About Genres

Post 20:

            This is a subject that interests me, and though it might not seem like that big of a deal, it has implications for people that make stuff and people that consume stuff. And let’s face it, everyone falls under one of those categories some of the time.

            One of those categories some of the time. I’m not just repeating myself, here. Actually that’s kind of the point of today’s words. Genre, i.e., classification, is something that I’ve run into a lot as a dude making stuff up. You go to market it, and people want to know what it is. My first thought is always, “it’s a story,” and part of the reason is because I’m a intractable contrarian—the other part is because it’s the truest thing I can say.

            To grind it down into the real, take anything, be it a book, a movie, TV show, whatever. It’s always a something. “An action-packed thriller… a romantic comedy… an enthralling drama… a taut and nervy mystery… I could do this for eons, but I won’t be that cruel. You get the picture.

            Most popular creative endeavors (and yes there are always outliers and exceptions, geez!) are becoming less and less creative because these labels matter so much. I’m not saying throw them out completely. They are there for a reason, a sort of guide. But aren’t the best shows or books a brew of everything? I would say yes. Here are some reasons. Can you believe it? I’ve actually thought this through!

            Yay for me.

            Okay, first of all, these categories are mostly bogus. Horror is an exception. It’s chief end and point is to scare you. Leave that one. Otherwise, every story is a mystery. Yep. Every single one. Do you know how it ends before starting? Oh you don’t? What do they call that? Starts with m—I can’t think of the word. I’ll go do some research. Man. What a mystery. What was I saying?

            So every story is a mystery, and therefore also a suspense. I’ve been asked whether one of my books is mystery, a suspense, a thriller or sci-fi. My blood goes cold and I start to keel over because I want to give an honest accounting, but what do I say? If you can be genuinely “thrilled” by a book, you need to get out more, and if all the facts are in a state of suspension, ready to be released as I dole them out, then it’s a suspense. And then we’ve already covered mystery. Sci-fi? Uh, I think there’s something about CO2 in one of the scenes.

            Now I get what people might say to my ramblings. Something like, “how can you not call that Stephen King book horror or supernatural?” My response: “I would, but first I would call it a good story. There’s a few laughs though, so I’d like to call it a comedy. No, I really liked when x hooked up with y, so it’s a romance. Also, punch me in face.”

            Does Stephen King like his labels? Answer, he doesn’t care. Because when you sell that many books people can say that they’re vignettes about puppies and unicorn tears—you just throw them a thumbs up on the way to the bank.

            So I’m off to write the best neo-classical liberal satirical mainstream young adult fantasy female-based post-modern novella. It’s about a dogcatcher who bucks the system and catches cats. More than one tree will be involved. I’m hoping it’ll have crossover appeal in the animal-friendly environmental genre. Alright. Enough cheek for one day. Later maniacs. See you after.