Space opera outlines the epic-dramatic space stories, often involving many fire fights between ships. (Star Trek and Star Wars are classic space operas.)
• Time travel novels typically span across multiple time periods, where the main character is travelling through time, just as the name suggests.
• Military science fiction will be a science fiction with strong military overtones to the story as a whole. The military hierarchy plays a strong role, as does weaponry and other elements typically associate with the military. (Star Trek is a military space opera.)
• Near-future science fiction will be stories that talk about internet crimes, virtual reality, hover cars and the like. It will be based on all the technologies that are just around the corner. The 2012 movie Total Recall with Colin Farrell would be a near-future science fiction. However, the 1990 version with Arnold Schwarzenegger would be closer to a space opera, even though the story centers around Mars. (The joys of scientific advancement: what was once way out there quickly becomes near-future.)

Like fantasies, science fiction stories will clock in anywhere between 80,000 words and 120,000 words, sometimes more, depending on the reader age category and the level of world-building necessary.

Thrillers

Thriller stories have the reader sitting on the edge of their seats, with the heart racing and desperate to know how the main character is going to get out of whatever trouble they have found themselves in. They are typically action based, with the plot being driven by external sources, even if those external sources are psychological. In addition, thrillers often contain violence.

The stories that are not so action-based and not so violent are typically called suspense novels. Suspense or thriller, it doesn't matter. It's all about tension and surprise. But if you ever wanted to know the real difference between suspense and thrillers: think the level of violence combined with how much information the reader knows about the antagonist and when.

While there are common tropes found within thrillers, the genre of thrillers is not really a genre. It pulls on the elements of other genres to build the tension within the story. In fact, it is recommended to add a classifier to the thriller tag to avoid the confusion that can exist. The list below applies to suspense novels too.

• Crime thriller is a crime/mystery story that is encased in a thriller shell. Commonly, these stories will involve homicide (often serial killers), but not always. The movie Now You See Me was a crime thriller centered around a heist.
• Military thriller incorporates military-type covert operations into the story. Brad Thor writes military thrillers.
• Psychological thrillers are the stories that play with the inner workings of one's mind. The idea is that the main character starts to think that they're crazy. The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn is a psychological crime thriller.
• Paranormal thrillers are stories that intertwine paranormal elements into a psychological thriller. They don't always need to be about ghosts or witches, or anything of that sort, but whatever is used will shift the story to sit on the verge of horror.
• Romantic suspense, as mentioned above, is a romantic story that contains elements of mystery, crossing the romance genre with Suspense/Thriller. However, it is important that the romance thread is pivotal to the story. Without the romance thread, the story should fall apart.

Thrillers, regardless of the subcategory, typically fall between 80,000 to 100,000 words. The sweet spot for contemporary settings is 95,000 words.

Trying to keep track of all the subgenres of all the main genres can give anyone a headache. Each subgenre has their own tropes and conventions, dictating how a story needs to be constructed. And if you deviate too far from reader expectations, the fans of that subgenre will attack you and your book.

Recommendation: Identify the main genre that you like to work in, then delve into the subgenres from there. Focus on what it is you want to write.

It's okay if your story straddles across multiple genres. Many writers do this, including myself. Welcome to the club! But understanding your particular subgenre will help you market the book in the future.