Do you like to read the same type of books all of the time?

Published on by Jean M. Cogdell

What about writing?

Do you write in the same genre all the time?

gen·re

noun
 a category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, characterized by similarities in form, style, or subject matter. category, class, classification, group, set, list; type, sort, kind, breed, variety, style,model, school, stamp, cast, ilk
I love to read all sorts of books, from children’s picture books, bridge/crossover books for young readers, YA, thrillers, horror, romance and even a well-written erotica. So why would I want to pigeon-hole myself in my writing?clock-26112_640

Writing is what makes me tick.

I grow, as a writer, every time I write something. Whether it’s a post, prompt, short story or picture book I can feel my wings spreading.

However, there are pros and cons to writing in multiple genres.

Pros:
  • To find your voice.
  • To find your audience.

Cons:

  • Failure to do anything well.
  • Failure to build an audience.

Only you can decide when the time is right to dabble in other genres or to concentrate on just one.

But don’t let fear stop you.

There are many authors who cross genres. Some use a nom de plume, others don’t. I think it doesn’t matter. All that matters is that we write what makes us happy.
Ian Flemming famous for the James Bond books and films also wrote Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Bet you have that song dancing in your head now. LOL Who would’ve guessed the same author that gave the world Gold Finger and 007 also gave us the flying car.
Dick Van Dyke, Sally Ann Howes, Adrian Hall an...
. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

James Patterson is another writer that comes to mind. From the Alex Cross Series, The Women’s Murder Club Series, to the YA Maximum Ride Series is another versatile author.

What is the genre you prefer to write? Or read?

Tell me I’d love to know. You can find me in the comments section or click to write me or at Twitter @jeancogdell, Facebook at  jean.cogdell and Amazon.com, stop by and say hey! The lights are on and I’m waiting.

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Want more? Keep reading below. 

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18 thoughts on “Do you like to read the same type of books all of the time?”

  2. The only way a writer can truly learn to write is to read in multiple genres, including books written purely as literature. It doesn’t have to be Joyce, but Hemingway and Flannery O’Connor, Jane Austen, Mark Twain and at least the Crying of Lot 49 if your’re not willing to tackle the long Pynchon books. Not to mention poetry such as ee cummings, Robert Frost and TS Eliot. It’s not a matter of liking now. It’s like really good craft beers and fine wines, you discover you like them because you challenge yourself to read them, even if some of them don’t quite do it for you.

    Nor could I write in one genre if I tried. A story doesn’t like to be defined by it’s Library of Congress or bookstore classification. Hence, a southwestern thriller (cigerettes, guns & beer), a dark fantasy (Raising Hell) and a YA novel about peer pressure and bullying (that also introducing high school students to critical thinking skills) (Seeing Jesus).

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  3. The only genre I don`t read is gushy romance novels. When I write I cross genres, horror, urban and fantasy and somehow there always seems to be a dead body and a police man/woman involved so I guess that encompasses mystery as well lol.

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    1. Gushy romance turns me off too unless the story is compelling and well written. The Bridges of Madison County is one that has stayed with me for years and I never would’ve thought it. LOL

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  5. I’ve written mostly in the private detective genre. One of my novels was a terrorism thriller that was hard to write and research. I expected my research to result in a knock at the door by some big men in black SUVs. My short story collection, however, is in four completely different genres and those stories were fun to write.

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