Michelle Militi

Lori, I know exactly what you mean about writing between genres. I’m rewriting a crime novel right now. One reason I decided to set up my own indie publishing company this year is because I was tired of hearing industry people say it’s best to write in one genre, and that we authors should “brand” ourselves by giving readers a similar type of story each time. I mean, why? Who said? (Of course there are famous crossover writers like Nora Roberts and James Patterson, but people seem to hold them as the exceptions.) My passion is for story telling, and that means whatever story happens to grip my imagination and my heart. Also, we authors change and as we change, we may be captivated by very different emotions and desires. It’s really important to feel free to write what we want — but to work hard at it!

I also think it’s a risk to an author’s creativity to pay attention to those types of genre-branding industry arguments. It makes it feel like there’s a game, and a way to win it, and if you don’t fit in, you’re going to lose. That feels like a playground mentality to me. Isn’t the game is to be healthy, happy, and artistically fulfilled?

But, of course by self-publishing it’s easier to put the money aspect aside, simply because you can print on demand. The big publishers have a lot more to worry about when it comes to the bottom line…

Racheline,
Thank you for giving those insights! Great female characters are definitely needed in all romances. I agree that there is a place for everyone, and I think that if you switch out the gender in my points number 2 and 3, everything would still apply to an LGBTQ romance. Do you think? It would be interesting to read a similar article tailored to that area of romance writing, to hear what else writers should consider when creating their stories.

But I think it’s important to remember that not all romance readers and writers are interested in the traditional heterosexual romance novel. I write LGBTQ romance fiction — sometimes about men, sometimes about women, and often with a very broad definition of various genders and orientations.

Readers of LGBTQ (and let’s be frank, mostly m/m romance fiction based on sales — it’s a very fast-growing category), are often, but not exclusively female, and are often, but not exclusively straight (the same is true of the people writing LGBTQ romance).

I just want women reading this to know that if the romance they want to read isn’t traditional boy meets girl, there’s still a place for them, and for great female characters in their stories.

Thanks for your comment and the support, Natalie! I couldn’t agree with you more about the challenges of switching from the emotional and creative side of oneself (and one’s writing) to the marketing side. Marketing one’s work–whether you’re self-publishing or have a publishing team behind you–can really take up A LOT of time and energy. But, it’s so worthwhile if it means connecting with new readers. The more we keep the reader front and center in our mind as we do anything related to marketing, the more gratifying and energizing the marketing will be. I also agree with what you said about a 1-star book maybe being brilliant. That’s definitely possible! The ratings are very subjective. The most important thing is that we write the stories we want to write, then put them out there. Good luck with your work and reading schedule. I feel for you. When I worked in an office full-time, it was much harder to fit all the reading in. 🙂

Of course, a one-star review may be a brilliant book. It just didn’t set out to please!