Hi!
Sort of general question I've been thinking about, especially as I start to work on sending out query letters: what, actually, is my genre?
I would say most broadly I write in fantasy and sci-fi, but I most definitely do not write about elves/dwarves/wizards in epic worlds filled with magic, or fancy spaceships and civilizations on other planets. (Not that I don't absolutely love reading about these things, they are the bookshelves toward which I gravitate most in any book store. I just don't write them, leaving that to others far better than I.) So I usually hesitate to say I write either fantasy or sci-fi, because I don't want to put my readers in the mind of Tolkien or Asimov.
My favorite authors (and therefore the ones I think I probably emulate the most) are Neil Gaiman and Douglas Adams, which I would consider to be fantasy-ish and sci-fi-ish, respectively. I think I tend to imitate their styles, whether consciously or not, mainly in using humor or pulling from other existing mythologies of the world, to embellish my stories.
For reference, my first, near-complete book is Bearvalanche (and also my favorite title for anything, ever) which was intended to reference all the Sharknado movies, but with, you know, actual plot. It takes off with an ancient god coming back to the mortal realm in search of the reincarnation of the American Indian chief's daughter who spurned him millennia ago, but it turns out modern women these days aren't so keen on him either. There follows some possession, a kidnapping and quest, and a showdown involving the titular Bearvalanche, which is, of course, an avalanche of godly-possessed, rubberized bears.
From there, I've also written about a parallel universe where giant sloths became the dominant life-forms on Earth rather than humans, the River Styx of Greek mythology spitting out its rejects in the boonies of Oregon, and the essence of a star coming to Earth to take over the body of a small pig.
So I feel like one of my overarching themes is probably using existing mythologies to come interact with my characters in our current, modern world, and also a good deal of irreverence and humor, but is there any sort of succinct genre or sub-genre it would be appropriate to describe myself as fitting in?
Any suggestions appreciated!
PS: Did anyone else love the Disney animated 101 Dalmatians to death, and immediately thought of Jasper and Horace watching "What's My Crime?" when they read the title of this post? Because that's absolutely what I thought of as soon as I typed it...
Sort of general question I've been thinking about, especially as I start to work on sending out query letters: what, actually, is my genre?
I would say most broadly I write in fantasy and sci-fi, but I most definitely do not write about elves/dwarves/wizards in epic worlds filled with magic, or fancy spaceships and civilizations on other planets. (Not that I don't absolutely love reading about these things, they are the bookshelves toward which I gravitate most in any book store. I just don't write them, leaving that to others far better than I.) So I usually hesitate to say I write either fantasy or sci-fi, because I don't want to put my readers in the mind of Tolkien or Asimov.
My favorite authors (and therefore the ones I think I probably emulate the most) are Neil Gaiman and Douglas Adams, which I would consider to be fantasy-ish and sci-fi-ish, respectively. I think I tend to imitate their styles, whether consciously or not, mainly in using humor or pulling from other existing mythologies of the world, to embellish my stories.
For reference, my first, near-complete book is Bearvalanche (and also my favorite title for anything, ever) which was intended to reference all the Sharknado movies, but with, you know, actual plot. It takes off with an ancient god coming back to the mortal realm in search of the reincarnation of the American Indian chief's daughter who spurned him millennia ago, but it turns out modern women these days aren't so keen on him either. There follows some possession, a kidnapping and quest, and a showdown involving the titular Bearvalanche, which is, of course, an avalanche of godly-possessed, rubberized bears.
From there, I've also written about a parallel universe where giant sloths became the dominant life-forms on Earth rather than humans, the River Styx of Greek mythology spitting out its rejects in the boonies of Oregon, and the essence of a star coming to Earth to take over the body of a small pig.
So I feel like one of my overarching themes is probably using existing mythologies to come interact with my characters in our current, modern world, and also a good deal of irreverence and humor, but is there any sort of succinct genre or sub-genre it would be appropriate to describe myself as fitting in?
Any suggestions appreciated!
PS: Did anyone else love the Disney animated 101 Dalmatians to death, and immediately thought of Jasper and Horace watching "What's My Crime?" when they read the title of this post? Because that's absolutely what I thought of as soon as I typed it...