Do you read in the genre/age group you write in and vice versa?

starrystorm

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I've just been wondering about this question a lot. I know I do. I write YA, which I love to read. I'm not sure on the genre part because I don't know what I write yet. But I do notice I won't attempt a genre I don't normally read in.
 

lizmonster

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...Sometimes? Moreso now than I used to. I read SFF growing up and into the 80s, then switched to MTS for about 20 years. But when I write it almost always comes out SF (no fantasy), and the past several years my reading has skewed strongly SF-ward.
 

Kat M

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I do, but not exclusively. I read mostly contemporary upmarket and literary (which is what I try (and fail) to write), but I enjoy a good historical, especially if there is palace intrigue.

And after some epic classroom gaffes, I now try to pre-read more of the MG I read to my second graders.
 

ap123

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I do. I write what I enjoy reading, and if we're trying to write with an eye towards publication, it helps to read what's being published--but like Kat M, not exclusively. I read fairly broadly. IMO, there are lessons to be learned across the genres that can be applied regardless of what you're writing.
 

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Age: I read mainly kidlit and YAlit, and I write mainly adult lit. That's for marketing reasons, not because I wouldn't love to self-publish a middle-grade novel. However, my day job lets me write nonfiction for young readers, yay.

Genre: Most of what I read is historical, period, and/or SFF, and that's mostly what I write too.
 

soulrodeo

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I read a ton of YA fantasy/UF/paranormal and that's what I'm writing. It makes up probably 70% of my reading. On the adult side, I read the occasional big fantasy but mostly thrillers and some of the "blockbuster" contemporary and literary novels -- you know, the ones everyone talks about that usually end up being adapted for TV/film by Reese Witherspoon or similar. I will one day attempt to write a thriller. Of course I read a scattering of a thousand other genres but not enough that I could write them. I do believe you need to read your genre to write it.
 

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In recent years, although I have written SF, YA, a thriller and a novel about mid-life crisis, I have read little in those genres and have been devouring non-fiction, mainly political biographies. I don't think it matters after decades of reading fiction, but because I get immersed in my writing, it's nice to escape from my escapism!
 

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I definitely do. My favorite books have usually been fantasy and the ideas that pop into my heard are usually in a high fantasy setting, so I've just been writing fantasy exclusively.
 

The Second Moon

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I've been trying to. I write linked SF short stories, but it is super hard to find linked short stories, I've recently bought my first short story collection (not linked). So far I've loved some of the stories, but others in the collection were were written so long ago, that I'm not loving the flowery word choice or POV style.
 

starrystorm

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I started this thread because I found a writer blog where a guest post was explaining what it was like to get an agent (or an editor or someone). Anyway, the agent accepted but said she didn't like the author's genre, and the author said she didn't either. I don't understand why you would write in a genre you don't like. I could see one you're neutral about, but not one you dislike.
 

lizmonster

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I started this thread because I found a writer blog where a guest post was explaining what it was like to get an agent (or an editor or someone). Anyway, the agent accepted but said she didn't like the author's genre, and the author said she didn't either. I don't understand why you would write in a genre you don't like. I could see one you're neutral about, but not one you dislike.

This is confusing on multiple levels. I don't understand why an agent would rep a book in a genre they don't like.
 

starrystorm

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This is confusing on multiple levels. I don't understand why an agent would rep a book in a genre they don't like.

Sorry. It could have been an editor or a beta. It's been a while since I read that article, and them both agreeing they didn't like the genre was the only thing that stuck.
 

lizmonster

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Sorry. It could have been an editor or a beta. It's been a while since I read that article, and them both agreeing they didn't like the genre was the only thing that stuck.

Not trying to catch you out. :) But I agree with you - it does seem very strange to write a book in a genre you don't like. I can sort of imagine it, I suppose, if that's the story that comes to you, but you're going to be hamstrung in terms of selling the thing if you don't have some experience reading the stuff that's actually being sold.
 

starrystorm

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Not trying to catch you out. :) But I agree with you - it does seem very strange to write a book in a genre you don't like. I can sort of imagine it, I suppose, if that's the story that comes to you, but you're going to be hamstrung in terms of selling the thing if you don't have some experience reading the stuff that's actually being sold.

Agreed. But if a story came to me in a genre I didn't like I would fight like mad to get it in a genre I did like first.
 

shadowsminder

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I write across genres I've read, which is almost all genres, in all forms, for all ages. What develops on the page isn't always what I currently enjoy reading, which is certainly awkward. Past reading composts and grows works that I'm stuck with deciding what to do: shelf/trunk the work or figure out who might want to read it.

In one of the more amusing examples is a novel that I've tried to years to mold into a YA science fiction romance. When I stalled on the first draft, I realized it was Horror. Several years and X drafts later, the blasted story is some sort of sociopolitical speculative fiction that's probably for adults, possibly for adults I'd prefer not to talk to at a signing. :e2smack:
 

Kjbartolotta

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I read everything. My tastes have slipped away from PoMo litficcy stuff over the past decade, and I have a head full of YA and MG but no interest in writing it. SFF will always be my greatest love, but I try to mix it up.
 

Carrie in PA

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I started this thread because I found a writer blog where a guest post was explaining what it was like to get an agent (or an editor or someone). Anyway, the agent accepted but said she didn't like the author's genre, and the author said she didn't either. I don't understand why you would write in a genre you don't like. I could see one you're neutral about, but not one you dislike.

I don't get that either. I don't see how it's possible to write effectively in a genre you actively dislike. I'm sure it's *done* but how much better could that book be if the author loved what they were writing? Color me baffled.

For me, I read widely. I write contemporary romance and I read truckloads of it. I read everything else from YA dystopian to memoir to thrillers to fantasy to whatever else looks good at the moment. There are genres that just aren't my thing so I don't read from them... and I definitely don't write in them. :)
 

novicewriter

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I started this thread because I found a writer blog where a guest post was explaining what it was like to get an agent (or an editor or someone). Anyway, the agent accepted but said she didn't like the author's genre, and the author said she didn't either. I don't understand why you would write in a genre you don't like. I could see one you're neutral about, but not one you dislike.

Hmm...that's surprising. My best guess would be that, perhaps, it's a very popular genre that they think would help make them a lot of money/fans (e.g. fantasy, romance, erotica), even though they don't enjoy reading it, themselves.

I like reading and writing in several different genres and age groups, although there are a few that seem to be very popular to others that I'm not interested in, at the moment (i.e. fantasy, science-fiction, erotica). I don't write in genres that I don't enjoy.

I used to like fantasy when I was a kid, but after reading so many from my favorite authors, I eventually became bored by noticing that the plot and characters seemed to be written in the same formula. So, I guess it ruined my enjoyment of that genre.
 
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indianroads

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I kinda read all over the place... Psychology, Physics, Philosophy, DNA research, Historical (Stephen Pressfield mostly), Sci-Fi, Horror, and some Fantasy. I don't care much for Romance, Erotica, Who-Dun-It's, or Modern Military. Sci-Fi and Horror take precedence over the rest - and specifically I'll look for books similar to what I intend to write to see how other authors handled the subject.

Everything I read, I consider research.