There are some novels that have crimes in them that are not crime novels. Then there are some novels that have crimes in them that are crime novels. So what’s the difference?
Maybe this isn’t the right blog to do it, but I’ve started writing a different kind of novel, something more family oriented and uplifting, but with a crime being the hub by which all the action revolves around, if you want to call it action. So is it a crime novel? My natural writing instincts are to veer in that familiar path. But my creative side is telling me to go in a completely different direction.
The problem with being an established crime writer is that we get pigeonholed in our genre. Now there’s nothing wrong with that if writing crime is what you aspire to for the rest of your life. Once you land an agent that agent”s interests are narrow in scope, especially if the writer he or she represents has a history of writing in that genre. Only the big time writers get to write in different genres: James Patterson, John Grisham, Colson Whitehead, Thomas Pynchon.
This is not to say that I want to completely abandon writing crime novels. I started my career writing horror and transitioned to crime, which is what I’d always wanted to write. But at this stage of my career I feel the need to try something different. Hey, if I want to win my Pulitzer or National Book Award, I won’t get it writing genre fiction, which to be honest is a bad rap. Because I find that some of the best writers come from the crime family tree. I’ve always believed that George V. Higgins deserved one for his novel THE FRIENDS OF EDDIE COYLE.
Since my agent retired last year, this has put me in a quandary. Do I need two separate agents, one for my crime fiction and one for my other novel? Will I even finish this new novel I’m working on? I can’t think any of those matters right now. If I’m going to do it, now is the time for me to try something different.
Writing novels and getting published is getting harder and harder, especially in the age of AI. What challenges are you finding as you get older? What new opportunities are you looking to explore? Let me know what you think of my dilemma. Any advice will help.
Oh, and Book 2 of my crime trilogy, CRUEL TO BE KIND is now available.
Best,
Joe
Joe…my last agent was not supportive of my excursions into other genres. She wanted me to stick to one thing and build a platform. I’m no carpenter, so that platform’s a bit rickety, but I believe we writers go where our curiosity and imagination send us. For me it’s been true crime, memoir, domestic suspense, short stories, thrillers, and nonfiction. Lately, a romance. Some of my non-mystery endeavors have crimes but the stories are about other aspects of the character’s lives. So follow your instincts and write what your passion for storytelling wants to write.
Kate
Thanks for the advice, Kate.
Go for it Joe. You would probably always regret it if you do not. Why not stretch your skills to develop in new ways?
Alice
Thanks, Alice!