The Mysteries of Genre Selection

Writing blogs abound. Not just author / writer / indie publishers, but people that consult on the art of writing. People that take and make money polishing and honing the written words of others. Many of them advise, and I always imagine them looking over the tops of their bifocals, to "write for your genre". This makes sense, I also think it should be half way obvious though as well. At some point in the writing life cycle I think everyone comes up with the curiosity of "who is going to read my book?". For some, including me at the moment, recognizing your target audience is important, but that is a goal not always easy to meet.

For example, one of the main MCs in River and Ranch, a book I will soon be publishing, lives in Idaho, on a ranch. So I kind of lean towards calling it a western. But most of the western genre today seems to be historical in nature, the MCs are men, and the women are large breasted and waiting around for Mr. Handsome. River and Ranch takes place in the present day. It is a woman who lives on the ranch. She pulls her weight, is a nuclear geophysicist, and somehow makes it through the book without a description of her feminine attributes. She's also independent, although I have to admit she is willing to talk to (and maybe a bit more) the other MC. Can I find a hint of modern Western? as a genre? Not so far.

The other MC is a river guide on the Salmon River, also in Idaho. Not much land-based action, and no horses, except when he meets the other MC and sparks fly. Most of this MCs action takes place on the river as a guide. It is outdoors, in the west. This still kind of wants to be a modern Western, but I hit the same problem, it is "not exactly" a western. Of course the two MCs meet and sparks fly, so this could actually be a romance, and it is, the two characters do fall in love (and much more as well hint hint). So romance does fit. And don't take the prior statement the wrong way, River and Ranch is family friendly. I've discovered there is a "sweet" label in the genre world, that is commonly understood to mean no sex and nothing graphic. River and Ranch fits that. There is adventure throughout the book as the guide is down the river in much of the book. The rancher is also up in the mountains dealing with cattle on the way to their high meadows. Stuff happens in an active adventurous way.

There are two daughters involved, and some of the story is seen through their eyes. So I could push and call River and Ranch young adult. This would fit some of it. Finally there are a couple bad guys acting separately as antagonists to both rancher and river guide. So there are elements of suspense and thrills found throughout.

In the end I am writing the book that I would like to read, as some of those advisors on occasion advise to do. I'm doing it. I also confess to being a bit burnt out on the many genre "traditions". Suspense, thriller, and adventure tends to move at a very fast pace. No time to sleep, no time to eat, no time to engage in surroundings. A fast pace, tight plot, centered on catching the bad guy, etc. They are formulaic. I love the many formulas, but I am also looking for a good read that is beyond the usual suspects when it comes to formulaic genre traditions. I want to read about food, I want to read about the surroundings. I want to read about sleeping on a beach on the Salmon River, one of the most remote spots in the USA and watching the Milky Way and shooting stars (I guess that could be construed as a spoiler, sorry). I want a strong female lead, who can shoot guns (except she corrects everyone who calls them that, they're rifles) and can saddle her own horse and grew up barrel racing. I want to have grandparents involved in the story. You never read about grandparents.

None of which makes fitting this assemblage of places and faces into a narrow orderly genre any easier. Stay tuned for the ongoing adventures of Genre Boy as he struggles to find his fit in the cold world of fiction.
Jeff Bach

Your Main Character Needs a Partner!

In genre fiction no one goes it alone. Or at least very few. This is one of the top three observations I've made as a reader over the years. As in life, everyone should have someone. This applies in romance and it applies in genre fiction as the main character runs through the pages of the book, saving the world, and surviving the harrowing circumstance that writers conjure up on the way to completion.

Let's look at a few of the authors I like in the genre fiction world. I tend to pick adventure, thriller, suspense. Clive Cussler, Robert B. Parker, Robert Crais, and Harlan Coben are at the top of my list, although many other authors also have some of my money as well. Cussler brought to life the fabulous pairs of Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino (the first pair), Kurt Austin and Joe Zavala, as well as the rare married pair of main characters Remi and Sam Fargo. Robert B. Parker brought Spencer and Hawk to the reading world and I thank him for it. I've passed many late nights with those two. Robert Crais brought about Elvis and Pike. Another pair well worth the money and the time to read and reread. Last but not least is Harlan Coben. His fertile noggin produced Myron Bolitar and Win, whose last name I cannot remember. Possibly because in the books he is always just Win, the nasty badass partner that comes in and cleans up as needed.

Not all of my favorites come in paris though, so there are exceptions. Other favorite authors include Brad Thor, Ted Bell, Ben Coes, and the sadly departed Vince Flynn. Scot Harvath, Alex Hawke, Dewey Andreas, and Mitch Rapp, the characters belonging to those authors do not generally have tight partners appearing throughout the book. If you compare Spencer and Hawk to Rapp you see an immediate difference. Likewise with Elvis and Pike compared to Scot Harvath. Same drill.

Interestingly, at least to me, there could be a third group in this discussion. James Rollins writes another bunch of really awesome books in the same categories. While I've read all of his books and greatly enjoyed them, his characters, to my mind, are in a group. Not so much an MC and a sidekick. He features a main character that is at least part Native American. He also features the rare pair of partner characters who are married. Quite the ground breaker this Rollins guy. Well worth reading! As an aside, one of his books has the most compelling interesting and fascinating look at quantum mechanics that I've ever come across. Moreover, it was in a religious/prayer context. Incredibly well done.

So of course it can work in many ways ways, but pairs of characters enter my writing thoughts first. Especially Spencer and Hawk from Robert B. Parker and Elvis and Pike from Robert Crais. Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino follow closely along with Kurt Austin and Joe Zavala, all four of those characters coming from the fertile mind of Clive Cussler.

In all cases, the bad guy always seems to be going it solo. That's probably another topic though.

So while your MC is out saving the world, consider writing in a partner watching the shadows and providing the comic relief and additional drama that only a partner can provide!