Classifying your genres

Gandalf Level 1

October 25, 2018, 2:50 pm

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I remember when I submitted a manuscript to a publisher I had to list at least three genres that my novel would come under. It was slightly hard because it would appeal to the young adult market, but also to adults who like supernatural fantasy, while it could also come under spiritual or philosophical works.

The reason why is so they can forward it to the relevant department, so what do you choose? The one that stands more chance of getting read and not getting passed, or the genre that you think that can make more money for them? It's a learning process still for me because when a work straddles a number of genres, you need to decide which is the main one for commercial reasons rather than creative ones, but is that the right view to take?

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amelia88

amelia88

Oooh, that’s a hard question - almost like choosing between your head and your heart. I think ultimately if you’re trying to sell a manuscript and need the finances to sustain yourself you’ve got to go with whatever is the most marketable genre.

If you’re more in a position where the writing is a labor of love rather than what you need to subsist off, then it may be easier to market it to different genres.

8 years ago

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Youngshark

Youngshark

I agree as well. You will have to read the market well because of you give them something which you think they should want instead of what they want you will not have any readers. You will put out content and keep wondering why nobody bothers to read.

8 years ago

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Kakashi2020

Kakashi2020

I know what you mean, sometimes even deciding and choosing the genre that best describes your book could be confusing. Having the proper genre can make or break a book. It's a big factor in marketing because some genres are more popular than others.

8 years ago

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Gandalf

Gandalf

I discovered this when looking for publishers as many have a strict criteria of what genres they publish. Then you have to decide whether to approach publishers that have a broader range of genres or whether a more specific one will be better as they know the audience well.

It is all about marketing and whether the publisher can market the book and make money from you, and that's their main aim rather than the creative impact.

8 years ago

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nrnlss

nrnlss

I think the best one is philosophical works. Because in my opinion, people get attracted to books that are philosophical, because it is usually interesting and nice to read.

8 years ago

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Martinsx1

Martinsx1

In my opinion, philosophical works definitely makes sense to some people while it's a complete brain washing works written by some prominent scholars with the view of selling their life success stories to the desperate one's especially those in the developing world. The market which the philosophical works are meant for would be the deciding factor in whether its going to sell or not.

8 years ago

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Martinsx1

Martinsx1

Well, I would suggest going with what's in trend and serious demand at the moment in the market because it's the only way to ensure that your work sells.

It's an utterly waste of money, time and effort to work on something that doesn't hold any value to the immediate market it's meant for. Have you considered technology genre?

8 years ago

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Barida

Barida

You can even link this to what is working in the internet space. I have been reading about "stew" all over the internet as of recent not knowing it is linked to the recent video that two music superstars did and it is trending. The thing is that while the song doesn't make much sense, people are getting viewing it to see the controversy being said about it.

8 years ago

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emiaj55

emiaj55

That is a tough one. But I guess the more strategic decision is to choose to go for a more marketable approach. Because it will get your books out there, in a wider scope. Once it reached a lot of people, other ages may come to read as well. But first things first. If you need the profit from that book that is. But if your are a more financially stable writer, go for what age you think would appreciate it more.

8 years ago

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Barida

Barida

Everything is about the market and this is the reason I think that whatever genre that we are looking at working with, it should be something that is appealing to the market. The internet has been dominated by the youths and this is something that you should always consider when making contents.

8 years ago

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mdayrit

mdayrit

I guess it will depend on your priority. If you are writing to earn then go for the genre where it will sell. Most publishing company are going for writers that can give them the profit. If you continously provide this profit, the more that they get you to write for them.

8 years ago

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jayjaydimson

jayjaydimson

You really need to classify your genre to know your passion, because if you know your genre, you will know what you really want to be or want you to want to be an expert on. And knowing your genre can help you a lot.

8 years ago

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Gandalf

Gandalf

That doesn't really apply to fiction because before supernatural became a genre, it was all sci-fi or fantasy. Now novels can span several genres, such as Young Adult, but also a fantasy one. Maybe with romance it can also be a thriller, but which genre takes precedence? That's the point I am making, not to be an expert on something as a non-fiction book on say gardening is self-explanatory, but fiction has a multitude of genres, and often it's a case of what is popular right now.

8 years ago

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mitan143

mitan143

Choose what really matter the most because in reality it is not always what we expect. If you stay and will continue your career there, you'll probably learn to adopt to fit in the trend even if it isn't your type of genre. But you can always have a choice for yourself.

8 years ago

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Corzhens

Corzhens

Maybe I will go for the readers and not for the money because I am basically writing for my readers. That was my attitude when I was a co-blogger of a pet blog that I would think of my readers when I am writing. With the genre I guess that is my stand as well but if I would be needing money desperately then I will classify my story in the most attractive genre for the publisher.

8 years ago

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stbrians

stbrians

What do you think? It is a matter of weighing one against the other. How to do this is very simple.

List all the pros and cons of each. Check the one with more pros than cons. Choose

8 years ago

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Jeane

Jeane

Try this. Maybe it might help or it might not.

I've heard that script writers when they pitch their stories to producers - they have to tell their story in under 35 words. Try to tell your story in as many words.

And then picture yourself pitching this story to your target audience, who would be more interested to hear more? That would help you choose the most fitting genre more easily.

8 years ago

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amelia88

amelia88

I like that idea of trying to summarize a store in 35 words or less. It's a nice way to succinctly understand exactly where to go with marketing and pitching things. A good tip for me to keep in mind for the future!

8 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

You've got a great idea. I think this will really help us classify our genres. This, I think, will even help us realize what genre should we focus on as writers and who the target audience should be, nice one.

8 years ago

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rlpzbeermoney

rlpzbeermoney

I think you should go with what you want it to be rather than what the publisher/money tells you to. If you're work is good, it will gather the right audience regardless of its genre. Though I do know some people who only look at the book's genre when deciding on a book to purchase.

8 years ago

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theresajane

theresajane

I think, the best way to solve this problem is to choose a genre that everyone knows and everyone would like to read. Don't think of too complicated genres. Just go with something that would automatically catch the readers and the marketers.

8 years ago

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jpk0007

jpk0007

I think that it is better to go with what is popular and classify your book accordingly. After all, An author writes books so that people can read them and appreciate his work. I think most of the publishers will be well aware of what the public wants and which genre is likely to succeed and make money. it's always better to go according to the and likes of the public and publisher which will be almost the same most of the times

8 years ago

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mirodge

mirodge

Just do and choose where your heart beats fast. If you love what you do, then there is no reason for you to hold back. All the efforts that you give will be worthy.

8 years ago

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MomoStarr16

MomoStarr16

That is the main point of being a writer. You write what your heart says without getting the approval of others. We write to express not to impress.

8 years ago

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jaybee19

jaybee19

As a writer, this is a very tough question. I haven't experienced passing a manuscript yet because I'm still not very confident with my write ups and some of my books are written on Wattpad. And so, I have not yet experienced choosing a main genre for my book because in Wattpad you can use a lot of genres to attract more readers. However, if the time comes that I will pass a manuscript (hopefully soon), I will definitely choose the genre that will attract more audience because to be honest, it's really hard to become a writer without an income. At least for me, it's the content that matters most and not just the genre.

8 years ago

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stormbreaker10

stormbreaker10

Your choosing between wants vs needs, but first just be yourself dude, know your self! Be passionate in every work you want to do, if didnt pay your work novel now? its ok, just write and write because thats what you want right? Someday you will appreciated, swear! I witnessed people, just do their passion like (e.g writing, vlogger) even they not paid and just enjoying their selves in what they do, now they one of the famous (e.g writer, vlogger) Don't read or analyze to much the market.

8 years ago

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MomoStarr16

MomoStarr16

It depends on the reason why you started writing. If you need money and you write for earning money then make a genres that will get people attentions. But if you just wanted to share your thoughts and don't care if less people will read it then don't mind about the genre and write the way you wanted.

8 years ago

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jaymish3

jaymish3

I think that that a book can belong to more then one Genre. I dont think that it is necessary to pigeon hole yourself into one Genre. I think you need to be careful yourself because this could make the difference between sucess and failure. In my opinion the more genres that you can fit into the better. You may use this as an opportunity to reach as many people as possible. You may have an audience in places you never thought.

8 years ago

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cks003

cks003

Choosing as genre is like choosing a keyword for a manuscript. The purpose is to make the searching process easy for the readers. One has to choose a genre that really reflects the theme of the story of our manuscript so we are targeting the right audience rather than choosing wide range of genre that may cause us losing our targeted audience.

8 years ago

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Jstreeter26

Jstreeter26

This does seem like a very conflicting question. I feel like writers have to make this decision very often, and learning how to decide seems like an important skill.

8 years ago

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jaymish3

jaymish3

My concern is,why allow someone to define who you are what you can write and what category you fit into? In my opinion there's no law that says you have to fit into an category. you can write a book that has different themes and fit into many categories. There are some books if you look through any site like Amazon or Barnes and Noble which are found in multiple categories.

8 years ago

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astraherondale

astraherondale

This is a difficult question. If I were new in the field, I would probably choose one that's easier to market - this way, my work would get more exposure, which I could use as leverage for my future works. Once I establish myself in my career, then I would have more freedom in classifying my works into a genre I feel is most appropriate.

8 years ago

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hstinscdln

hstinscdln

Depends on what your purpose is in your writing. If you write to entertain, then pick the one with higher chances of getting read. If your purpose is to get money, then pick the one where they would think they could make more money. Either way, you'll get known in the future. But being practical and probably the faster route to success, getting your book accepted by a publisher will make you more money and will make you known since you would be known for the book you that they published for you.

8 years ago

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