Interesting Challenge to Writers - Define your Genre

I've been reading through various writing forums of late and I noticed something.

Everyone defines a "genre" differently. There are great debates on what defines a specific genre.

So what I want to try is have each author or reader define their genre. Don't just list its title, like "urban fantasy." Also include a definition of what you think that genre is. When the thread reaches 150 posts, we'll continue the thread with an attempt at a definition for the provided genres.

This way, we can see how people define what is written and if we fit the "general consensus of LT" on a specific genre.

Political Science-fiction.

My definition: The story involves a projection into the future of trends in society and technology (and their interplay), as well as conjecture on developments which may occur; specifically the narrative revolves around what these future societies are like for the individuals who inhabit them, and on the larger scale, how they have evolved and the direction they continue to do so. There is an aim to discuss or ask questions of our, the real world by revealing aspects of it in a different light.

Horror

My definition: That which creates an atmosphere and/or a mood that disturbs, unsettles or even repulses the reader on some level and leaves behind a lingering disquiet in its wake.

Space opera

Science fiction, generally dealing with a future involving spaceships, aliens, and other planets, concerned mainly with characters rather than scientific realities.

4>> I think a good alternate name for "space opera" is "space fantasy."

I have been calling my books 'family novel' although it is not a recognised genre. I used it to scare away people who like chit lit or erotica and so that it could include elements of thriller and social comment. I suppose if I could put all three books together it could be a saga, although that sounds historical and my books are about the recent past and the present.

Family novel: a story that deals with a number of members of one family, possibly including 'rites of passage' and that can be enjoyed by readers of any age.

I'm flailing around trying to figure out how to describe my WIP. It's a family-centered, character-driven story with a central mystery, set in an afterlife of my own devising. General fiction? Literary fiction?? Fantasy???

Mine is a thriller (or, when I'm working on my antagonist, crime fiction), and coming to that conclusion has been largely a process of elimination. I know it isn't a mystery because there's no mystery. It isn't horror, because the threat is neutralized at the end of the book, so the lingering dread factor isn't really there, the way it would be with horror. (also no supernatural elements, which matters to me, somehow, as a line of demarcation.)

My process was:
1.) Eliminate everything it could not possibly be. (Definitely not SF, Romance, literary, etc)
2.) Fiddle around with fine distinctions in whatever's left over. (Thriller, crime fiction, horror)

5) science fiction and fantasy are not the same thing (other than that saying about how advanced technology might appear to be magic to those less advanced; except not all space opera has differing tech levels).

I won't think to look for space opera in space fantasy. I'd expect vampires in space, or magical creatures.

Christian reality fiction:

Christians are real people with real problems, with pasts, it's about drawing real three dimensional characters in real situations that occur for all of us.

9>> My point there is that technology basically IS a kind of magic, in that it's either not explained how such technology can work or it's technology so far beyond what we understand that it may as well be magic.

#11 Science or magic makes no difference to me as a reader. I read hard sf, space opera and epic fantasy with equal enjoyment. But when I write space opera, I base my imaginary futuristic technology (which none of the characters bother to explain -- how often do you find yourself explaining how your tv remote or your refrigerator or your car works?) on concepts found in books on speculative physics, and when I write fantasy I base my magic systems on concepts that have nothing to do with science. So for me there is a clear difference between the two.

As to the original purpose of this thread:

I have written in a genre that I can define, but I don't know that I can name.

Definition: Books that read like historicals, except that the setting happens to never have actually existed.

These books are usually found under the fantasy umbrella, and I have heard them described as "fantasy-without-magic", but the sub-genre really needs a better name. So far the best one I've come up with is probably "Imaginary History". What do you all think?

I thought there was a genre called 'speculative fiction.' I have certainly written that kind of stuff, but it has only been published in short story format.

#13 - Speculative Fiction is an umbrella category that contains all of fantasy and science fiction. So yes, the sub-genre I am trying to name falls into that umbrella category, but if you see someone talking about speculative fiction, the odds are that they won't be talking about that particular sub-genre of works.

5, "space fantasy" would also work in my case, there are some (cleverly?) disguised fantasy/magical elements because I usually write fantasy. I find more people know what I mean by "space opera" than "space fantasy" though, and people tend to draw distinctions based on overt things (spaceships, magic wands) rather than general ideas. Some LT type people will automatically go "The science isn't technical, therefore it's the same as magic," but most of my casual-reader friends will go "It's a machine, so it's science."

12, I've heard the term "fantasy of manners" in relation to books like that, provided they happen in a certain historical style. I've heard Swordspoint called that. I've also heard it for things like Havemercy though, which is the same kind of culture but does have overt magic.

ETA because I always think of more things after I hit "send":
"Space opera" also has a longer history and refers to a more specific subset of spec fic I think, and what I'm writing is specifically supposed to be in that tradition. "Space fantasy" would encompass a broader range of styles, not just different content.

#15 - Just because a book is set in a period-like setting, doesn't mean that it's got manners. In my case, my heroine does have a few opportunities to divert a previously polite conversation into a discussion of diesel engines and factories, but I think she spends more time defending herself from assassins. I don't consider the work in question to be one of my more mannered pieces. :)

16, Heh, I think it refers to "vaguely similar to British historical periods which were obsessed with manners" type stories, rather than just stories about manners. I can't think of a term that encompasses more semi-historical settings.

"Alternate history" is a thing, isn't it? I thought it had more to do with "Suppose Napoleon never existed" than completely made-up locales...

#17 - I have written stories that have been referred to as "fantasy of manners" by some of my beta readers. The stories are set in the court of a tropical empire, which doesn't much resemble any British historical period. The court is very obsessed with manners, though. (The British never had a monopoly on that particular obsession.)

"Alternate history" is a thing, yes. Alternate history takes place in what our world would be like if something had happened to change history at some point. Unless there are blatant fantasy elements inserted, it's usually considered a sub-genre of science fiction.

The story I'm trying to find a genre for takes place on an entirely different world with a completely different world map. There's no Europe, no Asia, no Africa. But in spite of all that it's set in a recognizable historical period: the early 20th Century. Steamliners, diesel engines, telegraphs and early telephones, have caused the world to suddenly shrink, and countries who have been able to ignore each other for centuries, due to a lack of proximity, suddenly need to be able to deal with each other.

"Imaginary History" makes sense to me as "the history of an imaginary place". But it may not seem as obvious to others as it does to me. :/

I think if someone said "Imaginary History" I'd probably get the idea, but I'd need the back-of-book summary or something to make sure of what I was getting. Of course, that's true with anything.

Love this discussion because most of my works do not seem to fall into any of the genres. On imaginary history: doesn't the phrase alternate history work well?

I'd be interested if there is any consensus at all on what constitutes certain genres. For example, is a crime novel primarily about criminals or about police? Can it be about either? I have a novel out about a private detective that I classify as a "mystery" novel since he does solve a mystery. But it could also probably fall into the crime novel category. Since there's a certain amount of action involved, it could also just as easily be in the thriller category. I tend to not worry so much about genre labels and just write the story I want to write. The genre category only comes into play when I have to start filling out the description for Amazon.

Slipstream: a bit of fantasy, crime and historical novel, shake well and have fun

Pure non-fiction - I find myself really interested in a subject and then want to share my enthusiasm and my discoveries with everyone - there's so much stuff out there that is amazing but often only discussed amongst experts in esoteric magazines and in language that acts as a barrier to the rest of us poor mortals.....my ambition is to be able to write about something complex in an accessible and 'page-turning' sort of way.....hey ho...

Post-Apocalyptic Western

Well, it's fairly self-explanatory, seems to me. I've always been a fan of the post-apocalyptic setting and all the things that happen and that people go through after the entire world ends. Then there's the Wild West, a lawless region and a lawless time where everyone had a gun at their hip and survival was never a guarantee. Everyone's got a high-powered sniper rifle with a scope but they still have to ride a horse.

Literary Poetry... mostly Free Verse

Literary Fiction... mostly minimalist

and Personal Essays ... which are also prose-poems

#25

So how do you define free verse literary poetry and minimalist literary fiction? That is just a label.

I have just joined LT today and this thread has caught my eye, as I am just about to publish through Kindle and will really struggle to define a genre. The book is has a strong biographical underpinning, but takes off into murder-mystery, sci-fi and comedy. I suspect that when I press the GO button I will label it as comedy, but I worry that the balance might not be tipped far enough that way.