What is the easiest genre to get published in?

I don't think there is an easiest genre. Romance is a huge market, but that's because there are so many people out there who like to read and write it. That's the key. They like it. If you don't like it, it's not the genre for you. The way that you write it will show the reader that you dislike it and because you don't read it the book will likely be full of cliches that you, in your limited exposure to the genre, have decided are what make a successful romance. It will be a disaster. My advice is to stop worrying about finding an easiest genre because the easiest genre is going to be the one that you can excel at writing in which is likely to be the one you enjoy the most yourself as a reader. Can you imagine in Stephen King had tried to write romance novels instead of horror stories because he thought they were easier, if John Grisham decided legal thrillers were harder to break into and had spent all his time trying to write for Harlequin? Writers find success by writing in genres they love and excel in, not in genres they think are the easiest to get published in.

HeatherR said:

I read this thread about old tired cliches and I have to wonder if the romance genre -- a genre I don't read because I don't like it -- is the easiest genre for a first time author to get published in.

Click to expand...

There are no "gimmes" in the publishing business. If you prefer writing crime fiction, start there. Build a career first.

I know the thread you're talking about, and though there are some badly written romance novels out there (there's badly written everything out there), it's not an easy genre to write. My hat's off to writers who can do it well, and many can! I wrote one, it was published (a romantic suspense that was admittedly more suspense than romance because writing romance takes a special kind of skill that I apparently don't have), and now I stick to writing urban fantasy because I really love to read it and write it. That's what comprises the majority of the books on my many bookshelves. That said, there's always a bit of romance in all the stories I write. I can't imagine a genre book without at least some!

It takes special skill to write romance novel because the main plot of the story is the romance. It's very challenging to write a 90,000 to 100,000 word book focused primarily on a relationship between two people falling in love. I have a tremendous amount of admiration for anyone who can do this well. I've seen it done badly more often than not, which is why good romance stories are written by exceptionally skilled writers. Not just anyone can write one.

Don't try to write something you don't like to read. It will show, and everyone who reads it will hate it just as much as you do. Instead, try to think about why you want to write a novel in the first place. Start there and see where it takes you.

There is no such thing as an "easy" genre. If you don't like romance, don't write it because your feelings about the genre will definitely show. There are a lot of people who try writing romances because they think it's easy, but once they get into it, they realize it's more difficult than it appears, especially if they don't like romance to begin with.

Write what you enjoy reading. There are no sure things in publishing, so you have to enjoy the process or else it will be a miserable slog for you. Good luck!

What everyone else has already said (and a lot better than I could have.)

What you would find if you took the time to look through every genre forum (and it is a huge site, so I don't recommend that you actually do this.) is that every genre has old tired cliches and published books that people groan about, "Can you believe they actually published this crap?!?" You'll find them in Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, Thrillers, YA, etc. Romance does not have a monopoly on tired cliches and crappy published books.

IMHO Given the popularity of the Romance genre, that people write what they like to read, and all else being equal, I would think that it would be harder to break into and get published in the Romance genre than any other. (Though I could be wrong. *shrug*)

Don't write a bad book just to get your foot in the door. I've heard it's easier to publish a first-time author than to publish one who's already written a bomb. It makes perfect sense; a never-published author they don't know about yet, but if you fail your first time out of the gate they know you failed and your work will just be that much harder to sell.

And you will probably fail if you have no passion for what you write. How can readers care about your work if you don't even like it?

BTW: Welcome to the board

HeatherR said:

I read this thread about old tired cliches and I have to wonder if the romance genre -- a genre I don't read because I don't like it -- is the easiest genre for a first time author to get published in.​

The romance market is huge. And there are so many bad books in it that it makes me wonder if I should start by writing a romance novel just to get my foot in the door. I mean, once you're published, isn't it easier to get a second book?​

How easy is it to jump genres once you are published?​

Click to expand...

Hi Heather!

I can understand how the other thread would lead someone to think the Romance genre one big terrible cliche--it's really not. At least, not more so than any other genre. The thread is just a silly poke at ourselves, nothing more. When you read and write in a genre that sometimes has to battle for respect, it's best to keep a sense of humor about it all.


As for jumping from one genre to another. I'm sure it can be done, but my understanding is that it would not be easy. An author may build a fan base in Romance, but those fans aren't likely to follow her anywhere. In fact, it can be hard for an author just to make a move within the genre--historical to contemporary, for example. Readers (I'm sure this isn't exclusive to Romance) have very specific expectations when it comes to their favorite author(s), and if an author doesn't deliver, the reader will just find someone else who does.

So, if you wanted to start in Romance and then move to, say, SF--you'd probably be looking at starting over from scratch.

Hope that helps. And, again, welcome!

Whichever genre you're best at writing.

The number of people who want to write romance is proportional to the number who read it. Thus no competitive advantage. Also if you so many romance books are bad you might not 'get' the genre.

Write what you love.
It is a long hard road with whichever genre you commit to, so don't make it longer by writing something you haven't given your soul to .

the easiest genre to get published in is the one you've got a natural knack for. // Welcome

That's easy to answer. One that sells and, that's about it.

What's the easiest genre to get published in?

Click to expand...

I don't think there is an easiest. There are many, many fans for each genre out there. Write what YOU want to write, dear HeatherR, and hope the publisher or agent you go to likes it enough to give it a shot.

Excellent advice from all the above, so I have nothing to add except Welcome to AW.

Welcome to AW. Hope you enjoy your stay with us.

How do you like your popcorn?

Write what you super enjoy.....polish it....again and again....then submit it. There are no easy or quick fixes, just hard work in what you know.
Good luck.