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A Post By Jonathan
Greetings all! So, this is the second blog post in a row I've written while on a business trip. I'm starting to realize that I should probably plan these things better...Anyways, during these business trips I usually listen to a lot of audio books. To give you an idea of just how much, I recently finished the entire Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson, which is about 1,232,820 words, so "books on tape" don't usually have trouble keeping my interest. The books that I've been listening to lately have either been hard SciFi or high Fantasy, so with my next book I thought I might try out some Middle Grade, since that is the genre I write in...
I usually don't buy MG audiobooks because most of them are pretty short and if I'm going to spend $15.00 a month for Audible I'm going to get my money's worth. But I recently heard about a new up and coming MG/YA author (who is supposed to be the next JK Rowling... since both of their debuts went for crazy money at auction), so I figured I'd give the book a try. Well, I'm barely past the first five chapters and am having a heck of a time sticking with it. It's okay, but the exposition is way overdone, as is the narration. Still, what I'm really worried about is that it's not the book, but the genre I'm cooling off on.
I'll be honest, it was Harry Potter that got me excited about MG in the first place. I just love all the adventures kids can get into together and the coming of age story tropes. But since that series ended, it's been tough finding anything in my genre I'm super excited about. I liked the Gregor the Overlander series by Suzanne Collins of Hunger Games fame, mostly because of her to-the-point writing style and also the Penderwicks series. I kind of liked Percy Jackson, but not so much. I guess when I read, I want to experience more of an adult adventure (one that I can picture myself in), but when I write, I love getting my young(er) characters in and out of trouble.
Does anyone else have this "problem?" Are there times when you would rather read in an area that you don't necessarily write in? I guess since I've started writing, I feel like reading needs to be about half research and half leisure, so how can I research if I'm reading out of genre?
In short, can you write in a genre you don't love reading? Would be great to hear from other writers out there who struggle with this (if they exist!). As always thanks for stopping by!
You can get sick of your preferred genre. I love crime fic, but I am fussy. Read outside your genre for awhile and you'll find your groove again. Go really outside. Try crime fic!
ReplyDeleteI do love many books in my writing genre, but since I started writing I think I read more outside of what I write in. Mostly that's because I don't want to accidentally be influenced by what I'm reading and put it into my story. I think you can still hone your writing skills no matter what you're reading. Who says you can't put a bit of the style you love to read into the genre you love to write?
ReplyDeleteOh, and my daughter (who is almost 12 and reads a lot of MG) devoured the Wings of Fire series. I haven't read them so I can't give you an adult's perspective, but I thought I'd share just in case it's something you'd want to check out. She said they're her second favorite to Harry Potter.
ReplyDeleteI try to read something way off my interest at least every few months. It does shake things up a bit but I find myself reaching for essays and novels about real life situations. I have worried like Carrie that I will be influenced by what I read and it will end up in my posts, it happens a lot, so I just cite the author and move on. Great post Jonathan.
ReplyDeleteInteresting note about the book you're listening to now. I've seen lots of praise for this book. I think it proves that books are very individual. I read lots of things (except horror b/c I'm a wimp like that) and I find that sometimes my genre (romance) feels formulaic to me, and depending on the book I can't dive straight into another one without reading something totally different first.
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