Genre question

Unless the agent/publisher represents both genres you can mention just the one that is most applicable to them. If it really has the elements of both genres, you're nightmare is rubbish. And no one says you can't have historical coming-of-age stories.

There are plenty of genre-blended books out there, and many of them bestsellers. Comedy/Science Fiction (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), Religious/Thriller (Left Behind), Science Fiction/Fantasy (Star Wars - movie before books, but still a good point, I think. "The Force" is definitely more magic than science), Religious/Romance/Post-Apocalyptic/Biography/Nonfiction/Legal Thriller (to name a few for the Bible).

Heck, I just realized the other day that my novel, which I thought was a straight-up fantasy, is actually a Fantasy/Thriller. Doesn't bother me any. I hope that agents and editors get excited about it being something different.

In other words, don't worry about it

With my first novel trying to figure out what genre it was about drove me crazy! I blended it between two in my query letters. I stated it was a modern fantasy with elements of paranormal romance. Good luck. Sometimes it seems like the easiest things are the hardest.

Easy enough to solve.

It's a historial coming-of-age story.



There are other books out there that are historical coming-of-age stories. I can't think of recent ones off the top of my head, and the stories that quickly come to mind are actually YA/children's books, but I think of stories like Johnny Tremain and Carry on Mr. Bowswitch as historical coming-of-age stories.

Even John Jakes The Bastard, though it was the start of a series, and may be more accurately described as a historical saga, could be looked at as a historical coming-of-age story.

Good luck!

Susan G.

If my book falls into more than one category, I pick the genre or sub-genre that's selling best right then

who's your target audience going to be? therein basically lies your genre, eh? then you can more specifically do some market research on your own.

i mean, as with the fantasy/thriller thing: who do you plan on reading it, readers of fantasy or readers of thrillers? 'both' isn't a realistic answer, imo. if you think the 'thriller' aspect is the way to go (based on your market research such as which market is selling better right now? what are my odds of finding a thriller agent v. a fantasy agent, or a thriller publisher v. a fantasy publisher), you'd better know what the thriller audience expects.

you can write a great story, but if a publisher doesn't know how to market it, what are they supposed to do with it? so, my advice is to decide who you plan on reading the story (and what kind of publisher you plan on buying it) and write accordingly. just sitting down and writing any old thing you want and expect it to be published in *some* genre is, imo, just foolish and potentially a great waste of time. (in the case of the fantasy/thriller, i'd probably lean more on the thriller aspect. that's just me, and without the benefit of doing one bit of research on it.)

while i'm sure there are exceptions, i can't say i believe in writing equal parts of two different genres and expect commercial success. and i believe we tend to overcomplicate the 'what genre is it in?' 'dilemma.' oh, it's got a romantic aspect to it! doesn't make it a romance. 'harry potter' has a coming-of-age aspect to it, but that's not what the genre is. imo, 'historical' implies a ton of research as opposed to a writer not immersing himself in the era and doing enough to get the flavour and overall facts, hardly breaking out streets maps of 1853 london to make sure the street names are correct (that's why there are such things as historical fiction and relatively silly by comparison bodice-rippers. i mean, in which one are you more likely to learn what a capstan is on a ship?). tons of sci-fi has a suspense element to it, but it's not a suspense, per se.

wanna know why professionals sell their work and other writers, sometimes more superior writers, don't? because most professionals know who their audience is. i say 'most' just to give myself room for exceptions, but i'd venture to say the vast, over-whelming amount of working professionals know who's going to be reading their words.

sure, you can write and get lucky. but, on average, i'd say that if you write without considering who the audience is then you're weakening your position if publication is your goal.

btw, there's no longer any magick in the force as lucas explained that away with midi-chlorians and thus ruined the entire mystique. why he went this route is beyond me, and i consider it one of the major storytelling blunders of all time. #2 is killing darth maul. #3 is jar jar binks. and i tried reading lucas' novelization. i tried, i really did.

There are a dozen different ways to slice and dice the question "What is genre?" When you're trying to sell your book, the only genre that matters is where similar books are shelved in the store. Does your local bookstore have a Coming-of-Age section? Mine doesn't.

(Hmmm. I suppose coming-of-age has a strong overlap with YA, but there's also plenty that isn't YA.)

FennelGiraffe does have a point there, but my local bookstore doesn't have any specific sections for a lot of established genres...

Finni said:

I have this nightmare about twice a week that I send my novel out to editors and agents and they all reject me.
They come to my door and say, "this isn't a coming of age story, it is historical fiction."
and still others come and say, "this isn't historical fiction, its a coming of age story."
Then I try to justify why it IS historical fiction and not a coming of age story, and vice versa.
Then they force me to rewrite it twice. Making one copy only about the historic setting of my story, and the other copy is only about how my character grows.

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All right, color me confused. When did "coming of age" become a genre instead of a plot trope?

Coming of age stories can be found in pretty much any genre. Character growth is a traditional story arc and, last I heard, is fairly expected by the readers of most genres as part of the story.

Though it's totally possible I'm missing something in the OP/thread. Anyone mind helping me out?

Thanks!

I've read many historical novels in which a protagonist comes of age. In fact, i'm writing one myself.

So it's historical fiction. Simple.

Finni said:

The time period only matters towards the end. A few characters reference something the reader will recognize.

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Global warming, by any chance?

DeleyanLee, good question. You are right, it is plot, not genre I guess. What genre would a story fall under if its main focus was about the character's growth? I am still new at this labeling thing.

If I may chime in here... such a story could be in ANY genre, depending on its trappings. If it happens on a rocket ship, it's SF. If it happens to a wizard's apprentice, it's fantasy. If it happens while tracking a murderer, it's a mystery. If it happens while the character is looking for his soul mate, it's romance. If it happens in the Roman legions, it's historical fiction.

Coming-of-age is a very basic plot. Genre isn't about plots, though, so much as it's about the conventions and window dressing you use along the way.

Just to cheer you up a bit, I could never figure out what my novel was, either. It had romance, suspense, mystery... Anyway I ended up just pitching it as "mainstream fiction," which can be basically anything that doesn't fit anywhere else. Anywho, the agent who finally picked me up told me she thought it was a "literary thriller." AND she was really happy that it was both, because now she can pitch it to both camps, as it were. I was like, "Wait. You're HAPPY that my book falls in between the genre cracks?"

preyer said:

in the case of the fantasy/thriller, i'd probably lean more on the thriller aspect. that's just me, and without the benefit of doing one bit of research on it.

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I'll be marketing it as fantasy. I think that fantasy readers would read it and think "Whoa - that was new and interesting in a good way," and thriller readers (at least, if they bought it in the thriller section) would say "What the f**k?!?" and throw it across the room

Finni said:

lol, good guess! Melting ice sheets, end of the ice age....massive flooding and climate change. But no. Its a well-known myth that the reader will recognize.

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Good. One doesn't want to be too obvious.

Hah! But I wasn't thinking that.

'I'll be marketing it as fantasy. I think that fantasy readers would read it and think "Whoa - that was new and interesting in a good way," and thriller readers (at least, if they bought it in the thriller section) would say "What the f**k?!?" and throw it across the room.' ~ best of luck. it would be something i'd have to think hard about were i an editor. on one hand, it's probably different than what's out there right now. on the other hand, it's probably different than what's out there right now. would i gain more readers if i offered them something new? would i lose readers if they decided they were bored with fantasy and started reading more thrillers? would i be setting a standard for myself i know i can't maintain?

it's definitely a good thing i'm not an editor. i probably wouldn't pick things i was unsure about. and, ironically, i wouldn't want to put out product that's too good. suddenly everyone would want great books, and they'd expect that. from what i see (granted, i haven't looked in awhile) on the shelves, most fantasy just tows the line.

maybe there's such a thing as being too good? when you're good, you make everyone else look bad. not that that's been a problem i've had to deal with....

preyer said:

maybe there's such a thing as being too good?

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My roommate often gets depressed because he loves writing too, but he's... um... nowhere near as good as I am...
...
So I suppose it is possible to be too good in some situations.

I hate genre-picking. But it comforts me that many of the science fiction tales I have loved best were also murder mysteries. In the historical/coming of age battle, I think whichever side has the most impact on the reader wins. If the character who is coming of age stands out against the historical background enough to tip the balance, it's COA. Unlike science fiction, which is always science fiction no matter what it is...