Happy Sunday! I’m very excited for today’s topic: genre writing!
It’s possible that you’re accustomed to writing your stories for one specific genre. Are you a horror fan? Fantasy geek? Comedy buff? Lover of romance? Or…perhaps you like them all?
Whatever the case may be, there are various ways to adjust your writing to cater towards the individual genre you’re going for. Today, I’m going to take you through some writing tips in 4 genres: Horror, Comedy, Romance and Fantasy. Feel free to skip to whichever genre(s) you’re interested in, but I highly encourage you to look over them all! Strap in, and without further ado, let’s get to it.
Horror
Boo! Are you scared? Maybe a cheap jumpscare like that would work in a movie, but to make a book scary, you’ve really got to develop an unsettling mood and tone. You could be going gory like Saw, psychological like Psycho, or dreadful like Jeepers Creepers. People don’t usually recognize horror’s subgenres, but they exist; the sooner you identify which subgenre your story falls into, the better you’ll be at keeping a consistent tone throughout. Jordan Peele, the director of Get Out, went a psychological direction with The Sunken Place.
Also, make sure you play on universal fears. Of course, there’s always going to be that one person who thinks something isn’t scary. However, the more far-reaching your scares stretch, the better. Common fears include spiders, darkness, and heights. I also highly recommend making horror stories from a first-person POV, so readers learn new information along with the characters – that will only amplify tension.
Comedy
Everyone loves to laugh. Knowing how to write comedy is important. Dark stories need light also; the heaviest narratives need moments of levity. It’s important to start by realizing that a story needs to be supported by comedy – the comedy should not overwhelm the story.
People have different senses of humor, but surprise is always good in comedy. Plenty find themselves laughing because something happened that they didn’t expect. Additionally, you never want to try too hard with comedy. The best comedic moments in stories work because they came naturally and didn’t seem forced. Comedy can be difficult to master because people think too hard about what’s funny and what’s not. The funniest things are the things nobody tries too hard to conjure.
Use your own sense of humor as a catalyst and think of things that you would laugh at. Widely regarded as a comedy because of its absurdism, Napoleon Dynamite mastered surprising, yet natural comedy.
Romance
It’s important to realize how to create a compelling romance. People are suckers for a good love story! Much like comedy, several stories, no matter the genre, have subplots of romance that add dynamics to the narrative. Whether you care to admit it or not, most of your favorite stories probably have that one couple you really want to root for. Keep that in mind as you create a romance.
Make sure the relationship doesn’t feel forced. I cannot stress that enough. The quickest way to turn people against a couple is if they seemingly have no chemistry and feel too forced. Create a natural, likable relationship by making sure the couple gets to know each other, grows together, and doesn’t move too fast.
Also, keep in mind your other characters in a romance scenario! If this is a romance story, other people are going to have their opinions and feelings on the couple, which can easily affect the character dynamics. A relationship is not all sunshine and rainbows, and you have to create reasons for that. Creating moments of drama between the couple creates tension, which will undoubtedly make your story more interesting. Take the tumultuous dynamic of Noah and Allie in perhaps the most popular romance of the 21st century, The Notebook.
Fantasy
Finally, let’s address the fantastical and ethereal. Fantasy films are interesting because there are very few rules. They usually don’t take place on the Earth we know, so it’s important for writers to build a compelling world. World building is the most important aspect of a fantasy story – you have to establish the rules and keep to those rules throughout the story.
Although fantasies are pretty much no holds barred, that’s what makes them dangerous! You’ve really got to be careful writing a fantasy because you can’t betray your own plot and world. You have to keep track of everything that’s going on within so that it continues to make sense to readers.
Remember when we talked about allegory? Fantasy stories that could never really happen are great ways to play with allegory and give your stories a heightened sense of purpose. Lord of the Rings is an amazing fantasy story – so amazing in fact, that the author created an entire language to accompany it!
I know that was a long one, but I hope there was some good information in there! These are tips I’ve picked up throughout my years of writing that I always adhere to, and I hope they can do you some good!
readreaming 