There's a fine line between women's fiction and literary fiction in my writing. So how on earth do I choose how to pitch it?
Take the two examples below, for instance. These two exerpts are from my current WIP Bitter Like Orange Peel. So tell me, do I write ...
women's fiction?
"Brian closes his laptop, puts it in his briefcase, gathers his belongings and throws a couple of dollars on the table. He stands as close to Ivy as possible without being threatening or indecent—close enough for his briefcase to brush up against Ivy’s dress and send shivers down her legs and into her toes. He pulls a slip of paper out of his back pocket. As he slides the slip of paper into Ivy's apron pouch, his hand hovers directly above her crotch. She holds her breath and his glare for just a moment, before he removes his hand, smirks, and walks casually out of the cafe."
or literary fiction?
"Ailish’s face—weary, depressed, on the brink of giving up. The left side facing the window is dimly lit, the right side pitch black; an interdependence of opposites, thinks Kit; yin and yang; the strong and the weak contaminating each other to form a temporary misconstruction of character; confused and simmered down to a childlike perception of right and wrong. At this moment Kit realizes Ailish is fragile—as fragile as an infertile phoenix, and as rare as the Gutenberg Bible."
women's fiction?
"Brian closes his laptop, puts it in his briefcase, gathers his belongings and throws a couple of dollars on the table. He stands as close to Ivy as possible without being threatening or indecent—close enough for his briefcase to brush up against Ivy’s dress and send shivers down her legs and into her toes. He pulls a slip of paper out of his back pocket. As he slides the slip of paper into Ivy's apron pouch, his hand hovers directly above her crotch. She holds her breath and his glare for just a moment, before he removes his hand, smirks, and walks casually out of the cafe."
or literary fiction?
"Ailish’s face—weary, depressed, on the brink of giving up. The left side facing the window is dimly lit, the right side pitch black; an interdependence of opposites, thinks Kit; yin and yang; the strong and the weak contaminating each other to form a temporary misconstruction of character; confused and simmered down to a childlike perception of right and wrong. At this moment Kit realizes Ailish is fragile—as fragile as an infertile phoenix, and as rare as the Gutenberg Bible."
So how do I plug this? Don't tell me that I shouldn't switch styles in the manuscript, because these two styles are from different POVs, two completely different chracters, who have two completely different ways of perceiving life. So basically the questions is, can I plug it as literary women's fiction? Yikes. Is that 'legal'?
Let me ask you this, or maybe ask your self this: What is my one sentence plug for the manuscript? Do you find that gives you a clearer view of the overall feel of the book?
ReplyDeleteI am bad with genres, so can't advice on how you can pitch it. And I personally read and like both genres and either of your excerpts would have made me pause at a bookstore.
ReplyDeleteCan't you pitch it as either depending on the agent/ editor/ publisher?
I only read YA, so I'm completely lost on this one. Which style represents the largest portion of the ms? Also, how will it come off in the sample pages? If it sounds like women's fiction, you might not want to pitch it as literary.
ReplyDeleteNot sure about the "legality" about pitching it as a cross-over genre, but I guess it can be questioned how clever it is. I imagine the reason agents usually want the book defined within a genre is that they need to know how to market it, and sadly, in terms of market there is a difference between the two. I see it all the time in the bookshop - men are reluctant to read anything that remotely smells of women's fiction. Thus if a book has elements of women's fiction, I am pretty sure the agent and publisher would want to market it as women's fiction, out of fear of otherwise alienating potential readers.
ReplyDeleteBecause of this, there are many books now marketed as "women's fiction" even though they clearly would have been literary or general fiction had they been written a few decades ago.
Good luck in finding the right balance :)
I like the genre 'Literary Women's Fiction' because it really is the blending of two genres. That's how we got all the romance subgenres, etc. It's not like you're trying to morph six or seven different things, thereby sounding like an amateur. I think an agent would see that and understand exactly what you mean.
ReplyDeleteI'm horrible with genre, but my understanding is that literary fiction is a large one, and women's is sort of a subset of commercial fiction. I don't see why one novel can't be both at the same time. The Silence of the Lambs is an example of a novel that was both literary and commercial.
ReplyDeleteThat being said I'm not sure that just because you can write it that way means you want to pitch it that way. I would go to Nathan Bransfords forums and ask him directly:
Ask Nathan
That's a tough one. I suppose the most pedantic way of thinking would be to ask which genre has the widest readership, and pitch it for that.
ReplyDeleteIf you think that it's the kind of novel that a man would be able to read, then market it as literary fiction. If not, then there's no harm in keeping yourself within the women's fiction boundaries.
Good luck :D
Hmm, that's a tough one. I'm with Matt on the 'can't it be both' argument. Although I'd be tempted to look for the dominant pov in the book and then go eith which genre it fits in.
ReplyDeleteI read your excerpts and the comments, which are really good btw. Thoughtful and helpful. I have nothing to add. Just want to say that YOU ROCK!
ReplyDeleteSorry, you're asking the wrong dude.
ReplyDeleteI know nothing about book writing so am afraid I can't be of any use.
ReplyDeleteYou are a very talented person with your writing so personally I think you're doing ok.
Yvonne.
I wish I could give you some advice on this topic but I'm afraid I'm terrible with genres. I'm glad I at least realize I'm currently writing YA and there is definitely fantasy in it, but I would never understand how to plug it to an agent yet! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteYou're right. there is a very fine line. I'd say the biggest difference is in the plotline. If there's a strong plot, I'd go with Women's Fiction. If it's more character oriented with a focus mainly on their thoughts and intractions with one another, I'd say literary. The two are very closely linked. I thnk the label of wome's fiction is to add more commercial appeal to a story.
ReplyDeleteI say push the boundaries! Do it as both, women's literary fiction! Go for it!
ReplyDeleteHm, no. There are several agents blog posts about "what" women's fiction is. Here's one:
ReplyDeletehttp://scotteagan.blogspot.com/2010/07/thank-you-to.html
http://scotteagan.blogspot.com/2010/05/what-will-i-be-looking-for-june-1.html
There are others, so check around. Maybe you'll find the answer you are looking for. Good luck!
~JD
I like Rayna's idea: cater to the editor. The radically different viewpoints really fleshes it out!
ReplyDeleteI'm going to have a similar dilemma on my hands. Thanks for sparking a great discussion. It will ultimately help me in pinning mine down, as well. I think PK is spot on. Also, I agree with Matthew: go ask Nathan. I'm going to check out those links from Justine.
ReplyDeleteThanks all! ~that rebel, Olivia
My gut tells me your writing is literary. I'll let you know when/if my opinion shifts *wink*
ReplyDeleteI do feel like Women's Fiction is a sub-category of Literary, since it has such a literary tone. I agree with the others who say go for the broader audience.
I'm afraid I'm with Stina. I only read YA and similar, so I'm at a loss. Good luck, though! You write beautifully. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm about as helpful as a slug. I have no effing idea.
ReplyDeleteOkay, personal opinion. You tailor it to the agent. If they say they're looking for women's fiction, you call it that. If they're looking for literary fiction, you call it that. If you don't know, go with what's more commercial.
ReplyDeleteI second what Elana just said - change according to agnets you want to work with.
ReplyDeleteAlso, agents all willingly agree that women's fiction covers a HUGE range of stuff from borderline romance to what you wrote - closer to literary fiction.
Oh. I also wanted to say that I love books with more than one POV.
ReplyDeleteYour stuff reminds me a little of White Oleander, which I think sold as Literary Fiction BUT, I think there are more readers (and therefore an easier sell) for women's fiction. I think I'd pitch it as women's fiction with literary appeal to agents who represent BOTH and let them tell YOU which you should be selling it as.
ReplyDeleteI write for kids, but I think you CAN plug it as a literary women's book.
ReplyDeleteWhy not? Maybe check around, but I think these excerpts prove that you can plug it as both.
BTW, love your writing. *she fans herself* "Is it hot in here?"
I gotta love that name Ivy. :)
I have no idea...it's not a picture book for sure!
ReplyDeleteJessica both passages are absolutely beautiful! I have no idea what genre you should pitch them as...but your voice is breathtaking!
Best wishes...
Jessica, I came back after reading this: Query tracker
ReplyDeleteHope it helps. :)
It reads like both, your mandate has always been ' a writer of women's fiction' so I'd say plug for that. If it falls into another category as well then so be it. It's how u feel about the novel that counts I would say. What's your gut tell you?
ReplyDeleteMy favorite qoute will always be 'as rare as a gutenburg bible' pure silk for the tongue :)
Yeah, I have no idea either.
ReplyDeleteThat is a riddle I cannot solve. I'm not sure I fully comprehend the difference between the two.
ReplyDeleteAgents are looking for overlap these days. THE PASSAGE by Justin Cronin hit what they call the "soft point" between genre and literary fiction.
ReplyDeleteSalarsen had a point : your one point summation of your book will tell you a lot about how to pitch it.
Think of where you believe it would be put in a bookstore. Also, think of an author who has written something somewhat similar to your novel. Where do you find that author in the bookstore?
I'm going to let you all on a little secret. The place I find all my books in a bookstore (if indeed I do go into a bookstore and not buy on Amazon) is on the "International" shelf under the letter of the author's last name because they are shelved alphbetically. Unfortunately, living in Greece doesn't allow me the luxury of browsing a 'real' categorized shelf of books :o(
ReplyDeleteWomen's Literary Fiction has a good ring to it, but I would cater to the agent. :)
ReplyDelete