tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post4568615053249640887..comments2024-03-18T09:09:59.625-04:00Comments on Janet Reid, Literary Agent: Query Question: more on genre and categoryJanet Reidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00615380335938685231noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-82658720822037911722016-01-07T02:01:42.133-05:002016-01-07T02:01:42.133-05:00Thanks for the information on genre and category. ...Thanks for the information on genre and category. I've gone through several descriptions that were too unwieldy to use and now I know why. I appreciate this very much.<br />PattiP.I. Barringtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05225260434926598041noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-37994395936549933592014-05-08T08:35:50.608-04:002014-05-08T08:35:50.608-04:00My WIP is about a book club in the Wild West, whos...My WIP is about a book club in the Wild West, whose founder falls in love with an alien until she is gruesomely murdered.<br /><br />My question is: in what color folder would you like me to send a printed copy of my book?Standbackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10877817311001333712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-21455279083171942772014-05-07T21:41:38.751-04:002014-05-07T21:41:38.751-04:00Right or wrong, I look at the story overall and as...Right or wrong, I look at the story overall and ask where the main emphasis is. For example, my current WIP is about a teenage alien who accidentally ends up in Victorian London. It's definitely YA, but is it sci-fi or historical? I'm calling it historical since most of the action takes place in 1879, and mainly utilizes the technology of that period. But it's not always an easy call, so I try not to over-think it.Colin Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03292997431935215499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-84190099523041214852014-05-07T18:31:10.239-04:002014-05-07T18:31:10.239-04:00Thriller isn't its own genre? I'd have mis...Thriller isn't its own genre? I'd have missed that one on final Jeopardy. <br /><br />TerriTerri Lynn Coophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07290316565247120848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-26483827527208073002014-05-07T16:03:15.341-04:002014-05-07T16:03:15.341-04:00Um, obscure, useless thoughts aside, is it me, or ...Um, obscure, useless thoughts aside, is it me, or does anyone else have trouble with the mystery, thriller and suspense "categories." <br /><br />I mean, I know what they are, but romance can have suspense, and mystery - oh and thrills galore. I get that a mystery is more about the reader not knowing, while suspense is when they follow along with the protag, knowing he/she shouldn't go in that cellar where butcher man awaits with the axe. But are they considered a genre in of themselves, or categories...considering every genre can have a splash of each..maybe I just answered my own question - except I've seen them flagged as genres.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-70223851354782903442014-05-07T13:01:45.822-04:002014-05-07T13:01:45.822-04:00So, dinosaur fiction is a category because you can...So, dinosaur fiction is a category because you can have dino erotica or a dino mystery. A mysterious asteroid wipes out all of the dinosaurs, and it's left up to a small, hairy rodent to evolve over millions of years into a civilization that can determine the asteroid was a random act of nature, not malice, so the claims can be settled.Lancehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17335923263777449916noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-69065041538224937202014-05-07T12:27:44.456-04:002014-05-07T12:27:44.456-04:00I'm really thankful this came up--I've hea...I'm really thankful this came up--I've heard a lot of people refer to "contemporary" YA (YA that's not SF/F, fantasy or paranormal) but I was also recently told that "contemporary" wasn't an official category.(Proving that there are continual, constant debates about this.)<br /><br />YA and MG are automatically fuzzier because there's no bookstore designation to indicate what their sub-genres might be. The adult novels get distinctive sections, but YA is all lumped together, with books like Twilight, Unbreakable, and Crank all on the same shelf.<br /><br />If an agent repping YA were to post somewhere what the main sub-categories were, that might help. I've looked, but haven't found anything definitive.<br /><br />So until that happens, I'm happy to err on the side of a wider readership.<br /><br />Karen McCoyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02640324898284007337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17040756.post-30598309837493613312014-05-07T10:42:15.504-04:002014-05-07T10:42:15.504-04:00If YA isn't a genre (and I agree), then why do...If YA isn't a genre (and I agree), then why do so many agents list it as a genre they represent/don't represent? <br /><br />Honestly, the YA and NA labels are giving me a lot of confusion as a romance writer when I query. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02393866633203329419noreply@blogger.com