Why Many Authors Don’t Change Genres…Ever: Day 2 of the Discussion on Whether or Not Versatility Hurts an Author’s Career

Yesterday, we talked about the pros and cons of writing across genres. Today, the focus is more on why some writers seem to avoid it entirely. If you didn’t read yesterday’s post, I recommend you start there.

 
Why Some Authors Avoid Versatility

So here’s the question: why do most authors seem to stick to one genre? There are a couple reasons, I think.

 

Comfort

It’s what they know. A lot of writers don’t push themselves. It’s sad for me to see an author never really live up to their potential, but I can’t push them if it’s not what they want. If a writer knows romance really well or has their foot in the pararomance door and doesn’t want to leave, that’s their prerogative. However, I think it’s a stagnant place to live out your writing years.

 

Preference

This is slightly different from comfort in that it’s just what they like best. Their passion lies in a particular genre, rather than in writing itself. They live and breathe horror novels or paranormal romance or whatever, and that’s all they’ll ever want to do.

If that’s the case for you, go for it. You should always follow your passion, wherever it takes you. However, I have to give you a warning. Genre-preference authors, you must be careful to avoid getting comfortable and losing the passion that led you here in the first place.

 

It’s All Business

Some writers choose a genre at first because they’re passionate, but stay after they’re complacent because they build a readership in that niche. What these authors have to be careful of, though, is the fact that writing is a passionate art.

Readers take from a book what the author puts into it. If the author grows bored with a genre, it will show in their writing and they will lose readers anyway. So to stay in a genre because it seems like the logical business decision is ultimately a mistake; the passion to write—and the author’s total readers—will dwindle over time.

 

They Stick to their Strengths

It’s possible that some authors just think they can write one genre best. They don’t necessarily prefer it over others or write to keep their sales high, but they think they know one genre better than any other.

For example, look at Nicholas Sparks—he writes pretty much the same basic plot in most of his novels, but connects with the readers in an emotional way that brings them back for more every time. It’s a bit perplexing, but hey, I like his work too.

Business v. Creativity

There’s no “right answer” when it comes to versatility; it all depends on what you can do as a writer. You’ll have to experiment, and you’ll probably make mistakes along the way. That’s normal. However, a look at two different perspectives on the subject might help you choose where to start.

Tommy has apparently held a few private discussions on this subject and summarized his past conversations for this post. One of his responses came from a businessperson, while the other came from a fellow writer. I think their contrast sums up the conflict in this discussion pretty well.

 

The Business Outlook

From a business perspective, to put all of your eggs in one basket is a bad idea, because if you drop the basket, you break all of your eggs. But on the other hand, to put a dozen eggs in twelve different baskets is a bad idea as well, because you’re not going to be carry those baskets very well. If you only focus on one thing, or genre, you’re a one horse pony, which is a bad thing. If you focus on two or three things, you’re a specialist, which is a good thing. If you focus on four or five, you’re a generalist, which is also a good thing. But if you’re spreading your time and talent over a dozen or so areas, you’re a jack of all trades, king of nothing.

 

The Creative Outlook

I would hate to lose even a small amount of creative freedom in order to be allowed to make a living as a writer. On the other hand, though, if you HAVE to be stuck doing one job the rest of your life, writing fiction sounds like as cool a dead end to be ‘stuck’ in regardless of the genre.

 

The Moral

Don’t be afraid to experiment and explore…just don’t spread yourself too thin.

 

 
The Schedule

This post was too big to host in just one day. Here’s the full schedule, with links:

Day One: Can Publishing in Multiple Genres Hurt an Author’s Career?
Day Two: Why Many Authors Don’t Change Genres…Ever
Day Three: A Closer Look at Timing Your Publications


S. M. Boyce is a fantasy and paranormal fiction writer. You can find her novels on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

The Discussion

Is this a definitive look at versatility as it pertains to authors? No. I’m sure we missed something somewhere, but it’s a conversation starter. Jump in.