What's your genre?

[noob of the north]

Fantasy is a pretty big umbrella for a lot of genres these days. Some writers find "their" genre and stick to it while others search for theirs for a long time. Some writers refuse to pick one and want to play with several. Maybe the idea of pinning down a genre for your writing (except for the label "fantasy") is a horrid thought, or perhaps you invented your own genre? Whatever you call your writing and wherever you've been genre-wise, I'd love to hear it.

 

[Michael K. Eidson]

My fantasy stories are high fantasy. I might crossover into other sub-genres, but (in my mind at least) there is always an assumption of a high level of magic in my story worlds.

 

[Malik]

Fantasy technothriller.

 

[Heliotrope]

Believe it or not I had to look it up

So my favourite types of stories to write (and read/watch) are those that are fairly mundane (set in our normal world) but have magical elements lurking under the surface. Films like Pan's Lybrinth, Mary Poppin's, or Hook, and stories like A Wrinkle In Time or American Gods are my favourites. Turns out this genre is called:

Contemporary Fantasy:

This is a bit of a tricky category, and it isn’t precisely defined. I use it to mean stories set in our modern world that do not have the ‘feel’ of urban fantasy or paranormal romance. Use your discretion with this one. Examples, by my definition: Practical Magic and the Harry Potter series.
Fantasy Sub-Categories

Most of my stories are for kids, and are somewhat of a Wrinkle in Time/ Percy Jackson hybrid.My stories for adults are always set in our world, but contain a magical or supernatural element to them.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

We write urban fantasy, set in the fictional city of Seahaven, Washington. Our series is a multigenerational family saga about the difference a small, but dedicated group of people can make in the world.

Next year, however, we are also planning to debut an epic fantasy series that's been in the works for years. Very excited!

 

[Insolent Lad]

My first novel (or novels, as it was published in four parts) was pretty much Epic Fantasy but I've steadily moved toward something more akin to Terry Pratchett's work. Not 'comedic fantasy,' necessarily (or however one wants to label it) but a lighter touch. All the stuff is pretty much High Fantasy, with very little or no reference to this world in which we live.

It is certainly possible for a book to fit into more than one genre. Most do, in fact. So I tend to label my novels as Fantasy Adventure and not go with any finer definition than that.

 

[WooHooMan]

I work almost exclusively in pre-apocalyptic wuxia dreampop sci-fantasy.

But seriously, I mostly stick to anti-epic fantasy. Emphasis on down-to-earth characters in a strange environment, short and brutal action, small but personal stakes, unconventional story structure and all done in a short length.

 

[Chessie2]

Technically what I write is romance (mostly historical) but I have written a lot of fantasy stories either with romantic elements or straight romances. Guess I've always written about love in some way. I had to think back but several years ago when I first joined this site I was writing less romances and more what I guess would be low magic/somewhat dark love stories. I'd like to focus on more fantasy in the near future, since I'm virtually unknown and can play around some.

 

[skip.knox]

Alternate historical fantasy. Or maybe just historical fantasy. It depends on who you ask (different people use different descriptions). A look at lists on the net reveals
alternate historical fantasy
alternate world fantasy
alternate history (fantasy)
historical fantasy
medieval fantasy
This site Alternate History Books | Best Fantasy Books offers a specific definition.
Amazon offers "historical fantasy" and "alternative history" under the "fantasy" category. But Arthurian gets its own sub-category. Good grief.

So, I dunno. I'm in the there somewhere, I reckon.

 

[Svrtnsse]

Alternate world contemporary fantasy.

The stories take place in a setting that's a mix between the real world of today and a fairly typical fantasy world.

Going by Amazon's available genres it's just "fantasy"

 

[noob of the north]

My fantasy stories are high fantasy. I might crossover into other sub-genres, but (in my mind at least) there is always an assumption of a high level of magic in my story worlds.

The level of fantasy, high or low, is very interesting. I always get in a state of awe at the high fantasy-stuff, like making fantasy races and completely new flora and fauna, and very intricate magic systems... To me that's like imaginary science in a way, and something I could never do.

 

[noob of the north]

Fantasy technothriller.

Thank you so much for providing the link, because I had to look that up. It looks like that genre with fantasy elements can create some really interesting stories. I'm very intrigued.

 

[noob of the north]

Believe it or not I had to look it up

So my favourite types of stories to write (and read/watch) are those that are fairly mundane (set in our normal world) but have magical elements lurking under the surface. Films like Pan's Lybrinth, Mary Poppin's, or Hook, and stories like A Wrinkle In Time or American Gods are my favourites. Turns out this genre is called:

Contemporary Fantasy:

This is a bit of a tricky category, and it isn’t precisely defined. I use it to mean stories set in our modern world that do not have the ‘feel’ of urban fantasy or paranormal romance. Use your discretion with this one. Examples, by my definition: Practical Magic and the Harry Potter series.
Fantasy Sub-Categories

Most of my stories are for kids, and are somewhat of a Wrinkle in Time/ Percy Jackson hybrid.My stories for adults are always set in our world, but contain a magical or supernatural element to them.

Oh, gosh, genres, especially in fantasy; it's a freaking jungle. Contemporary fantasy is a great genre, I love the ordinary world turning out to be a lot more magical than it seems. Wishful thinking, probably, heh. It was so interesting reading about what you write, and that you write for both kids and adults. I have such a hard time deciding an audience for my books, which is probably not a good thing. I tend to call them "crossover", but I don't know if that's right. And now I've heard so much good stuff about "A Wrinkle in Time" everywhere that I need to read it.

 

[noob of the north]

We write urban fantasy, set in the fictional city of Seahaven, Washington. Our series is a multigenerational family saga about the difference a small, but dedicated group of people can make in the world.

Next year, however, we are also planning to debut an epic fantasy series that's been in the works for years. Very excited!

Oh, I love urban fantasy, because towns and cities are my favourite kind of worldbuilding, and I love, LOVE the sound of your saga. Switching genres is also so much fun, and I'll definitely hope to hear more about your epic fantasy here on MS. How many books are you planning for that series?

 

[noob of the north]

My first novel (or novels, as it was published in four parts) was pretty much Epic Fantasy but I've steadily moved toward something more akin to Terry Pratchett's work. Not 'comedic fantasy,' necessarily (or however one wants to label it) but a lighter touch. All the stuff is pretty much High Fantasy, with very little or no reference to this world in which we live.

It is certainly possible for a book to fit into more than one genre. Most do, in fact. So I tend to label my novels as Fantasy Adventure and not go with any finer definition than that.

This is so close to my writing heart, it's actually a bit scary. The description of not writing pure "comedic fantasy", but to aim for that sort of lightness and fun, that's spot on for me too.

I love what I've read of Pratchett so far - the quirkiness and those laughing out loud-moments are just to die for - but I'm rarely afraid for the characters, or feel really invested in the outcome, so I wanna get those things into my writing. I totally agree that genre elements spill over in all kinds of stuff and there are a lot of fun things one can do with that. I use "fantasy adventures" to describe most of my writing too, and I think it's perfect for fast-paced, thrilling stories with a mix of comedy and drama and horror and all kinds of elements. Thank you for sharing, that was really fun to read and I related so strongly.

 

[noob of the north]

I work almost exclusively in pre-apocalyptic wuxia dreampop sci-fantasy.

But seriously, I mostly stick to anti-epic fantasy. Emphasis on down-to-earth characters in a strange environment, short and brutal action, small but personal stakes, unconventional story structure and all done in a short length.

I have to admit, I got a bit excited by the "pre-apocalyptic wuxia dreampop sci-fantasy." I love to hear about odd genres.

Oh, the anti-epic, that can be a lot of fun. I always enjoy really down-to-earth characters too and I'm a sucker for when their personal goals are a bit selfish too. The unconventional story structure sounds really interesting, and I wish I was brave enough to experiment a bit more. I loved to hear that you work in short lenght, because I get the impression that shorter fantasy is a bit rare, or am I wrong? Thank you for sharing.

 

[noob of the north]

Technically what I write is romance (mostly historical) but I have written a lot of fantasy stories either with romantic elements or straight romances. Guess I've always written about love in some way. I had to think back but several years ago when I first joined this site I was writing less romances and more what I guess would be low magic/somewhat dark love stories. I'd like to focus on more fantasy in the near future, since I'm virtually unknown and can play around some.

Historical stuff are so much fun! Sorry, got excited there. But it is.

Playing around is great. I'm all for that. And those universal elements, like you write about love, they can definitely be applied to so many different genres, like you talked about. Genres are like an amusement park sometimes, not knowing what ride to pick, because they all look like so much fun! What kind of fantasy would you like to focus on in the future? Do you know? It was really neat to hear about how you changed focus/tone in your writing, that happened to me too. I was more serious when I was younger, I think. Thank you so much for sharing, and yes, let's play around while we're unknown (with the hope that will change, of course, ha!).

 

[noob of the north]

Alternate historical fantasy. Or maybe just historical fantasy. It depends on who you ask (different people use different descriptions). A look at lists on the net reveals
alternate historical fantasy
alternate world fantasy
alternate history (fantasy)
historical fantasy
medieval fantasy
This site Alternate History Books | Best Fantasy Books offers a specific definition.
Amazon offers "historical fantasy" and "alternative history" under the "fantasy" category. But Arthurian gets its own sub-category. Good grief.

So, I dunno. I'm in the there somewhere, I reckon.

Yep, welcome to the wonderful maze of genres, heh. But I like it, I get a kick out of them, especially the cyberpunk subcategories and derivatives. Stitch-punk always makes me giggle, it's odd and kinda wonderful. Gosh, I don't think I ever heard of the Arthurian sub-category before, but that's good to know. I like the Alternative History Fantasy-label myself. It can open up the question of "which time period" in a social situation, and then one has something to talk about. Thank you for sharing.

 

[noob of the north]

Alternate world contemporary fantasy.

The stories take place in a setting that's a mix between the real world of today and a fairly typical fantasy world.

Going by Amazon's available genres it's just "fantasy"

Amazon seems to need more funny and imaginative sub-genres for fantasy, like the Arthurian one. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Malik]

Thank you so much for providing the link, because I had to look that up. It looks like that genre with fantasy elements can create some really interesting stories. I'm very intrigued.

I wish I could take credit; an ARC reader coined the term.

We'd talked about this in the Ivory Tower thread, but the short of it is that it was a natural outgrowth of the hands-on study and research I've put in, coupled with my love of technical thrillers--Clancy, Crichton, Cussler, Stephen Hunter, Lustbader, Larry Bond--and finding a kickass thriller editor.