While reading Donald Maas' "How to Write the Break-out Novel," I came across a term I've seen before but haven't bothered (or had time) to research. He says in an early chapter that crossing genres can really punch up your novel. That comment (and the stuff around it) made me wonder if I should revise my query letters to say my novel is a "coming-of-age/magical fantasy" rather than just a magical fantasy. But my problem is, I haven't found a clear explanation of "coming-of-age" novels. My heroes (two brothers) are 16 and 19 when the novel begins, 17 and 20 by the time it ends, and have just started getting to know girls (they led a very sheltered life - too much to explain here, so I'll leave it at that). The other books I have planned for the series deepen the romantic relationships as well as facing and resolving the "threat," so it's not "just" an action-type story. Instead, it shows the boys growing up and learning magic, learning how to deal with enemies and girls both, that kind of thing. So is it a "coming-of-age" novel as well as magical fantasy?? Thanks in advance for clearing up my confusion!
Lynda
Posted by wetwilly (Member # 1818) on :
A coming of age novel (which you can also call a Bildungdroman if you want to sound literary) is a novel about passage into adulthood. It's not just about growing older, but about crossing whatever line you see as the line between child and adult. Often it's about going from naive to wise.
Posted by kings_falcon (Member # 3261) on :
"Magical fantasy" seems a bit redundant. If there's magic, it pretty much has to be in teh Fantasy genre.
One of the "new"-ish cross genre is "Fantasy Romance." There's not a shelf for it but all of the Supernatural characters in romance type plots fit into the description.
Be careful with claimg something is cross-genre. Make sure the industry recognises the cross. If there's not a shelf that it fits on, it will be harder to sell.
Posted by autumnmuse (Member # 2136) on :
Here's what I've gleaned: yes, by all means incorporate crossover genres into your writing but only identify the strongest in your query.
Also, coming-of-age has never had it's own shelf in any bookstore, so for the purposes of labeling your book, leave that off. Miss Snark has gotten snarky on that point somewhere in her snarchives, can't recall where off the top of my head.
I think the confusion comes in because we're talking about two different contexts: the first context of genre is what the book is actually about. The second context is where that book is placed on the bookshelf.
Donald Maass was referring to the content of the book. The more elements you have in your manuscript (to a point - some are mutually exclusive) the wider your potential audience.
However, agents are smart enough to know if your novel, once they've read and fallen in love with it, could be marketed to a romance editor after the mystery ones have turned it down. That's part of their job. Yours is to identify the primary market, i.e. where in the bookstore you see it being shelved, before you submit it. If you are unable to come up with an answer to that question, publishers won't be able to either and you've just made selling your novel very very difficult.
[This message has been edited by autumnmuse (edited September 21, 2006).]
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
One thing to remember is that what we often call a "genre" is actually more of a "marketing category."
When you want to convince someone that you have something that will sell, you want to tell them what marketing category it belongs in. When you want to tell them what kind of work it is, you tell them the genre.
As autumnmuse has said, in your query letter, tell the agent or editor what marketing category it would best belong in. And make certain that the agent or editor you are querying actually handles work in that particular marketing category.
By the way, at one time, "genre" referred to distinctions like short story, novel, poem, play, essay, and so on.
Posted by arriki (Member # 3079) on :
I read a technical book on fiction once -- can't recall who wrote it. Title was something like ADVENTURE, ROMANCE, AND MYSTERY.
The author was saying that there are only three genres of story -- adventure, romance, and mystery.
I think he should have added social fiction. You know, the stories about everyday life things like coming of age novels, self-discovery, slice of life...those sorts of plots.
However, he does have a point.
Those three or four genres do have specific plots. The boy meets girl plot is never a mystery or an adventure. Solving a murder or finding the lost whatchamacallit is never a romance. You can add another plot from another genre to the original...then you have the cross genre stuff.
Everything else is just one of those plots set in a war setting (military fiction); a futuristic or magical setting (f and sf); some place back in time (historical fiction); etc.
Posted by Lynda (Member # 3574) on :
Thanks, everyone! I appreciate all your replies. In my queries I've sent so far, I've called it a "magical fantasy" because I've read fantasies that didn't involve magic - they were just "surreal" with no magic spells involved. Mine involves magic, hence the label I gave it. So I should only say "fantasy"? I HAVE made certain that every agent I've queried handles fantasy and is looking for new authors, so I did that much right, anyway.
Lynda
Posted by autumnmuse (Member # 2136) on :
But fantasy that does involve magic is still the norm, rather than the exception, so I think you're fine to just say 'fantasy'. Don't forget, the actual writing is the most important. The simpler your query, the better, as long as it is well done. If you are successful in landing an agent or publisher, that's when all the fancy terms will come into play, if ever.
Posted by Lynda (Member # 3574) on :
Thanks, Autumnmuse - hopefully, I'll have a chance to use that "fancy" terminology before I get too old to enjoy it! And I'll drop "magical" from my terminology. At least I know better than to say "fiction novel" LOL!
And I'll drop "magical" from my terminology. At least I know better than to say "fiction novel" LOL!