Identifying Audience and Genre in Your Writing
by Mary Kole | Former literary agent, now a freelance editor, writing teacher, and IP/story developer for major publishers and creators.
One of our Good Story Learning members recently asked a question about identifying audience in writing. Some writers are very clear about who their intended audience is. Some are less clear. It’s very important to identify what kind of book you’re writing and whether there’s a market for it, especially if the job of identifying audience is a step on your journey to intended publication.
But what if your novel is made up of two different genres or is written for different age groups? Is it bad to mention this? What about using phrases like “YA suspense with paranormal elements,” which blends two genres together? How do you go about identifying audience in the right way? Read on.
What is Genre?
Before you can start identifying audience, you need to know your genre. Generally, books are described as “fantasy” if they have magical elements and strong worldbuilding; “paranormal” if they involve creatures like vampires and ghosts; “romance” if they have a main love story; “historical” if a story depends on a historical context outside of our time; or “sci-fi/speculative” when they have a strong technology element. There are many more genres and subgenres for you to explore. If you read like a writer, then make sure you read in genres that you’re interested in so you can get to know them.
One thing to note: For kids' books, though, the age groups are usually called “categories” and not genres—for example, “picture book” is a category or audience.
If your book doesn't fall into any of the usual genres, it could fit in the “general fiction” or “contemporary realistic” buckets. In middle grade fiction, stories about real life and regular issues often get labeled as “coming of age.” All of these genres come with different expectations, which is why identifying audience is so important.
Accurate Genres Help With Identifying Audience
Writing genres are not fixed, and many high-concept stories borrow from several genres. For instance, Emily Hainsworth’s Through to You was pitched as “YA paranormal.” It was then pitched to publishers as a “magical realism YA.” The publisher finally settled on calling it a “YA paranormal thriller” since the book has romantic and sci-fi elements. This just goes to show you that identifying audience can be an inexact science.
One additional children’s book note: the exact audience category distinction between “upper MG” and “younger YA” or “tween” can be a gray area. Sometimes a writer will say something is an “upper” or “lower” MG book or young adult book, but it’s often easier and more market-friendly to stick to the accepted ranges of middle grade word count and average word count for young adult novels. The concept of genre is now more flexible because of today's more advanced MG and YA markets, but the classics ranges never hurt anyone.
Identifying Audience for Your Pitch
Our GSL member mentioned that she was pitching “YA suspense with paranormal elements.” I would suggest using the term “thriller” instead of suspense, as the former has greater appeal in the current market. Identifying audience for thriller is a bit easier, as that genre is more broad. Although everyone interprets certain hallmarks of genre differently, we should identify one genre to highlight in a book pitch.
For example, when we say it is a “thriller with paranormal elements,” then we are communicating that there is an action-packed plot that may include some supernatural creatures, for example. Thriller is more prominent than paranormal. A “paranormal with thriller elements” suggests the opposite, that characters from other realms and an added dose of excitement for the plot. You can modify your pitch so that it helps with identifying audience.
How Identifying Audience Correctly Helps Your Book
In the end, the literary agent or publisher has the ultimate say in how to classify your work and what title to use. This may differ from your original idea. A literary agent and publisher will also help you with identifying audience, so you know how to target marketing and genre expectations as you move forward in your career. Do your best to accurately describe the genre and category of your writing in your query letter and you should be good to go!
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