So. What species of plot monster are we seeking? What are you writing? That is your first decision. If you don’t know what you’re writing, you can hardly start. And I pity the reader if you don’t know! This is the major thrust of your plot. You may certainly have sub-plots weaving through your story, but one biggie stands out. What is it? Here’s a short list of possible genres, also known as categories, of writing and a few authors and titles you may have heard of.

General Classifications

Flash Fiction: really short stories

Short Story

Novellas: short novels

Novels

Fiction

Mainstream Romance –

       Nicholas Sparks, Nora Roberts

Sub-genre Romance –

      50 Shades, LGBTQ+, paranormal, historical, erotica

Science Fiction / Fantasy –

       Star Wars, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Jim Butcher

Historical Fiction –

        Ken Follet, Sarah Waters

Thrillers / Horror / Mysteries / Crime –

           Agatha Christie, Kathy Reichs, Nevada Barr

Young Adult –

          Twilight Saga, Vampire Academy

Children’s

Picture Books

Early Readers

Chapter Books

Middle Grade

Non-Fiction

Standard non-fiction (Business, Political Science, Psychology, History)

Memoir

Biography

How-to / Self-Help

            Just thinking about the mystery/crime genre could keep you busy for a lifetime. I mean, there are procedural mysteries using bounty hunters, private investigators, police, FBI, CIA, Counter-terrorism. There are cozy mysteries with little old lady sleuths or kids or cats. There are medical, historical, legal battles, forensic, psychological, and some that combine science fiction with one of these. And there are authors that specialize in each area.

But, wait. There’s more!

I can’t leave well enough alone. So, I cross categories by tossing a little sub-genre romance (LGBTQ) into a procedural murder mystery (police). I do the same in my science fiction and my fantasy books. I like the human (or human/alien) element that feelings add to a story. Can’t do that so much with non-fiction, obviously. I am toying with a sci fi/mystery/romance. Oh, stop me. I’ve lost my mind. You can call these sub-plots if you like, but they have a place in there.

You get the picture. Your plot will tell you what the dominant theme of your book is going to be. This will also help down the line when it’s time to market it because Amazon, Google, Apple, and everyone want keywords to identify what a reader will search for.

So, if a reader wants to read a romance, that’s what they’ll look for. You need to identify your romance novel as one. Just like you look for stuff on the internet or on Amazon or Apple Books. The closer your plot aligns with a genre; the more readers will align with you. This is not to say you shouldn’t develop your own niche, but your plot will probably start in one of these broader categories listed.

Speaking of which. Must pause now for another commercial I don’t get paid for. Amazon has some great books on How to Write . My go-to is Writing and Selling Your Mystery Novel by Hallie Ephron & Sara Paretsky but it’s not the only book on writing for the mystery genre. And there are books on writing romance, science fiction, history. You name it. My position is the more information, the better. I know, homework. But your aim is to be a good writer, correct? To have readers waiting for your next book? Sorry. Getting ahead of myself here. These writing for a specific genre books will delve in-depth into how to structure a plot, develop your characters, and maybe where to market your book. Think of this book as turning the key to get your engine started. Those books will supercharge it.

So, have your genre(s) in hand? Given your plot and subplots some thought? Let us move on to the next big issue-which will be my next blog post.