8
CHAPTERA Tour of the Genres
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FOR AUTHORS WHO ARE UNCLEAR ABOUT WHERE THEIR FICTION
belongs on the publishing map, it may be useful to get an eagle-eye
view of the landscape. Authors who are sure of their category posi-
tion might like to measure their genre knowledge.
Welcome to your walking tour. The genres are everchanging, and
for that reason I will not attempt to point out every current
microtrend. Rather, I will be offering a long-term perspective, a his-
torian's approach. We will be looking at megatrends.
No doubt you already have your own perspective on your cate-
gory of choice, and your own ideas about where your genre should
be today. That is good. Authors without opinions, who merely chase
microtrends, are unlikely to make a strong mark in their held.
Indeed, most subcategories began because a single author invent-
ed a new kind of story, or at least a new twist on an old formula.
Being an innovator can be lonely at first, but authors with strong
convictions and original ideas can eventually find themselves sail-
ing at the head of a fleet of imitators.
Readers want up-to-date-feeling novels, stories to which they
can relate. At the same time, however, the fundamental elements of
many genre stories have not changed much over the years.