One of the reasons most of us became writers in the first place is because we all love to read. I bet each one of us can point to a specific poem, short story, or novel (or play or work of non-fiction) that inspired us in some way. For me it was "'Repent Harlequin!' said the Ticktock Man" by Harlan Ellison. I talk all about how that story inspired me in an interview with Mercedes Fox here: https://mercedesfoxbooks.com/meet-aut...

The business end of marketing, while interesting and important, takes a lot of work. There are boxes to check, events to attend, numbers to crunch, contacts to make, websites to maintain, blogs to update, social media updates to make, and while doing all of this feels good, feels like achievement, it can be mindless at times. It's easy to get caught up in all of it and forget about the main thing: reading and writing—the two things that are the core of being an author.

I do not presume to preach about the kinds of books anybody should read. I'm not a book snob. Read what you want, just as long as you want to read it! However, I must say that as much as I love to read, I do sometimes get stuck in my favorite genre, horror. The problem isn't so much reading the same kind of story, because by doing so, an author becomes pretty well-versed in the conventions of that kind of writing, but rather the boredom that comes with that knowledge. This is what's happening with blockbuster superhero movies. Now that CGI makes it possible to realistically create anything a comic book artist dreams up, and now that we've become used to seeing it, those movies are really starting to bore me. Why? Because barring a few, they all have the same plot: The Hero's Journey. It's like all of the money goes into the effects and none of it into good writing. Avatar is guilty of the same thing. I love that movie. Amazing, groundbreaking effects. Awesome monsters and battle scenes. But the plot is just a version of the "Hero is transformed by the natives he once tried to kill, becomes one of them, and fights on their side."

But for every Thor or Spiderman or Superman plot (and I still like those movies, by the way), there's a Legion or a Jessica Jones. Both of these shows, the first on FX, the second on Netflix, contain all of the familiar elements of the superhero plot. Tortured protagonist with special powers? Check. Call to Adventure? Check. Fall Into The Abyss Followed By Miraculous Return With More Strength? Check. (At least that last one is the case for Jessica Jones.) But Legion, if you haven't seen it, adds layer after layer of David Lynchian weirdness to it, to the point where it might decide not to let our hero win. Or if he does, it'll be an ironic victory. Jessica Jones isn't as surreal as Legion but does a good job standing the traditional superhero story on its end, mainly (in my opinion), through the creation of Killgrave (great name, huh?), one of the most disturbing villains in the genre. Killgrave doesn't necessarily want to take over the world (though he wouldn't mind). He just wants Jessica. Like want wants her. Gross.

So how do you do it? How do you become an expert in your genre and subvert your genre at the same time? Other than stating the obvious (that you should continue to read no matter what), here are three suggestions you might want to follow.

Next up: Tip #1—Variety Is Imperative

Are you a fan of horror or post-apocalyptic fiction?

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A monster terrorizes an isolated village in the mountains of Eastern Europe, draining the blood of its victims, leaving them frozen in the snow. The villagers hunt wolves, decapitate “vampires,” but the murders continue. As each new body is found, the residents grow more and more paranoid. The cobbler's son decides to investigate, putting himself in grave danger. Who will be next? Will it ever end?

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--JN