Cross-genre fiction is thriving, but blending genres successfully requires more than adding a dragon to a murder mystery (sad, but true). If you're writing a cross-genre novel, planning to write one, or wondering whether your manuscript accidentally became one, this episode will help you blend genres without confusing your readers.

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Overthinking Couch Topics:

• Combining genres intentionally
• What readers expect from different genres
• Why understanding those expectations matters.
• Popular genre mashups

Next time on Writing Break: Writing What You Want vs. Writing What Sells. What happens when those two things aren't the same?

• The Authors Guild
• Home : America's Editor - Let's work together.
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If you have plot bunnies coming out of your plot holes, it’s time for a writing break.

Welcome back, you wizardly writer. This episode is all about cross-genre fiction. Some writers learn the so-called rules of writing just so they can know how to break them. Do I mind? Not if it's done well. The popularity of cross-genre fiction proves to me that some rules were made to be broken.

This episode is going to be brief as I've already covered several genre mashups in detail. So check the episode index if you're looking for a particular genre blend.

Cross-genre fiction is a result of writers pushing boundaries in a way that is interesting to them and hoping others will want to read it. And, yes, we do want to read it. Fantasy readers want romance. Romance readers want mystery. Mystery readers want science fiction. Science fiction readers want horror. Horror readers want cozy vibes. It's a beautiful thing.

In several episodes of Writing Break we discussed romantic fantasy, aka romantasy, which has been selling quite well in recent years. But wait, there's more. Genre blends like historical fantasy, science fiction thrillers, paranormal mysteries, gothic romances, literary horror, and cozy fantasy are all finding enthusiastic readers (myself among them).

One genre is usually the foundational genre, the dominant genre, the base genre, whatever you want to call it. So, adding in elements from other genres needs to enhance the story. However, and this is important, combining genres does not mean just adding one or two elements. You need to know what the reader expects from each genre, and genre blend needs to make sense. The genres should reinforce one another. You want the story to feel elevated but not crowded.

You might not believe me . . . I can hardly believe it myself, but a dragon does not automatically improve a murder mystery, a spaceship does not automatically improve a romance, and a ghost does not automatically improve a baking competition.

Harsh words, I know. I apologize. The Writing Break cafe is open, so let's head inside to discuss this further. First round is on me.

Many commercially successful novels on the market are cross-genre titles. What's not to love about well-written cross-genre fiction? It's familiarity combined with novelty, like when your lover dyes their hair or shaves their beard. With cross-genre fiction, readers get the comfort of recognizable genre expectations while also experiencing something surprising and unique, and writers often find that their readership grows because it draws in fans of different genres.

If you're currently blending genres or thinking about doing so, it's possible that you didn't set out to write cross-genre fiction at all. Genre blending often happens when a writer just follows what interests them. Maybe they're fascinated by the puzzle structure of mysteries but also deeply invested in relationships, so they write romantic suspense. Maybe they love folklore but are equally obsessed with a particular historical period, leading them toward historical fantasy. You know, it's like writers are creative or something.

The thing is, the genres need to be blending with intention. If you discover halfway through your manuscript that your horror novel has become a family drama with supernatural elements, that's not necessarily a problem. But you do need to think about what experience you're ultimately promising readers.

So, what are some popular mashups?

Well, romantic fantasy is the "It girl" of the moment. Romantasy combines the emotional arc of romance, yummy, with the worldbuilding and speculative elements of fantasy, double yummy. To do it right, the romance must drive the story alongside the fantasy plot. Readers of romantic fantasy want both emotional payoff and fantasy payoff.

Then there's historical fantasy, which takes a recognizable historical setting and introduces magical, supernatural, or speculative elements. Even though the appeal of historical fiction comes partly from the contrast between fact and fiction, the author still has the challenge of making the story feel balanced. Too much history and the fantasy feels secondary. Too much fantasy and the historical setting feels superficial. Writers of historical fantasy should have a great imagination and a great respect for the past.

There's also sci-fi thrillers. These novels are intellectually engaging and hard to put down. The combination of sci-fi and thriller works because both genres need momentum, so the genres are able to keep up with each other. On the science fiction side we get technology, science, and speculation, and on the thriller side we get suspense, danger, and urgency.

And, of course, I can't forget cozy horror, which is one of the newer cross-genres gaining popularity. Cozy promises comfort, and horror promises fear, so this might not seem like a workable mashup. But it appeals to readers who enjoy controlled discomfort. The cozy elements create emotional safety while the horror elements provide tension and curiosity. Readers of cozy horror want to feel unsettled but not overwhelmed.

There are more genre blends, and perhaps you can come up with a new one yourself. Just remember that every genre has its own collection of reader expectations, so when you combine genres, you inherit expectations from all of them. You do not necessarily need to satisfy every expectation equally. Even if your book has a dominant genre, you still need to understand what readers are expecting from your book. For example, if one of the genres you're blending is mystery, you'll need a solution to the mystery. Thrillers need escalating tension. Fantasy readers expect coherent worldbuilding. Each genre makes its own promises to readers; of course, readers might not consciously think through all of these promises while they're reading, but they certainly notice when a promise is broken.

If you're an ambitious sort, you might be thinking, Why combine two genres when I can combine six? For one thing, the more genres you combine, the more expectations you're taking on. Cross-genre fiction works best when the elements support one another, which becomes harder to do well when the story is crowded with genres competing for attention. Readers might get confused, but confusion is not a substitute for complexity. Your story should be layered but not fragmented.

A practical reason to not blend all the genres is that, from a publishing perspective, discoverability can be an issue with cross-genre fiction. Where, oh, where should your six-genre book be shelved? Marketing a cross-genre novel can be a challenge, but then again, publishers keep putting them out, so I guess they think it's worth the extra effort. Readers are often quite flexible. They'll happily follow you into unfamiliar territory as long as they trust you know where you're going.

As for today's overthinking prompt, take your current work in progress and identify every genre influencing the story. Now rank them in order of importance. Which genre is driving the narrative? Which genres are supporting it? If a reader picked up the book today, what would they expect from the story based on its description, and would your manuscript fulfill that reader's expectations?

And finally, would the story become weaker if one of the genres is omitted? If the answer is no, that genre might not actually belong.

Next time we'll be discussing writing what you want vs writing what sells. What if they're not one in the same?

Until then, thank you so much for listening, and remember, you deserved this break.

Thank you for making space in your mind for The Muse today.

Writing Break is hosted by America’s Editor and produced by Allon Media with technical direction by Gus Aviles. Visit us at writingbreak.com or contact us at [email protected].