I love genre fiction. Like most folks, I read Shakespeare and Eliot and Chaucer and Milton, enjoyed some of it, hated much of it. Milton and I don’t get along and haven’t spoken in years. But all the while, I was reading Agatha Christie mysteries, Robert Heinlein science fiction, Regency and historical romances, and fantasy novels. I loved them all, and sometimes thought about the themes, characters and important plot points long after I closed the book. They made me think. Good fiction should resonate with readers as more than just a good story, and genre fiction is no exception.
So, scholars may sniff—this time of year they probably have a head cold like the rest of us—but I believe that though genre fiction is to some extent a mirror, reflecting what people are talking about and thinking about, it’s more than that. I think it’s also an open-ended dialogue between writers and readers about life. The changes in genre fiction over the years are in part just a response to changes in the social climate—the presence of more sex in romance novels today is an example of that—but I believe that readers shape genre fiction in other ways than as a general mass of social change. Writers don’t write in a vacuum. I read message boards and think about what readers are talking about, and inevitably it influences my writing. I send my stories out, then listen to the feedback and that again influences me.
Does anyone wish writers would listen MORE to what readers want, or do you think there is a good balance right now? Do you think books lag behind the market, or do you think they influence the market?
Oh, I definitely believe the industry lags way behind what we want …
Comment by spyscribbler — January 25, 2007 @ 11:51 pm
Hi Donna…a difficult but interesting question! I’ll give you my approach. Ever hear of that often repeated advice for writers? Be aware of what’s being written, then walk away from the bookstore and write the book you didn’t find - the book you wished a writer had written for you. I always liked that advice. In fact, I think that’s probably my favorite part of being a writer: writing the story I wanted to read but nobody wrote. Of course, after the book is written and published, I definitely want to know whether there’s an audience for it besides just little ol’ me. Because if there isn’t, then I’m out of a job, I can’t pay my Con Ed bill, and my laptop’s battery never gets recharged again.
Luv,
Cleo Coyle
Comment by Cleo — January 25, 2007 @ 11:59 pm
I’m an absolute genre fan–I think that’s what most people read, readers want entertainment and a way to get away from life’s ups and downs, not having their face rubbed in ‘realistic’ fiction all the time. Don’t get me wrong, there’s some good literary fiction out there, but there’s a lot of boring, dry reads too. I think that the publishers drive the market–and I also think that what sells drives the market. It’s all a numbers game at this point, which doesn’t always work to the best for a number of readers and writers. I’m hearing a lot of irritation from people who read and write historicals, because they’re not as hot right now and it’s harder to sell. However, it’s all cyclic, things come back into fashion and then go out again. I don’t think any particular genre or subgenre ever really fully disappears. Sometimes, it’s just a little scarce. I do wish that publishers would start paying attention to solid midlist authors who have smaller but loyal audiences, and start putting a little money there–because midlist authors as a group bring in a lot of readers.
Yasmine
Comment by Yasmine — January 26, 2007 @ 11:39 am
Donna,
so lucky you. But yes, I agree, and I support genre fiction all the way!
this is my raison d’etre! If I didn’t have deadline brain I’d expound for years
Nicole
Comment by Nicole Byrd — January 26, 2007 @ 4:39 pm