The Dilemma With Writing a Multi-Genre Book

When Kirkus Reviews said that perhaps my greatest feat in writing Light Riders and the Morenci Mine Murder was “an effective multi-genre approach of murder, mystery, sci-fi and …western,” I was overjoyed! Someone got it! Not all books can be pigeonholed into one category. But that’s not how agents and booksellers see it. And there’s the dilemma. My last conversation with an agent went something like this:

“Just tell me one thing – Where are you going to shelve it?”

“Fiction. Young adult fiction.”

“No, no, no. That’s too broad. I would suggest it be placed in science fiction and that’s the category it should carry.”

“But it’s not really science fiction. Okay, yes, there’s the time travel thing. My characters use Snell’s Laws of Refraction for time travel, but that only gets them someplace. Then they either have to solve a mystery or a murder, or a puzzle or-----”

“Stop right there. It’s still science fiction. Strange planets, weird universes, and all of that.”

“Actually, it’s more like historical fiction. My characters never leave earth. They just go back in time. Back to 1930’s Arizona. Everything I wrote was historically accurate. You can’t imagine the research I did.”

“Doesn’t matter. Once you’ve got that time travel thing, it’s sci-fi.”

“But what about the mystery part? I introduce and develop all those key elements. You know…the ticking clock, one step forward and two steps back, foreshadowing, withholding information, and of course the cliffhangers. It wouldn’t be suspense without the cliffhangers.”

“Still doesn’t matter.”

“But what about the western element? The book practically screams “Western.”

“It’s not screaming loud enough. I don’t care if it has a stampede, a barroom, and dangerous outlaws running about.”

I had to admit, I was stuck. And not just with this novel, with all of my novels; since every one of them is a blend of historical and science fiction. I still say the book belongs in fiction and leave it at that. But I’m new to this business and frankly, if someone wants to sell my books, I would be ecstatic no matter where they place them. But maybe the time has come for a new section – Multi-Genre. I’m sure I’m not the only author in this predicament.   

In the meantime, sci-fi is looking pretty good!