Thursday, October 17, 2019

What Do You Write? by Marilyn Levinson

There are many ways of categorizing the various forms of writing. Writing can be divided into prose and poetry; fiction and nonfiction; into genres like mystery, sci-fi, and romance; into subgenres such as mystery's cozies and thrillers.

Like almost every other Writers Who Kill blogger, I write mysteries. These days, cozy mysteries with a touch of the paranormal. I also write novels for kids, the occasional romantic suspense, and if I go back far enough—short stories.

Many of us write more than one type of fiction. Best-seller Nora Roberts, probably the best known romance writer, also writes futuristic suspense as J. D. Robb. Closer to home, this is evident among my friends and fellow mystery writers. Daryl Gerber writes cozies and novels of suspense. Kaye George and Debra Goldstein are probably as well known for their short stories as their mysteries.

I think we write in various genres because we're creative beings and find that different types of stories require different genres. Though I've included ghosts and witches in some of my books, I must admit I was surprised when I found myself writing a YA horror—The Devil's Pawn. But a long time ago I learned to allow my thoughts to play themselves out so I could decide if they'd make a good story.

Though we're all fiction writers, we also do a good deal of so-called "non-fiction" writing. Think of how much, we as writers produce in the service of promoting our books and our "brand." (I think I'm beginning to hate that word.) We write blog posts (which are often essays), articles on writing, book reviews, interviews for fellow writers, answer interview questions, write blurbs, flap copy, bios, letters to editors and letters to agents to name a few. Some, like Nancy Cohen, write books on writing and cook books. And I'm not even mentioning all of the support we give one another on Facebook, Messaging, via email and other electronic devices.

Regardless of the type or genre, we sure spend a lot of time writing!

4 comments:

  1. We do spend a lot of time writing! I was surprised that you've also done YA paranormal with Devi's Pawn. Is that written under Marilyn Levinson?

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  2. Yes. Untll recently, I'd written all of my books under my own name. I gave a good deal of thought to the fact that I'd be using it for various genres, but I believe one's name is one's brand. I only use a pseudonym for the Haunted Library series, and that was at the request of my publisher.

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  3. Writing is a big part of what we do; it's an important part of who we are.

    Even when we're not writing, we are often evaluating situations around us for material, and running writing sequences in our heads.

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  4. So true. A writer never stops writing.

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