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There are types of fiction?
Literary Fiction (Pomp)
Commercial Fiction (Pop)
Genre Fiction (Pulp)
Literary Fiction
Prose style
Character study
Language
Commercial Fiction
Plot based
Storytelling
It occurs in certain hugely popular categories such as thrillers, women’s fiction, book club fiction, upmarket fiction
It’s POPULAR, therefore most bestsellers are commercial fiction
Genre Fiction
Romance
Thrillers
Suspense
Mystery
Fantasy
Science Fiction
Horror
Westerns
Genre Fiction
If it has its own shelf in the
bookstore, it is probably
genre fiction
Romance
Hero and Heroine meet in the first few scenes and there is immediate attraction
There is internal & external conflict keeping them apart
Until the literal and figurative climax
There is always a happy ever after (or happy for now) ending
Romance subgenres
Contemporary
Romantic Suspense
Paranormal/SF/Gothic/Time Travel
Historical (Regency)
Romantic Comedy
Erotic
Inspirational
Thrillers
‘Save the world’ high stakes
Non-stop pace
Time is ticking
Plot focus
Most popular fiction after romance
Most “blended” genre
Thriller Subgenres
Action Eco
Conspiracy Medical
Crime Psychological
Disaster Religious
Legal Romantic
Political/Spy Supernatural/Gothic
Techno
Suspense
Not as personal as a mystery
The stakes aren’t as high as a thriller
Shares many of the same subgenre categories
as thriller and mystery
Mystery
Someone is killed (or a big crime committed) in
the first scene of the book of the prologue.
The rest of the book is an examination of
whodunit
Mystery Subgenres
Cozy Hardboiled
Mystery Softboiled
Crime Police Procedural
Whodunit True Crime
Homage Urban Fantasy
Steampunk Caper/Heist
Locked Room Historical
Fantasy
Set in an imaginary universe; or in our universe but with magic or imaginary beings
Mostly includes some sort of magic system
Differs from SF because its magic is not science-based
Often based on ancient mythologies from around the world
Fantasy Subgenres
High Fantasy Epic
Dark Portal
Urban/Modern Paranormal
Historical Contemporary
Magical Realism
Science Fiction
Usually deals with futuristic science-based technology, space travel, time travel, parallel universes and extraterrestrial settings and creatures.
Loves to explore the “what ifs” of contemporary social issues
Grounded in science facts and theories
Or as Robert Heinlein put it: "realistic speculation about possible future events, based solidly on adequate knowledge of the real world, past and present, and on a thorough understanding of the nature and significance of the scientific method."
Sci-Fi Subgenres
Hard SF Space Opera
Space Western Weird West
Post-Apocalyptic Dystopian
Military Superheroes
Alternate History Cyberpunk/VR/AR
Horror
Involves thrills and chills
Can include ghosts and other gothic elements
Can be psychological (Carrie) or slasher (Saw)
Can be easily blended with other genres
Only represents around 5% of total fiction sales
Horror Subgenres
Psychological (Stephen King)
Gothic (Stepford Wives/The Shining)
Cosmic (H.P. Lovecraft)
Body (Clive Barker)
Westerns
Primarily set in the latter half of the 19th centruein the American Old West.
Centers on life of nomadic cowboy or gunfighter.
Other characters include Native Americans, bandits, lawmen, bounty hunters, outlaws, mounted cavalry, settlers and townsfolk.
Stresses the harshness of the wilderness
Western Subgenres
Union Pacific or wagon train stories
Ranch story
Empire story (rags to riches)
Revenge story
Calvary vs. Indian story
Outlaw story
Marshal story
Thank You!
Laurie McLean, Co-founder & Partner
Fuse Literary
@FuseLiterary
@AgentSavant
FuseLiterary.com