Finding the right Label

AS AN AUTHOR, I WRESTLE with many decisions when I prepare a book for publication. This is especially true because I choose to self-publish. Besides working with my editor to fine-tune the manuscript, I must write a description, nail down a title, work with a designer to create a book cover, and decide how to classify my book.

Like many authors, I feel close to my project—a tender and protective love not unlike what a parent feels for their newborn. Labeling my “baby” is difficult, but even human babies are given bracelet labels in the hospital to ensure the right parents take them home. Selecting a book’s genre is a bit like attaching an ID bracelet to a baby’s wrist—a way to help readers find the perfect book to take home and love.

Luckily, we are allowed to choose more than one genre, like choosing a given name, a middle name, a surname, and maybe even a nickname for a child. I’m fairly sure where my new book, Ashes and Ruins, fits, but I wanted to see how the publishing industry defines various genres.

In literature, genres are a way of understanding works based on their form, content, and style. The definitions of individual genres, the number of genres recognized, and what subgenres cluster under them vary from source to source. The publishing industry is rapidly changing, as are the genres they recognize. Book award contests each have their own list of categories too. The Independent Publisher’s book award lists 100 genres, and fully twenty pertain to adult fiction, while the Writers’ Digest book award has only two genres in adult fiction—mainstream/literary and genre fiction (everything else).

Genre listings dependably include staples like romance, historical fiction, fantasy, science fiction, and thriller. Longer lists will have a few less common categories, such as erotica, horror, war and military, coming of age, LGBTQ, and inspirational. Add to that possible subgenres (ancient Rome, Edwardian, and WWII under historical fiction) and overlaps (historical fiction with a magical twist that might also be classified as fantasy). Given so many choices and variations, the search for the best genre for a book can be daunting.

Recently, I attended a book club meeting where we talked about AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future by Kai-Fu Lee and Chen Qiufan. The discussion was lively, and among other things, we touched on how AI will inevitably affect writing. One member of the group, also a writer, said she was experimenting with AI to help with self-editing. Another woman said she loved using AI for research. This inspired me to ask an AI app to clarify the genres into which my book might fit. The search was a bit like using a baby name book to find the meaning of favorite names.

I asked my questions of AI in various ways: “What does the designation ‘historical fiction’ indicate?” “What is meant by ‘book club fiction’?” “How do major publishers define women’s fiction and book club fiction?” The information returned was self-affirming, interesting . . . and fast!

Ashes and Ruins is set in Germany and London between 1934 and 1943, so I knew it would qualify as historical fiction, not to mention the subgenre of WWII fiction. AI reaffirmed this and added that historical fiction should engender research-based authenticity, be a blend of fact and fiction, and help readers learn about a particular historical period. Bingo! As expected, my book hits all those notes.

However, I am anxious to go beyond standard historical fiction and reach a wider audience. I wanted to confirm that Ashes and Ruins would also fit into the classification of women’s fiction, which targets a female audience, especially women over twenty-five. My AI app indicated that this genre focuses on women’s life experiences and emotional journeys, the protagonists are usually female, the story focuses more on the characters than the plot, and themes of motherhood, marriage, divorce, and personal growth are prominent. While women’s fiction may have romance, AI added, romance is not necessarily the main storyline, nor does the romance need to have a “happily ever after” ending. Most of all, I was reassured to see the caveat that any reader, male or female, who likes stories based on character development can be a good match for books in this category.

In spite of this reassurance, the very name, “women’s fiction,” might be too gender-specific and thus could be off-putting to men. I believe Ashes and Ruins rises above sexism and carries a contemporary vibe, even though the setting is historical and the characters, both male and female, must be understood in their historical context. Most of all, they are people with human foibles and weaknesses, and their lives come with the messiness that engenders.

There was another category I was curious about, one not usually used as a genre in publishing circles, except in their marketing departments. Book club fiction is considered slightly upmarket, perhaps halfway between women’s fiction and literary fiction. AI described this type of fiction as “a specific marketing designation that refers to novels designed to spark discussion and appeal to reading groups.” Book club fiction, my AI app indicated, is generally written in an engaging way, both stylistically and with enough plot momentum to keep the reader turning pages. These novels address significant topics that lead to conversations about moral dilemmas, family secrets, social issues, or complex relationships. Among other social issues, Ashes and Ruins deals with the stresses of marital problems and unplanned pregnancy, making it discussable in a book group setting.

My AI sources added that book club fiction is marketed to libraries and book groups and often includes discussion questions. In the past I have been successful giving presentations to small groups, and I love talking to readers. I look forward to sharing Ashes and Ruins with book lovers in the same way I did my earlier novel, Immigrant Soldier.

I enjoyed my AI experiment, especially the speed with which responses arrived. I also appreciated the occasional links to sources that allowed me to double-check the information. Examples:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_writing_genres

With the help of AI to research the definitions of different genres, I feel confident Ashes and Ruins fits beautifully into at least two major and one marketing category . . . so, three ways to lead different readers to my book.