July 2007

Beyond Fantasy and SciFi: Diversify Your Writing Portfolio
by Ginny McMorrow
www.virginiamcmorrow.com

Virginia G. McMorrow is the author of four fantasy novels by Archebooks Publishing. Her fifth novel, a young adult fantasy, Firewing's Shadow, is scheduled for publication this summer.

Whether you've decided to be a sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, romance, mainstream literary—or even nonfiction—writer, you're restricting your opportunities for publication if you box yourself into one particular format. Writing in other genres and styles not only expands your marketability, but it also has two other beneficial results: it improves your writing craftsmanship and, more importantly, it's good for your writer's soul. I should know. I've had four fantasy novels published (and another on the way), but I spend just as much time—if not more—writing mainstream women's books about relationships.

Writing fantasy, a genre that I thoroughly enjoy, was my starting point. For years, I've been engrossed first in the travails and perils of Alexandra (Alex) Daine Keltie, my reluctant and stubborn 30-something mage protagonist, and then in the problems and adventures of a teenage mage, Kathren (Krag) Faralon. I thought about their particular brands of magic and created the rules for their worlds: Alex was an elemental mage, but a very unique one in her universe, as she alone (or so she thought) could change the elements of air, fire, water, and earth from one to another. Krag could only go invisible, but used her talent to great advantage.

They both faced challenges on both external and internal levels, which complicated the plots and added depth to the storylines. As an orphan, Alex had to overcome serious family issues in spite of the fact that she was raised by a loving foster mother. Krag had a younger sister, for whom she felt overly responsible. In both cases, although the protagonists had loving people to guide and nurture them, in their own peculiar ways, they wanted out: Alex needed space, and Krag wanted to see the world. Meanwhile, both of them had to save their particular royalty figure from kingdom-size disaster.

In developing the characters and the plot elements, I realized that at the heart of both trilogies I was concerned with the core relationships of lovers, family, and friends. Alex and Krag had to deal with trust and affection, betrayal and discord, and the need for a balance between independence and participation in their family/friend circles. Having acknowledged that point as a writer, I started paying attention to my own family and friends, and realized that "those matters" are what matter. It was what I needed to write about, and I had to do it without feeling guilty about writing in a genre other than fantasy.

Key Fiction Elements Are Always Needed

Writing in another genre doesn't mean you toss away everything you've ever learned about fiction writing. After all:

• When you're creating a fantasy world, you have to build believable and authentic characters or the reader won't care what happens to them.
• Dialogue has to be compelling and informative and brimming with magic terms, while moving the action along. Although some fantasies use more formal courtly speech, Alex and Krag—and their gang of cohorts—are far more informal.
• The setting has to be well-thought-out and imaginative, because you're building a make-believe world with which the reader is not familiar—and if they are, one really has to wonder about their lives!
• Pacing remains important, so as not to bog the reader down in too much dry background text or too much dialogue without descriptions.
• A convoluted and intriguing plot keeps the reader's interest as the protagonist battles internal challenges—lack of self-confidence, feelings of abandonment, despair, or fear—and external antagonists—society, family, royalty, or evil wizards.

All the key elements of writing fiction come together in your mainstream women's novel, too, but in a slightly different way:

• When you're creating a fictional world for your mainstream novel, you still have to build believable and authentic characters that pull your reader into the story. But instead of mages or queens, they may be doctors or plumbers, musicians or nuns. My characters—particularly the protagonists—tend to be in their late 30s or 40s. A women's subgenre, "chick lit," tends to focus more on younger women (20s and early 30s), with most stories about dating, often from a humorous or bittersweet standpoint. One of the interesting things I learned when writing mainstream was that I could use the basic personality traits of a favorite set of fantasy characters from a novel that didn't sell. All I had to do was change the setting, names, careers, etc., while keeping the basic core of their interaction. I knew them so well that their reincarnation elsewhere was a welcome, easier introduction to the new genre.
• Dialogue still has to be compelling and informative and sometimes fast-moving, using modern slang and terms, and, of course, matching the speaker's personality and profession.
• The setting still has to be well-thought-out and imaginative whether you're writing about a real place (New York City) or, as I like to do, a make-believe small town on Long Island. Even when you know the neighborhood, you have to use your imagination to make that setting come alive for your reader. As with fantasies, I usually draw a map of the neighborhood (because I'm directionally challenged), but I often draw a crude map of the protagonist's house, too, so I know where the action takes place. Many mainstream novels don't have the characters off on a quest to foreign lands; most of the action takes place in the local setting.
• Pacing remains important, particularly if you're writing chick lit, in which the story often moves at a rapid pace.
• A convoluted and intriguing plot is still vital, though there may be less physical movement—no riding a horse for miles to reach the castle, no sword play, no spectacular spells, and so on. There may be some of that (translated into modern terms, of course), but the plots usually revolve around personal and emotional conflict. When I'm writing mainstream fiction, I spend more time looking at the emotional impact of my words, looking for the deeper meanings and layers in relationships. I incorporate more dream ideas or emotional descriptions than I would normally add in the fantasy trilogies.

You Can Expand Your Marketability

Beyond the elements of fiction writing, the fact that you're willing and able to create novels/stories in another genre indicates to agents and editors alike that your talents are not narrowly focused. Having more than one genre out there—whether you decide to write under the same name or not— increases your chances of getting published, simply because you're giving your agent more material to market. But to maximize the opportunities out there, be mindful of your audience. I generally write for 30-something and older women (with the exception of the Krag trilogy, which is young adult fantasy).

Writing in another genre also helps you deal with the frustrations of not selling your fantasy because the market is saturated, publishers keep merging, editors are looking for another Harry Potter, or whatever the current doomsayers are predicting. Mainstream women's novels offer a broader readership because they fall under general fiction—and women love to read about relationships. Given the fickle ups and downs of the publishing industry, you can have a mainstream novel ready to submit to an editor when the fantasy market has cooled down, and vice versa.

It's All Writing, Anyway

The more you write, and the more varied your writing, only adds to your assets as a creative individual. In fact, before I began experimenting with women's novels, I dabbled in mysteries. I'm still trying to sell the ones that I thought were good mysteries, but the strong points in all of them are not the mystery elements but the characters' relationships. So by experimenting, I found my strengths and where I need to concentrate my writing time (while experimenting elsewhere, too).

The important thing to remember is that you should do what you love as often and in as many different ways as you can (or want to). Every type of writing you do, whether it's professional newsletters (my day job), short stories, news features, essays—whatever form it takes—all of this writing helps you become a more skillful writer, adds credibility to your resume, and increases your chance for freelance income.

You develop and mature as a person, too, because writing brings us closer to the minds and hearts of our characters and, inevitably, ourselves. In fact, I've learned much more about myself writing mainstream women's novels, but—to be honest—it all started with Alex, my reluctant mage.