Ah, the glory days. High school. If you weren’t stressing over whether you’d get accepted by your dream college, you were imagining what it would be like to make out with that person you knew you had zero chance of kissing (and if you did—be honest—it never was as wonderful as you imagined). Between your fantasies and worries, there were other things to occupy your mind, too. Geometry, Biology, and the one class that could make any bookworm hate reading—high school English (okay, for some of you that was Honors English…we all know how smart you were, you don’t have to remind us).
English was the class where well-meaning teachers forced you to slog through a long list of classics—Catcher in the Rye, Grapes of Wrath, Shakespeare, Homer, To Kill a Mockingbird. Literary luminaries meant to expose you to a variety of cultures, genres, and writing styles.
But that was high school and now you’re all grown up. Every day you really do get to kiss the man or woman of your dreams (I’m sure) and, more importantly, you can read whatever you want. That being the case, is your reading list as varied as it was back in your mid- to post-puberty days?
I recently spent an hour or so populating my Good Reads “books read” list (after staying up way too late and only getting a fraction of the list done, I’ve given up on the idea of finishing it). When I refreshed the screen and reviewed my list-in-progress, the first thing I noticed was how many different genres I’d read from. Classics, Russian Literature, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Fantasy, Thriller/Suspense, Mystery…you get the picture.
I find that I will binge on one genre for several months, grow tired of the voice or tropes in that category, then move on to something new.
If we as readers can move so easily between genres, why can’t authors? Some authors do, even if against the oft-heard admonition, “If you publish in more than one genre, you risk ruining your ‘brand’.” Once a reader associates your name with a specific genre, that reader expects any books you publish from that point on to be within the conventions of that book category. These sorts of expectations go beyond reading. You may enjoy Diet Coke one day, Sprite another. But if you open up a can of Sprite and it looks and tastes like Diet Coke, you’re not going to be happy. Who replaced my pure, crystal-clear sugary goodness with this bubbly brown aspartame? (and yes, I just compared literature to soda).
There are exceptions to be sure. Stephen King (because he is Stephen King) can write horror novels and fantasy (The Dark Tower). But less popular authors often resort to pen names. But even a pen name involves risks. When an author establishes a new brand under a nom de plume, that means starting over with little or no fan base.
What are your thoughts about authors who publish in more than one genre? What authors have done it right? Who are your favorites?