Self-Publishing In Different (Unrelated) Genres

Status
Not open for further replies.

djunamod

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 25, 2010
Messages
179
Reaction score
5
Location
West Texas
Hi Everyone,
I did a search about this in this thread but the only relevant thread I could find was more about publishing in relatively related genres.

I've been writing in several different genres in the last years (contemporary women's fiction, but not chick lit, historical cozy mystery, and psychological suspense) and I enjoy all of them. I have several finished novels in the WF genre which are on hold for revision right now because I'm doing Nano this year (where I'm working on a new psychological suspense novel).

I've been really debating whether to try and publish under these different genres (mainly the WF and PS genres) because my writing style for both is quite different. Don't get me wrong, it's still my writing voice, but the WF fiction is a bit more offbeat, quirkier, and lighter in tone with more of an uplifting storyline and ending. The PS novels are more serious, darker, and more complex.

I read a while back in quite a few writing books and articles that if you're going the traditional publishing route, unless you're a big name, writing in different unrelated genres is iffy because readers do not readily accept a writer who is writing in different genres and traditional publishers don't always like it (because it's a big risk, of course, to allow a writer who has been making money for them in one genre to write in another).

But since this is self-publishing, I know that the "rules" don't necessarily apply. I would like to publish anything I write under my pen name rather than change pen names for different genres.

Have other people here self-published under different genres, especially genres that are unrelated? How do you handle this? And can this be successful for a writer or would it be a handicap (i.e., maybe make readers think that as a writer, I can't "make up my mind" as to what genre I want to write in so I'm just testing out genres? That's not the situation at all. I take the time and effort with every book that I write. I just like writing in different genres :) ).

Djuna
 

M. H. Lee

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 24, 2012
Messages
501
Reaction score
67
Fiona McIntosh successfully publishes traditionally in multiple genres under the same name. Kristine Kathryn Rusch publishes traditionally in at least three genres using separate but related pen names.

I believe Dean Wesley Smith (KKR's husband) advocates publishing everything under one pen name.

Personally, I self-publish things under multiple pen names that are kept completely separate. For me it's partially about having a consistent offering for that name. But we're also talking speculative fiction versus non-fiction books here and the two don't cross. Romance/PNR/Erotic Romance, probably not the same issue.

From your list above, I might wonder what one of your cozy mystery readers would think if they read one of your psychological suspense. Only you know if they'd both appeal to the same reader or if you might lose readers who read the "wrong" book.

The other issue with multiple pen names becomes keeping up an adequate level of production for each one, something I am admittedly struggling with right now. With self-publishing if you can't feed the beast consistently, you quickly sink into obscurity.

End of the day, it's your call. But know that you can go either traditional or self-pub and can either put it all under one name or different names and with different names can let readers know that they're the same author or keep them separate. It's all possible.
 

lauralam

Moonshade
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2011
Messages
896
Reaction score
84
Location
Alba
What about very similar pen names, like Iain Banks versus Iain M. Banks? Then it'll show they're a bit different, yet it'll be similar enough you could do all your promo under say one Twitter handle, for example.
 

SBibb

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 2, 2011
Messages
1,573
Reaction score
116
Website
sbibb.wordpress.com
What about very similar pen names, like Iain Banks versus Iain M. Banks? Then it'll show they're a bit different, yet it'll be similar enough you could do all your promo under say one Twitter handle, for example.

I think that's similar to what Jennifer L. Armentrout does. She has a pen name, J. Lynn, for her adult and new adult works. (Granted, she is primarily trade published, though I think she does have a few self-published works).
 

Polenth

Mushroom
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 27, 2007
Messages
5,017
Reaction score
735
Location
England
Website
www.polenthblake.com
I'm using the same name for everything. For a start, I don't write fast enough to produce work for many names. I also don't want the admin of a lot of names. I suppose potentially readers might get confused, but each book has a cover to go with the genre, they're clearly described, and my site has extra details about the content. So they'd have to ignore everything but my name to get confused.

("Wow, that's a scary-looking monster on this book. So much blood! I'm sure it must be a sweet romance like the author's other books.")
 
Status
Not open for further replies.