Spice Girl
I have spent the last few months preparing for the launch of AVA. During this time I have experienced mild, but recurring, stress about the proper genre for my novel.
Depending on which source I choose to trust, my book is either romantic thriller, romantic suspense, family saga, literary light, or chick lit.
In order to make my decision, I combed industry sites, looking for expert opinions. My mouse clicked on RWA, ITW, AWWC, Writer’s Relief, and WIKI, among others.
What did all this research reveal? My book is a little bit of everything.
Just like me.
Perhaps the magic of legacy publishing—and its strength for long-term sustainability—rests on the skill of the industry’s editors to pare down a writer’s manuscript to a single genre.
After a laborious and annoying month, one in which I cut chapters out only to return them to their rightful place days later, I faced my truth: I couldn’t do it.
I'd spent two years, day and night, working on the opening books in my Priya series, and I found I was unwilling to shed subplots and supporting characters just to squeeze AVA into the publishing world equivalent of a perfect size six.
My solution?
Readers who purchase AVA will receive a link to a special area of my website where the overflow chapters (sounds better than cut, doesn’t it?) will be available for their enjoyment.
I suppose that as a writer, I am creating what I am drawn to as a reader. Seems natural enough, but it made me wonder how much my personality might be driving this genuine genre quandary.
(Say that three times really fast.)
For example, despite an active interest in both our judicial system and Capitol Hill, I have never pursued a career in the field of law. Why? I would be severely, routinely challenged by the words “Not relevant. Move on, Counselor.”
To my way of thinking, everything is connected. You’ll never convince me otherwise.
According to my brothers, this life philosophy makes it extremely annoying to argue with me, no matter the subject of our disagreement.
Choosing to write a series added an immediate complication to the plot of my first novel. After all, what happens in this book creates the foundation for the entire collection.
I added. I cut. I was right on target with how my story was going to stay between the lines.
Oh, but those stubborn main characters had other ideas, and they dictated (demanded?) a different course. There was simply no persuading them that my way was the better way.
The next challenge came in the form of secondary players, those characters who pop in and out of the book at their own leisure. They would not be forced into the razor-edged lines of a clean plot no matter how vigorously I typed.
Plus, I enjoyed dropping hints along the way about what is to come in future books.
In the end, I let the story simply unfold. I let the characters course-correct if they felt strongly about going in a new direction. What I have ended up with is a romantic thriller interwoven with elements of suspense, family saga, literary, and chick lit.
What it comes down to is this: my genealogy doesn’t fit in one category; my brothers and I, born of the same parents, are as different as we are alike; the books I read cover diverse territory; to an outside ear, my iPod playlists represent a mix of incompatible music styles; I’m crazy for Jane Austen movies, romantic comedies, and DC-centric thrillers, yet my favorite movie of all time is Field of Dreams.
I’m so happy this way, being a little bit of everything.
Developing an interesting personality, whether in a human or in a book, is a bit like planting a garden or cooking with spice. Hints of "this" and a splashes of "that" enhance the core qualities and frame the experience, heightening the enjoyment as one travels across the pages in pursuit of a satisfying end.
Writing AVA confirmed for me that I have never had any interest in fitting neatly inside the lines—and that I don’t plan on starting now.
And wouldn’t you know? Neither do my characters.
Depending on which source I choose to trust, my book is either romantic thriller, romantic suspense, family saga, literary light, or chick lit.
In order to make my decision, I combed industry sites, looking for expert opinions. My mouse clicked on RWA, ITW, AWWC, Writer’s Relief, and WIKI, among others.
What did all this research reveal? My book is a little bit of everything.
Just like me.
Perhaps the magic of legacy publishing—and its strength for long-term sustainability—rests on the skill of the industry’s editors to pare down a writer’s manuscript to a single genre.
After a laborious and annoying month, one in which I cut chapters out only to return them to their rightful place days later, I faced my truth: I couldn’t do it.
I'd spent two years, day and night, working on the opening books in my Priya series, and I found I was unwilling to shed subplots and supporting characters just to squeeze AVA into the publishing world equivalent of a perfect size six.
My solution?
Readers who purchase AVA will receive a link to a special area of my website where the overflow chapters (sounds better than cut, doesn’t it?) will be available for their enjoyment.
I suppose that as a writer, I am creating what I am drawn to as a reader. Seems natural enough, but it made me wonder how much my personality might be driving this genuine genre quandary.
(Say that three times really fast.)
For example, despite an active interest in both our judicial system and Capitol Hill, I have never pursued a career in the field of law. Why? I would be severely, routinely challenged by the words “Not relevant. Move on, Counselor.”
To my way of thinking, everything is connected. You’ll never convince me otherwise.
According to my brothers, this life philosophy makes it extremely annoying to argue with me, no matter the subject of our disagreement.
Choosing to write a series added an immediate complication to the plot of my first novel. After all, what happens in this book creates the foundation for the entire collection.
I added. I cut. I was right on target with how my story was going to stay between the lines.
Oh, but those stubborn main characters had other ideas, and they dictated (demanded?) a different course. There was simply no persuading them that my way was the better way.
The next challenge came in the form of secondary players, those characters who pop in and out of the book at their own leisure. They would not be forced into the razor-edged lines of a clean plot no matter how vigorously I typed.
Plus, I enjoyed dropping hints along the way about what is to come in future books.
In the end, I let the story simply unfold. I let the characters course-correct if they felt strongly about going in a new direction. What I have ended up with is a romantic thriller interwoven with elements of suspense, family saga, literary, and chick lit.
What it comes down to is this: my genealogy doesn’t fit in one category; my brothers and I, born of the same parents, are as different as we are alike; the books I read cover diverse territory; to an outside ear, my iPod playlists represent a mix of incompatible music styles; I’m crazy for Jane Austen movies, romantic comedies, and DC-centric thrillers, yet my favorite movie of all time is Field of Dreams.
I’m so happy this way, being a little bit of everything.
Developing an interesting personality, whether in a human or in a book, is a bit like planting a garden or cooking with spice. Hints of "this" and a splashes of "that" enhance the core qualities and frame the experience, heightening the enjoyment as one travels across the pages in pursuit of a satisfying end.
Writing AVA confirmed for me that I have never had any interest in fitting neatly inside the lines—and that I don’t plan on starting now.
And wouldn’t you know? Neither do my characters.
Posted by A Priya In Washington at 11/4/2011 6:09 PM 
Categories: Ashley's Blog
Tags: Selfpublishing Ashley Barron Kindle dcPriya Newbie Writer Characters First Book First Draft Priya Series Story Editing romantic thriller romantic suspense literary chick lit family saga Books E-books Amazon Writer Author Blogger Self-Publishing
Categories: Ashley's Blog
Tags: Selfpublishing Ashley Barron Kindle dcPriya Newbie Writer Characters First Book First Draft Priya Series Story Editing romantic thriller romantic suspense literary chick lit family saga Books E-books Amazon Writer Author Blogger Self-Publishing
I couldn't agree more, Ashley. You make both an important distinction and a valuable point for self-publishing in your statement about legacy editors.
Traditional houses are bound to arbitrary rules dictated by editors and bookstores--genre classifications so a store knows what shelf to place the book upon; word count limitations based on the cost of paper and bindings. Many others.
The beauty of art is in its variability, its endless permutations. With the advent of eBooks, writers are emerging from Dark Age suppression into a brave new renaissance of publishing, and the future has never held more promise.
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