I keep hearing that I need to niche down into a genre to build a solid author brand, but I love writing multiple. Is it possible in our industry to build my brand around me and write what I want to write?
Genre Wanderer
Dear Genre Wanderer,
My precious Wanderer, I feel your pain. Being fenced into one genre simply won’t do! That’s like being told you can only sip one type of tea for the rest of your life. Earl Grey today, Earl Grey tomorrow, Earl Grey until you grow dowdy and gray yourself? Perish the thought! (Especially as I can’t abide Earl Grey. Give me a robust Darjeeling any day.)
Although the business side of your head will shriek marketing at you, and brands strive for cohesion, routine, and expectation, we artists crave variety! What is life without the delightful surprise of occasionally swapping your breakfast builder’s brew for a dreamy chamomile? The palate revels in exploration.
So rather than confining your flourishing author flower to one restrictive genre garden, consider instead how your personal brand could be like a sumptuous tea house overflowing with whimsical blends and fanciful flavors. You are the master brewmaker and tea sommelier in one.
Perhaps your Cozy Mystery tales are the homey house black tea, ever reliable and deeply comforting. But then you dazzle with poetry—a vibrant herbal infusion brimming with zest and refreshing notes. Meanwhile, your Urban Fantasy unleashes exotic spiced masala chai that transports readers to realms of pure enchantment.
By packaging and presenting each delicious story experience as a unique speciality blend, you celebrate your versatility rather than stifling it. Devoted patrons will eagerly return to explore the ever-evolving tea leaf menu at the House of Your Imagination.
This approach has served many prolific authors well. Neil Gaiman sips from nearly every genre pot: Mythic Fantasy (Stardust), Sci-Fi (The Sandman), children’s fables (Coraline), and more. His signature? Incomparable storytelling and world-building.
Or look to Maya Angelou, who masterfully vacillated between memoir (I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings), poetry (Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ’fore I Diiie), plays, journalism, and more. Her truest devotion was to evoking the human experience.
Even the master himself, Stephen King, while eternally brewing Horror, has concocted forays into Supernatural Fiction (The Green Mile), Suspense (Misery), Speculative Sci-Fi (Under the Dome), and Literary Fiction’s darkest Earl Greys.
Despite their variety, each of these writers has a unique voice that tells the reader that it is their glorious work, and their fans can’t get enough.
Yes, some people think chamomile tastes like grass and Earl Grey like a lady’s boudoir, but you can never satisfy all tastes. I believe there are even people who don’t drink tea at all. Scandalous!
The decision you have to make, my dear, is how you want to package your work. Gaiman, Angelou, and King confidently use one name on every venture. J. K. Rowling, queen of the Harry Potter world, prefers to be Robert Galbraith for her Cormoran Strike books. Having multiple pen names is not uncommon, especially for books in different genres. If that helps with the brand of those titles, then use a pseudonym. If your Sci-Fi books may adversely damage the sales of your Steamy Romances, then publish under a different name. Otherwise, if all your amazing stories have a golden thread, stand proud and publish as Genre Wanderer. The trick, my dear, is to let your audience know what treats they can expect. Like the ritual of the Japanese tea ceremony, it is important to prepare yourself and your guests for the delights that lie ahead, whether they will explore one taste or many flavors.
Chin up, my darling! If one flavor is not for you, niche not into tidy genres but into an extravagant author brand tailored especially for the fearless, eclectic literary wanderer in you. There’s no novel, memoir, or pantoum you can’t stir to perfection. Now brew up and serve the world something splendid!
Happy writing,
Indie Annie
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