“What genre do you write?” This has become as ubiquitous a question as “What kind of books do you write?” and both questions often receive the same reply.
It should be an easy answer for an author to provide, but sometimes isn’t, as genres have grown more complex. The added “categories” were supposed to make specific kinds of books easier to find. Yet, to some extent, the added complexities have made finding what a reader of shopper or librarian wants harder. And, despite the added listings, there are times a book gets slotted into an ill-fitting box.
This business of being stuck in the wrong genre can be frustrating, and even damaging to a brand, a book, or an author.
Let’s talk about Romance
Romance is a fabulous genre with its own challenges. I’ve listened to colleagues in this genre share about the rigorous discipline required to fit all its requirements. This post isn’t about disrespecting Romance.
After decades of battling for recognition, it’s now well-established, taken seriously for the money it earns and the rankings it gets. There’s a spot for it on the New York Times bestseller list, which is an important benchmark.
Romance novels inevitably include an element of predictability. We know the couple will get together in the end, and the fun for the reader is watching the protagonists overcome the obstacles, while the author adroitly places challenges and roadblocks in their respective paths. And I am one of those readers on occasion, totally enjoying and sometimes admiring the work tremendously.
What about when a genre doesn’t quite “fit?”
But what do authors do with the “extra” material that won’t fit within the strict bounds of Romance? What about career choices and parental challenges, friendships and competitions, sibling rivalries and unimagined losses? In other words, what about the rest of life?
All these elements are the purview of Women’s Fiction. There is no such category on the New York Times bestseller list, perhaps because there’s an assumption that this is just a fancier word for Romance, or that anything that’s popular and aimed at the female audience is, in fact, Romance.
What is Women’s Fiction?
It used to be defined as fiction written by women. Think Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Emily Bronte, and George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans), to name a few authors of bygone eras, some of whom chose to write under male pen names.
The term did a one-eighty during the last decades of the twentieth century, describing not fiction by women, but rather fiction for women. Though most practitioners were female, there were notable exceptions, like Nicholas Sparks.
In the twenty-first century we find ourselves with what is probably the best definition so far: fiction about women.
Key Elements of Women’s Fiction
Women’s Fiction may or may not end with the expected partners finding their happy-ever-after. Although that key urge to find the right partner may be an important part of the story, other urges and goals are equally important and sometimes predominate.
The woman in the story is finding her identity, her career, her purpose; she’s untangling her snarls, examining her mistakes, gathering her courage. The reader can identify with some of these elements, whether in reviewing old choices of her own or wrangling with her own future.
Who’s Reading Women’s Fiction?
While the hottest trend for younger readers of Romance in this moment is Romantasy, the biggest volume of devoted readers age 40 and up is digging ever deeper into Women’s Fiction. This may be why “Chesapeake Shores,” “Virgin River,” and “Sweet Magnolias” have such avid followers.
Whether in the form of books or television episodes, what do these series offer?
- Multi-generational characters.
- A sense that the protagonist is interested in more than sex with her chosen partner.
- Storylines that tackle personal and professional challenges with more frank realism and startling authenticity than what Romance usually offers.
Challenges I’ve Encountered as a Women’s Fiction Author
Things are getting easier now, as I find excellent company amongst authors with more expansive storylines. But not too long ago, readers who picked up one of my books in a bookstore, believing it to be a Romance novel, were disappointed and even irritated.
Why?
Because my novels don’t guarantee the traditional happy ending. If the reader sticks with my saga, she’ll see those happy endings arrive . . . eventually.
Why the delay? Why the frustration? Probably because that’s my lived experience.
When I fell deeply in love in my 20s, I believed my own happy ending/ happy beginning had arrived. But the man took off for other adventures and I had to lick my wounds and start over. Heartbreak taught me a lot about myself, about the world, about the journey. I did, eventually, find my soul mate and our marriage gets better year by year.
Authors are advised to “Write What You Know”
At least for my primary storyline, that’s what I’m doing. So my protagonist’s disappointments turn out to be important lessons that ultimately lead her to a fantastic relationship.
Big Names who are Switching Genres
I’m certainly not alone in battling the genre storm. Robyn Carr, for example, a marvelous and very successful author, has said for several years that although yes, her novels include a romantic element, they are about the protagonist’s whole life. While embracing her original designation as a Romance author, she was also an early adopter of the term Women’s Fiction, encouraging readers, and perhaps more importantly, publishers to expand their awareness. In Nora Roberts’ most recent interview, she explained that she has roots in Romance, “But I don’t write romance anymore.”
What is my fervent desire for my readers?
I wish for them to find a sense of wholeness and purpose right alongside my protagonists. I want women to feel empowered not only to find and enjoy a beautiful romance, but that everything else in their lives is equally important and fulfilling.
Do you read or write women’s fiction?
What challenges have you encountered in the genre?
Do you have any reading recommendations?
Please share your answers in the comments!
