Business Of Writing Archives - Lisa Hall-Wilson

Do You Really Have Writer’s Block?

October 19, 2018 by Lisa Hall-Wilson Leave a Comment

Is there such a thing as writer’s block? I don’t think it’s as common as writers would like to believe. I think we give the “writer’s block” label to a whole bunch of other things because we feel like we can’t do anything about writer’s block — so we’re off the hook.

Not so, my friends.

Do You Really Have Writer’s Block?

I don’t think I’m all that terribly unique to experience things in a vacuum. I’m convinced that my experiences are fairly universal when it comes to the trouble with getting words down at a rate I find acceptable. But, I’ve also come to see that what I’ve classically labelled as “writer’s block” is in face a host of other things I could do something about and just don’t want to.

Procrastination

There’s this myth that we should LOVE to write all the time. What job is like that? People get tired. They get distracted. There are sometimes other places we’d rather be, people we’d rather be with. Tasks we’d rather not do. If you have been given the impression that real writers love to write all the time and if you don’t you have writer’s block — that’s a lie. Sometimes it’s just plain old procrastination.

This could apply to a first draft, but for pantsers it most often applies to the seemingly endless revision process.

Poor Planning

This one goes hand in hand with procrastination. Sometimes, when we don’t know where the story is going next (talking to all my fellow pantsers out there), we feel stuck. We’re just not sure where to take the story next so we do nothing and call it writer’s block. In reality, if we’d take the time to sit down and do a bit of plotting (at least, this has been my way through it) or talking it out with a patient friend or partner, we can navigate our way out.

It isn’t that we don’t know what we could write or could take the story, we just want to minimize the rewriting we’ll have to do and so… We do nothing and call it writer’s block. It isn’t an inability to think creatively or write, it’s a reluctance to go the wrong direction.

Too Long In The Same Place

Get up and move around. Maybe that means moving to a new room to write or a new location. Maybe that means you pause every hour or so and do a bit of housework or go for a walk at lunch. Whatever works for you to reset your creativity and get those muscles working a bit.

When I feel stuck, I go for a walk or wash some dishes by hand. Often my best ideas come when I’m active and focused on something else that doesn’t require me to pay close attention. The shower is another place I am often able to think my way through a stuck place in a story.

Working Too Long

Did you know that most people only have 3-5 good creative hours in a day? If you’re one of those people who sit at a computer and expect to write non-stop (maybe pause for lunch) for 8 hours a day endlessly, I think you’re going to be frustrated. Make sure to incorporate other tasks into your day, either at the beginning (eat the frog) or at the end (reward).

Writers are observers. We take in life around us and then recreate what we see. If you do nothing but sit at a computer and stop actually observing and taking in life around you, how can you expect to write? Take a day off! Go for a hike. Try something small you’ve never tried before – take a cooking class, do a free gym trial, volunteer at an animal shelter. Do something small that scares you. You don’t have to jump out of a plane, but maybe that means talking to the new neighbour, trying a new class, or trying on clothes you’d never wear!

When Are You Most Creative?

Don’t feel that you have conform to whatever schedule those around you stick to. Work when you’re most creative. If that’s first thing in the morning or late at night, it’s easier to work with your internal clock than against it. Me – I have no creativity in the afternoon. None. I try to leave my marketing work for the afternoons – scheduling social media, creating social images, tinkering with the website, etc. I write in the mornings and late at night.

Now, sometimes we have life circumstances that prevent us from doing this (family, day job, etc.), so I’ve found the writing is harder when I’m working against my internal clock so I have to give myself a bit of grace for working slower than I’d like.

Fear Of (fill in the blank)

Sometimes we label our fears as writer’s block. What are you afraid of? That no one will read your work? That people won’t like your work? That you can’t get an agent? That you never seem to have all the pieces? Listen, every writer deals with those fears. Really. Every writer faces moments or seasons where they’re convinced they’re going to be exposed as the frauds they’re sure they are.

If you want to write, sit down and write. Does having someone’s approval make you a writer? Does having an agent make you a writer? WRITING MAKES YOU A WRITER! So write.

When Is Writer’s Block Actually Writer’s Block?

Opinions vary, right. Some deny that it exists at all (and I might be in that camp – see the Stephen King quote above). That said, I’ve found there have been times when all the things I’ve mentioned above don’t really apply. In my experience, writer’s block is likely more properly labelled burn out. I wrote about that here. Burnout is debilitating and devastating, and the only way out of it is to rest and take a break.

When we ignore our health, when we work too many hours for too long and have nothing to refuel our drive or energy, we burn out. Burn out is real. Take care of yourselves!

What about you? Do you think you’ve called a writing snag writer’s block when it was really one of the things (or something else) above?

I am doing a free 5 Day Deep Point Of View Challenge on Facebook starting October 22. It’ll be in a closed Facebook group. You can sign up for the waiting list here so you don’t miss out when I have all the details put together.

3 Tips On Writing Internal Conflict With Emotional Punch

September 20, 2018 by Lisa Hall-Wilson 4 Comments

Does your main character have a line in the sand, a personal boundary or belief they will not violate? This internal conflict is central stories written in deep point of view often. What happens if the character violates their belief or boundary? What would they sacrifice in order to avoid crossing that line? What would either action show readers about what kind of person they are?

In Mission Impossible: Fallout near the very beginning of the movie, Tom Cruise’s character Ethan Hunt draws a line in the sand that defines his actions for the rest of the movie. Benji is anxious about a deal they’re trying to make happen and Hunt turns to him and says, “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

That line in the sand isn’t just about Benji. Hunt means it for anyone he cares about or works with. If he feels responsible for you, he won’t let anything happen to you. (Nothing permanent, anyway.)

In the movie Law Abiding Citizen with Jamie Fox and Gerard Butler, the goal of Butler’s antagonist is to convince Fox’s lawyer character: I don’t make deals with criminals. That’s the line in the sand.

I’ll never be hungry again! – Scarlet O’Hara

What Does Internal Conflict Look Like?

Internal conflict is the experience of having opposing psychological beliefs, desires, impulses or feelings — when you believe one thing and act in a different way. If you want to Google it and learn more, you’ll want to search for cognitive dissonance. This internal conflict is often a battle between what we know and what we feel. Most of the time, people crave consistency, so this internal conflict is when we’re basically at war with ourselves but it’s how we justify our behavior or correct course. This can lead to irrational behavior.

People struggling with internal conflict are squeamish. They might turn pale or lose color. They might feel dizzy or lightheaded. They might tremble or even pass out. Most of these reactions are observable, so another character could comment on them. A character in deep point of view can share the feeling of being dizzy, trembling, feeling lightheaded, queasy or nauseous.

People justify their actions, often audibly. Consider the guy who finds the courage to talk to or ask a girl out and she brushes him off. He’ll have this inner conflict, knowing he hasn’t really lost anything and feeling rejected or unwanted. One way he might choose to create consistency again, regain control of his feelings, is to justify why it didn’t work out. She wasn’t as pretty up close. She’s actually a snob and I’m better off without her. Or perhaps he decides she wants him to work harder so he doubles down and creates consistency between what he believes and how he feels that way.

Another facet of the above point is ignoring what’s plain to everyone else. The woman in an abusive relationship might know her boyfriend is toxic to her wellbeing, but feels like she can’t leave. Leaving means being alone, means supporting herself, means not knowing what tomorrow might bring.

It could mean that every derogatory thing he’s ever said to her is actually true, and she’s sure she’d face any negative consequences he’s threatened. So to create consistency between what she knows and feels, she avoids acknowledging the abuse. She justifies or explains away his behavior so that she doesn’t have to do anything about it.

What Emotional Layers Could Be At Play With Internal Conflict

There are dozens of emotions possible with internal conflict based on what’s at stake, right. In Laurel K. Hamilton’s Blue Moon, the protagonist Anita Blake doesn’t believe in torture. But there’s a short scene where she’s desperate to get the truth from someone and resorts to torture. She crossed her own line in the sand. She’s disregarded what she knows and gave in to how she felt.

The fallout of that is her renewed faith in the boundary that she won’t torture, and when it comes up again in the novel where she needs information from someone and is encouraged to expedite the process with pain, she refuses and that costs her emotionally. As soon as a character questions their abilities or self-worth and sees themselves falling short in some way, we have shame.

Shame is a very powerful emotion to play with as a writer. Shame doesn’t tell us we did a bad thing, shame says we are bad. Shame is so heavy, such a burden emotionally that typically people will do anything to get out from under that weight. But shame is a secondary emotion, so work backwards and identify the primary emotions that would cause shame.

Subtext Is Needed For Internal Conflict

The only way internal conflict works as a story device for emotional arc is when the reader is aware of the conflict in the protagonist. The best way to show this to readers is to use subtext. This is a more advanced fiction writing tool, but if you can master subtext you’ll take your writing to another level. Subtext is what’s not being said, it’s the unspoken communication. I’ve written about subtext here and here and here.

Can you think of a movie or book that had really great internal conflict that ratcheted up the stakes for the protagonist?

Get your copy of Method Acting for Writers: Learn Deep Point of View Using Emotional Layers on Amazon or Kobo.

How To Find Time To Write

July 30, 2018 by Lisa Hall-Wilson 1 Comment

Finding time to write when you’re already crazy busy is a challenge. I’ve been writing (with a mind to being published) since I was 27. I’ve raised three kids in that time, launching a journalism career, begun teaching writing online, and written several novels. Is it easy? No way.

So many writers tell me they are struggling to find time to write. And I get that. I’ve had seasons where I was trying to write while raising three close-in-age children and working part time, working full time, volunteering, etc.

So many try and fit writing into their free time, their spare time. The problem with this idea of spare time is that we look at our day and never see any consistent blocks of spare time. There’s a reason for that though — who likes to be bored? We find things to fill our time. So we look back on our day and can’t see anyplace where we could fit in writing.

**Stuff happens, life happens, I get that. Sometimes you just get swamped and all you can do is keep your head above water. I don’t write in those seasons either.**

“I want to challenge you on this idea of spare time…Redefine how you’ll spend your day. Some of you are spending one or two or three hours a day checking email – something that none of us did 25 years ago. Everyday, people manage to do a thing, a patterned thing, and think they have no spare time but their next door neighbour is training for a marathon and she’s still doing great at work…reprioritize what spare time means.”

…if you can dig deep and say yes, this is important to me, you’ll find the time.”

Seth Godin

If writing is something you want to be more than a hobby, you have to put in the time. You have to study, write, be critiqued, revise–all of it. Over and over again. That’s the only way I know of to move your craft to the next level. There’s always a next level.

A Spare Time Example

Many of you may not be in the season of life I’m about to describe, your situation may be different, but here’s how I redefined spare time when I was home with three close-in-age small children. I couldn’t get large chunks of time to write, I couldn’t even find a consistent time of day I could set aside a few minutes to write. I learned to make use of the inbetween moments.

When the kids were playing in the yard, I would bring a craft book and highlighter out and work on that. Something I could pick up and put down without getting upset, something I couldn’t get so engrossed in I couldn’t step in and prevent disaster when I needed to. This is also how I edited my mss. I printed it off, and each time we went outside, I’d grab another chunk of pages and get through as much as I could.

I read craft books and watched videos while I did dishes or folded laundry. I’d take the kids outside for an “adventure” which might have been a walk, a trip to the park, or a trip to the library. As long as they had a chance to run off some energy, they’d play quietly for an hour when we got home and I’d sit with my notebook (in the days before I had a laptop) and write another chapter.

At least once a week, I’d get an evening free (hubs did bedtime solo) and I could really dive deep into writing fiction, but those times were wasted if I hadn’t put the work into revising what I’d already written, researching the next section, or planning/brainstorming where the story would go next. Those inbetween moments meant I made the most of the time I did get to write.

I entered contests just to get the critique. A $20 entry fee is a cheap critique. I saved up in order to attend one writer’s conference a year. It was fairly local, so there weren’t many travel costs. It was a breath of fresh wind in my sails. It was a yearly deadline to aim for to have work ready to pitch or get critiqued.

You have time to write when you make time to write. Click To Tweet

Maybe you could get up an hour earlier every day, or stay up an hour later. Maybe you could use your hour long lunch break to do work – was it Mark Dawson who wrote his first bestseller using only his commute time on the train? Leave a craft book you want to read in the bathroom.

Reprioritize writing and you’ll find you have many “spare” moments where you can work on your writing.

Where could you find some “spare time” in your day to write? Could you give up something? Could you reprioritize so writing gets done before this or that? How would you set up some accountability?

How To Show Your Alpha Hero’s In Control Even When Writing In Deep Point Of View

April 6, 2018 by Lisa Hall-Wilson Leave a Comment

There people who have dominant personalities. We might call them an alpha. They don’t have to be abusive, arrogant, angry, or dismissive. In fact, when you combine the positive traits of alpha males and females with generosity, humility, and a few others, a compelling character can emerge.

Dominant Characters In Deep Point Of View

When you’re limited to only what the point of view character can see, know, feel, hear, etc. it becomes really important to learn what dominant body language looks like. Remember, in deep point of view you (the writer) can only present evidence to the reader (judge), and they make decisions on character mood, emotion, attitude, etc. So how do you do that? In your writer’s toolbox, you’ll have your own character’s posture and gestures, thoughts, physiology, and words. You also have how others respond and behave when with your point of view character (their posture, facial expressions, words, etc.) Your alpha character doesn’t have to put people down, be a jerk or abusive to show the reader they’re in control.

Power Poses

Amy Cuddy’s TedTalks videos explore power poses. I’ve spent some time just watching people in innocuous situations — waiting at a bus stop, at the theater, at a restaurant, etc. and these power poses are actually used unconsciously all the time. A power pose is the body language of someone feeling powerful (in control, in authority) or victorious. You’ll often see athletes raise their arms up over their heads when they win. When you feel powerful, you’re more likely to feel uninhibited and adopt an open posture.

This often involves making yourself look bigger in some way:

arms raised up or spread wide
puffing out chests
keeping head up (like there’s a string attached at the ceiling to the top of the head)
putting feet up on a desk – lounging (though this really smacks of arrogance too)
hands on hips (think Wonder Woman)
standing upright or erect
chin up, chest out
legs spread apart
chests, crotches, necks exposed or on display (not in an indecent way)
elbows or knees spread wide
Foot or ankle resting on top of knee in a figure 4 position
looking down from a higher position or elevation
man-spreading, crowding the space of others

Submissive poses are the opposite. This body language seeks to make a person appear smaller and they adopt a posture that appears to protect their vulnerable bits – chests, hearts, necks, crotches, etc. Power and submission poses are practiced equally by men and women, though women are often culturally conditioned to strike these poses because men find these kinds of body language attractive.

Let’s look at a real-world example. At the Yalta Summit in 1945, a media photo was released of the three most-powerful men in the world at the time: Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin.

Photo via Wiki Commons

This photo perhaps captures how each man feels about his place in the group or the outcome of the meetings. Churchill (left) is holding his hat in his lap covering his groin and appears to have his shoulders hunched. This is a submissive pose.

Roosevelt (center) isn’t covering either his neck, chest or crotch, but this isn’t a power pose. Rather, he’s confident. Stalin (far right) with his open display of chest, crotch and neck is striking a power pose. See how Stalin is spreading his elbows and knees wide. He’s not slouched but has a very rigid posture. He feels he’s in a position of power or is celebrating a victory perhaps.

Deferring To The Dominant Personality

When the dominant personality is speaking, the rest will listen. Those who aren’t dominant will unconsciously mimic the dominant person’s responses and posture. They’ll defer to that person when a question is asked.

Without the dominant personality, no one knows what to say. They are unwilling to meet anyone’s gaze. No one steps up. When a non-dominant personality exits a group, the conversation will continue and the circle will close in the gap like they weren’t there. When a dominant personality leaves, the conversation stops and people stare at the floor and they begin to shift and move about. They don’t know what to say.

Alpha or dominant male body posture.

Dominant In Specific Spheres

Dominance can be location or people specific. Someone could be the dominant personality in their own home, their work, their community, or social group. Their dominance may overlap with many spheres, or it could be limited to just one. Let their posture and body language shift between the spheres to show the loss or lack of dominance. You can really play with this. How would a contest for dominance look in a civilized setting? How would a good alpha assert his authority in public?

Consider the person who is dominant, but relinquishes that power to someone for a time, for a reason. The dominant personality in a meeting may temporarily give up their power in order to hear from an expert for instance. How would that affect their posture or body language? How will the “expert” react to having that power taken away again?

How Does All This Work In Fiction?

We know how things work in real life so how strictly do we need to stick to it in fiction? Let your character’s alpha-ness be a source of the conflict they feel internally or create externally. Many times in fiction, we’re writing about the outliers, those who don’t fit the society mold so there’s lots of freedom to depart from what’s above as long as you’re consistent.

In the age of #metoo, despite the popularity of the 50 Shades books and movies, your alpha hero can (and should) respect women and understand consent, etc. He can be an alpha without needing to dominate those closest to him. Your alpha doesn’t have to be a Wolverine when they could be Professor X. Not many writers are interested in creating those types of characters–or at least, avoid celebrating them.

Want to learn more about deep point of view? Heard about it and don’t know what it’s really about? Been told readers struggle to connect with your characters emotionally? Know about deep point of view, but stumped trying to find intermediate-level resources? Registration is now open for Method Acting For Writers: Learn To Write In Deep Point Of View. Class begins May 7 and the cost is $165CDN (approx $130USD).

Can You Make A Living Writing?

March 2, 2018 by Lisa Hall-Wilson Leave a Comment

Can you make a living writing? This is a question that came through to the blog last week. My short answer was yes – of course, but I’ve spent some time doing a completely unscientific anecdotal poll of the various writer’s groups I’m a part of so that I can answer this question outside of my own personal experience.

Freelancing, as a rule, is feast or famine. It’s unpredictable income. Of all the freelance work I’ve done, writing for non-profits was the most predictable, but only until donations are down or some executive thinks the admin working under them who did well in high school English can write “well enough” and my hours get significantly reduced or my contract cancelled. Yes, that’s happened. More than once. (Do they come back to me after a while because “well enough” didn’t bring in as many donations as my work did? Often.)

My point is, in these situations whether you’re blogging, doing direct mail, journalism, marketing campaigns–whatever, even if you’re on staff, the writing is the easiest to change and the first thing that gets cut. Sad truth.

Here’s a book on my wishlist – Scratch: Writers, Money And The Art Of Making A Living

Diversify

The answer to a reliable income as a writer is to diversify. Don’t rely on one source for your entire income, things you have no control over change too quickly. Here’s a sample of some of the replies I received (names removed).

“I’m getting close to making a living by writing, through advances, royalties, and some direct sales at events. (I’m traditionally published.)”

“I’m on my second career track. I’m making a living with writing books in my very specialized field … I have regular speaking engagements, do conferences, earn income on my membership website along with weekly TV programs. It’s taken 6 years to build but I’m seeing the fruit of my labor.”

“I diversify with freelancing, speaking, using my newsletter for advertising, subscriptions to a paid newsletter, and my novels.”

“For me, over the years, it’s been a mix of: (1) digital product sales, (2) consulting and editing services, (3) online teaching, (4) digital subscriptions, (5) book sales, (6) paid freelance writing, (7) Amazon affiliate marketing, and (8) speaking fees.”

“I was making a living wage from my editing, teaching, and non-fiction books combined for a lot of years. I don’t remember how long it took to get a full-time income from that because it was so long ago. I published my first novel in November 2016. In 2017, my income was nearly double what it was the year before, and I was doing that 99% from books. I currently sell ebooks and paperbacks, and last month I signed with an audiobook publisher…”

“It took me about 3 years of submitting myself to publications (including a non-paying column, so I could build up samples and experience) to make a living through writing. Diversifying has been vital for me, because I knew I wanted and planned to make a good income through writing. I think that’s another key: believing you can and aiming for it. Nurturing relationships with editors, publications, etc., is also helpful, I’ve found; some of my smallest gigs have led to the biggest. And applying our creativity to creating and pursuing writing work can go really far.”

Fantastic (and frightening) article about getting that coveted $100,000 cheque from a royalty publisher: Cheryl Strayed Was $85,000 In Debt When Her Memoir Wild Got Published

Over the years, I’ve diversified my income by freelance writing and editing for magazines and newspapers, schools, non-profits, and small businesses (marketing copy, event promotion, blogging, direct mail, articles, interviews, event coverage, etc.), syndicated column, consulting, teaching online, coordinating writer’s conferences, and writing fiction.

There are a lot of Indie writers making a living just off their fiction as well. Their version of diversifying is building a backlist, putting out work in multiple formats across many vendors, maybe monetizing a blog and affiliate sales, and some speaking.

Jane Friedman and Joanna Penn (The Creative Penn) talk money and making a living writing here.

Here’s some things to really think through either before jumping into the writing-as-a-living-pool or giving up on it.

Define what a living wage means to you. Does it mean six figures? Most people can get by on a lot less. Do you need to earn a full-time wage or are you just looking for a side income because your partner has a good job?
Freelancing offers the most freedom and opportunity but also comes with the most risk. There just aren’t many staff writer positions available any more. Be sure to set aside money in the good months for the lean months- and there will be lean months because of fluctuations you have no control over and won’t foresee.
Network!! This is the name of the game. Whether you’re writing fiction or non-fiction, marketing, blogging–doesn’t matter. Put out your best work with every job and build a reputation in whatever field you’re writing in. That’s how you get more work. Network with other writers. I’ve given away jobs I didn’t have time for, I’ve gotten jobs from other writers who needed a name to pass on to a client. Fiction writers are often sharing newsletter space, promoting others work to their own readers, etc. You’ll get farther faster by helping those around you and letting them help you.
Be patient. Most of the comments above are from people who’ve spent years building up a portfolio of work and networking and working really hard. Most Indie fiction authors are saying they needed 3 – 5 books out before they were making a good living from just their fiction. It’s the backlist that keeps you afloat with each new release promoting everything else you’ve written. This takes time.
Get really good at one or two things. I’ve spoken to so many editors who get frustrated with new writers who say they’ll write anything. While that may be true, editors are often looking for people already interested in or have knowledge of a specific sector. Get really good at book reviews and you’ll be trusted with something bigger, for instance. I got really good at interviews. When a celebrity or entertainer was in town or was coming to town (not even my town but across the country), often editors turned to me because I was able to navigate the maze of gatekeepers these people surround themselves with and get the interview, and asked questions their readers wanted answers to. Become the go-to person for that topic or kind of writing. (In my case, this involved a lot of stalking on social media, identifying and genuinely befriending mavens, unanswered emails, learning lingo, and backdoor networking–be creative in finding solutions.)
Change your mindset. Instead of cutting your rates or giving away work for free (unless part of a strategic marketing decision), weigh the work against your end goals. Is taking this work a good business move? How will this work help me get where I want to get? Give yourself freedom to say no.

My Best Advice…

Finally, the best advice I know to give someone who wants to make a living as a writer is to keep learning. Strive to make every piece your best work, stay on top of trends and new styles and techniques, and push yourself to network and keep growing professionally.

Do you have a question you’d like to see me tackle on the blog? Usually I send a quick short answer and then explore it further here. Leave a comment here, send me an email (lisa(at)lisahallwilson(dot)com) or find me on Facebook.

Should You Write For Genre (and monetary success)?

February 22, 2018 by Lisa Hall-Wilson 3 Comments

Should you write for genre (and tied up in that is the expectation that genre fiction sells better than literary fiction so you’ll find more monetary success)? I don’t think writing to genre is bad nor do I think avoiding all discussion of genre wise either. You can write the best book in the world, but if don’t know how to sell it, if readers can’t find it – then what?

So, the core of this argument is – should you write to genre (staying within the creative limits set out by reader expectations) or just write whatever you want and then figure out what shelf it’ll go on. I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer here, I know people who’ve been successful doing both. Writing genre fiction is not a ticket to financial freedom nor can you realistically write anything you want, call it literary, and make a million. Really, there’s only a right-for-you answer and ultimately it’s a marketing question.

Today I’m answering a reader question. Have one? Send it in!

Are you able to craft a story that fits within certain parameters? If you want to write for the Christian market, there are specific “rules” you must follow or readers will abandon you. But the same goes for romance, cozies, and a number of other genres.

I’m told if you’re writing cozies readers expect to find a recipe at the back. If you want to write a gritty crime novel, don’t market it as a cozy just because there’s a lot of readers for that genre. They’ll KNOW.

Writers, as a stereotype, dislike labels and boxes and rules. I know I do. We’re artistes after all. When I try to write to genre (which is a box with specific reader expectations, tropes, and outcomes) not only do I go outside the lines, I stomp all over the box. It’s not intentional – I actively plan on sticking to the rules. But in the middle of crafting the novel, I get caught up in the art of it and won’t this be cool and I love where this character is going and I’ll only bend the rule a little here and here and maybe here too.

It’s all happy birch trees and beaver tails until you hand a proposal to an agent for a specific genre and their eyes grow round as an owl’s and they … just … stare. You can see the emotions flicker across their faces – is this a serious proposal? They’re serious. The writing is good, but I’ll never sell this. I’m not sure I’d even read it. The proposal makes me feel dirty… (I’m paraphrasing what I believe likely goes through the minds of Christian agents when they’ve read my proposals).

It takes talent, I think, to make an agent lose the ability to speak for a few moments before they reject you face to face. It’s the church-polite equivalent to Hell No! I once asked an agent why he rejected my proposal thinking I might tweak it and get different results (months later at a different conference – no emotions on the line). What was it about the idea he didn’t like, was it the presentation or the hook, did he understand what the book was about (I mean, kudos that he remembered my proposal so vividly – I’m probably one of those cautionary tales he tells at writer’s conferences). He laughed. No, he rejected the book because the proposal was so good he knew exactly what the book was about. That’s something, right? o_o Maybe?

That’s when you know that you’ve not only missed the genre mark, you’ve flattened the box completely.

If you want to write to a specific genre, the trick is to employ some art without being artsy.

By artsy, I mean being too original or using art for the sake of art rather than to connect with our audience *cough* Fergie’s national anthem *cough*. Being artsy is fine if that’s what your audience is expecting, but if they have specific expectations and you decide now’s your time to be original and take risks–it’s going to fail.

This is the difference between literary fiction and genre fiction. In literary novels, there are few conventions. Writers are free to experiment and get real artsy and readers embrace that. Write an entire novel using only one period if you want – have at it. Being artsy doesn’t mean people will love your ideas (see above example). There’s this perception that literary novels don’t sell well. They’re definitely harder to market, but if a good book lands in the hands of enough readers they’ll tell their friends about it.

In genre fiction, readers come with pre-loaded expectations of what they’re going to get and if you violate those “rules” readers will hate you. In literary fiction, the hero can die after a novel-length romantic story. If the hero dies in a romance novel, your readers will send you hate mail.

If You Must Be Original…

If you must be original, and I confess that I’m really terrible with rules, write the story in your heart. Just get it out. Polish it up. Get it professionally edited. Then sit down and figure out which shelf (or shelves) you can slide it onto where the readers that love your kind of story hang out.

When we consider novels that smash genre rules, I always think of the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. It’s a time travel novel, no–it’s a historical, no–it’s romance, no–it’s fantasy — ARGH!! It’s actually all of those things and yet, none of those things. Gabaldon admits that at book signings when people asked what genre the book was, she’d consider the age and gender of the reader asking and then pick the genre they’d be more likely to read. An older gentleman – it’s a historical. A younger woman – it’s a romance. A younger man – it’s a fantasy or a time travel novel. But once her novels hit the bestseller lists, genre didn’t matter. Nobody cared.

But that question of genre meant Outlander almost wasn’t published at all. Gabaldon says her publisher sat on the manuscript for 18 months because they didn’t know what shelf to put it on (the shelf/genre determines which readers will immediately dismiss it, the cover art used, the length, etc.).

Here’s what she said: “Whenever you’re dealing with something that’s difficult to describe, that you can’t get across to someone in a sound bite, it sounds like the normal default is to pick what’s easiest, and in the case of fiction written by women, fiction involving women, fiction involving any sort of relationship, the word that comes to mind is romance. It’s canned stuff: “It’s steamy, it’s stirring, it’s sizzling, it’s a bodice ripper.” And as I say, in romance novels, those are courtship stories. Once the couple is married, that’s the end of the story. And in our story, that means we would have stopped at episode seven. I’ve never seen anyone deal in a literary way with what it takes to stay married for more than 50 years, and that seemed like a worthy goal.” (read the whole interview here)

So, that’s a longish answer to a short question. Sort of. Write the story that’s got you excited. Be as creative and artsy as you want or know the intricacies of the genre you love and write within those boundaries. Define your chaos, as Gabaldon says. Then when you’ve finished, sit back and figure out the marketing. Which shelf should it go on? Where do you want it to fit and what will you have to change to make it work?

Don’t forget, nothing is written in stone if you’re Indie. If a story falls flat on one shelf, all things being equal, give it a new cover and maybe a new title (these must primarily be marketing decisions) and see if it attracts those readers better. Once readers get a hold of it and start telling their friends, the genre stops mattering so much.

Dive Deep!