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Join BookGoodies podcast host Deborah Carney and guests authors Carla Sarett and Lynne Cantwell as they discuss the various genres and what fits where. Interesting discussion for authors and readers alike, chime in and let us know your views in the comments!
About Carla
Carla Sarett’s short fiction has been published in over twenty five literary and humor magazines—and her essay, “Sam’s Will,” was nominated for Best American Essay (published in Blue Lyra Review.) Her short story collections include Strange Courtships: Nine Romantic Stories and Crazy Lovebirds: Five Super-Short Stories. Her forthcoming novel will feature the woebegone heroine introduced in “Career Girl” (in the anthology, Love Hurts!) and “Skinny Girl” (in Red Fez.) Carla invites you to her blog: http://carlasarett.blogspot.com/
About Lynne
Lynne Cantwell grew up on the shores of Lake Michigan. She worked as a broadcast journalist for many years; she has written for CNN, the late lamented Mutual/NBC Radio News, and a bunch of radio and TV news outlets you have probably never heard of, including a defunct wire service called Zapnews. She is the author of “The Pipe Woman Chronicles,” a five-book urban fantasy series; the “Land, Sea, Sky” trilogy, a contemporary fantasy set in the same universe; and two stand-alone fantasy novels.
Lynne’s vast overeducation includes a journalism degree from Indiana University, a masters degree in fiction writing from Johns Hopkins University, and a paralegal certificate. She is a contributing author at Indies Unlimited. She currently lives near Washington, DC.
Blog: http://hearth-myth.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/LynneCantwell
http://www.indiesunlimited.com
I’ve been a professional (Belgian(Flemish) author who overstepped the clichés of “genre” for 22 years now. And I’m still alive, publishing in a small language community (Flanders has 5 million people) :-). Moreover, I published more than 30 books, “cross-over” between literature and the crime-novel.in The Netherlands and Flanders, and recently I’ve been published in the US (“Baudelaire’s Revenge”, published by Pegasus Books), Canada and France. Russian and Italian translations are in the making. Bottom line: yes, you can violate the rules, write “in between” genres, but you have to be consistent in it. I admit that, in the beginning, I got reactions from readers who complained: “Is this really a thriller?” or “Is this really a literary novel?” But I clung to “my” mixed-genre with great tenacity during the years and readers got “used” to my mix of genres. It has now become my trademark. Will I continue to have readers who are disappointed in their expectations? I will. But even in a clean-cut genre novel you will have those….At the end of the day, the quality of your style (on which I lay great emphasis) and your story will be more important than the genre you’re writing in…. Success!