The special beauty of multi-genre work
This blog post was first published on Mythical Books on Jan. 26, 2022.
Readers may not be aware of this, but it’s particularly difficult to publish cross-genre books. Many cross-genre writers have experienced rejection from agents and publishers alike, with an all-too-familiar refrain, “It’s too cross-genre. Publishers don’t know how to market it. Booksellers don’t know how to sell it.”
My agents and my publisher took a risk with my debut novel, THE PRISONER OF PARADISE. It’s about a man on the brink of insanity who traverses present-day and Renaissance Venice to save his true soul mate from a most unusual purgatory. It touches on multiple themes and can easily fit in different genres.
In fact, it was a bit of a challenge to determine the best genres but ultimately we decided on a thriller blended with historical fiction and magical realism.
Despite this genre-bending, my publisher, TouchPoint Press gave me a three-book deal, and Tantor Media bought the rights for all three books for an audiobook deal.
Will my book eventually be a signpost, laughing at all those agents and publishers who rejected the manuscript because it couldn’t fit into a box? Time will tell, but so far things are looking good. The Prisoner of Paradise has garnered rave reviews and was a finalist in the American Writing Awards.
I believe it’s doing well because it resonates with so many different people. Readers and audiences crave variety and range. Would Game of Thrones been a hit without the political intrigue and love stories? Would Outlander have a rabid fanbase if it were just a regular historical romance, without the fantasy aspect?
