Dear O'Abby: What do I do if I want to write horror as a romance author?

 Dear O'Abby,

I'm a fairly successful romance author with 14 published novels.  My publisher wants more because my books sell reasonably well, but the new book I'm working on does not fit with my/their brand - it's a horror and I'm absolutely loving writing it!  

I do plan to write more romance in the future, but right now I'm really enjoying writing something that almost certainly won't have a happy-ever-after ending, and I'm pretty sure I'll write more like this in the future.

Do you have any advice for how to manage my writing career while writing in two very different genres?

Sincerely,

Horrified

Dear Horrified,

I think you'd be surprised how many writers juggle books across a variety of genres.  The reason you may not know about them is because they write each genre under a different name.

Yes, this is a situation where you may want to think about using a pseudonym.  You obviously have a dedicated fan base for your romance novels, and these readers are probably not also avid readers of horror (although some may be).  It is probably not desirable for your current fans to pick up your new book expecting a delightful, frothy romance only to discover something very, very different.

It's also possible (or probable) that your publisher doesn't handle horror either, unless they are large and have a number of different imprints across genres. You don't mention if you have an agent, but if you do, and they have been successfully selling your romances, they may not have the contacts or experience to sell your horror.

Which is another reason to use a pseudonym. You can query agents that specialise in horror without your reputation as a romance writer hanging over you.  Obviously once you accept representation your new agent will need to know your true identity, but while querying, you can do so with a fresh slate and no expectations.

But talk to your existing agent first (if you have one). It's possible they do have the experience and contacts to handle both genres now, even if they didn't at the time you signed with them.  Or if they are part of a larger agency, there may be an agent there who handles horror and will work alongside your current agent to manage this new strand of your career.

Hopefully this helps.  And good luck!  Do let us know how everything goes, and where we can get our hands on your new book.

X O'Abby

Dear O'Abby, I Have an Agent, But...

Dear O'Abby,

I got an agent around two years ago after querying a YA romance.  It sold to a publisher and will be releasing early next year.  Now my agent is asking me for a new book and while I have written two more, they are both adult sci-fi novels, which is what I actually love to write. That YA was something I wrote in two months, pretty much just to see if I could.

I have no real desire to write another YA romance, but my agent isn't interested in my sci-fi at all.  This is really disappointing because I queried two sci-fi novels before I wrote the YA and never got more than a handful of requests.  I'm not sure what to do now.  I felt like I'd made it when I finally got an agent, but now I feel like I'll either be stuck writing books in a genre I'm not that interested in, or back in the query trenches.   Do you have any advice?

Sincerely,

Maybe Agented

Dear Maybe Agented,

First up, let me congratulate you on your upcoming release.  That's exciting news and you should celebrate it.

In terms of your problem, did you tell your agent when you had your initial call with her that YA romance wasn't your primary genre of choice?  Did you let her know your other books were adult sci-fi and writing those books was your passion?  When looking for agents to query with that YA, did you look for agents who also rep adult science-fi?

It's important that your agent knows these things.  If you didn't mention them in your call, is it something you talked about later?   If not, it may be time to have a frank conversation with your agent.

Some authors who write across genres have two agents, one for each type of book they write.  If you think there's a possibility you might write more YA romance, you could stay with your current agent for those books, and ask if she would be happy for you to query your adult sci-fi and find a different agent to rep that.   There may even be another agent within her agency who reps sci-fi and could take on selling those books for you.

But you do need her blessing to do this.  You can't go out and query your sci-fi novels without telling your current agent.  And if you really feel strongly about not writing more YA romance and this is what your agent specializes in, you need to have that conversation.  It may be time for you and your agent to part ways.  There's no benefit to either of you in staying together if you're not writing what she sells, and she doesn't want to sell what you're writing.

Hope this helps!

Good luck with the upcoming release.

X O'Abby

Evolution of a Writer

As a reader/fangirl of many newish authors, I have really enjoyed watching the way each author evolves in his or her work. It's customary to see variances in tone and genre in the same author's work, but sometimes it truly is a brand evolution.

For instance, Mandy Hubbard started out with Prada and Prejudice, a time-traveling romantic comedy, but now frequently writes as Amanda Grace with concepts a bit darker, like But I Love Him, a story of an abusive relationship and "love gone horribly wrong."

The evolution of a writer can even happen within the same series, like the transformative and epic Harry Potter series, which began with the magic and delight of Diagon Alley and ended with a war.

One of my very favorite YA authors, Kiersten White, started out with the Paranormalcy trilogy, a fun, riotous romp through the land of the paranormal with a girl obsessed with pink and teen sit coms.

But her work took on a more mature darkness, as well:

Then there are those whose evolution brings them back from adult writing to children's books, like Stephen King and Weird Al Yankovic.

As for my own writing, I find I'm still evolving, too. My tastes are evolving, my style is evolving, and by the time I get published who knows what that first book will be. I've already written NA science fiction, YA paranormal, YA romance, and YA spy mystery. 

Advice I've received from published writers is often to enjoy the process of writing for no one in particular, not having deadlines and industry expectations that are imposed rather than chosen. I gotta say, I am enjoying the process. It's great being able to write whatever I want, whether it's poetry or paranormal fiction. 

How have you changed over the course of your writer journey?

Pseudonym or No Pseudonym...That is the Question

I write historical romances for Entangled Publishing. But I am also getting ready to turn in proposals for two paranormal romances. I know several authors who write different genres under different names and also some who write different genres under the same name.

I have no idea what I should do :D

Do you have a preference? If you had a favorite author who wrote Genre A, and then you did a search to find more Genre A and found Genre B, would you assume they no longer write Genre A and not keep up with their books? Would you try a different genre by an author you like even if it's not one you usually read?

Or does the name not matter at all? My main concern has always been confusion when trying to build my "brand" or for my readers when looking for my books. However, maybe that isn't such a big concern anymore (at least when it comes to searching.) After all, when you search for an author on Amazon or google, it pulls up all their books.

I'm just not sure :) I can see the merits for both using a pen name and keeping everything under my own name. This is a question I've bounced around a lot over the years, but it's something I may have to make a decision on soon and I'm a little stumped :)

If you were to write more than one genre, would you write them under separate names? Why or why not?