Exploring Genres - Collaborative Writing

by Jeanette O'Hagan

We often imagine writing as a solitary pursuit - the writer huddles alone in his or her attic, putting words on paper (or computer file) with a big do-not-disturb sign on the door.

In fact, while there are long stretches when writing requires peace or at least lack of interruptions, producing a book most often calls for a team of people from critique partners, beta-readers, editors, proof-readers, graphic artists, formatters, publishers, booksellers, and publicists.

But there is another way, that writers can collaborate and that is in the actual writing itself in collaborative works. There are in fact quite a range of opportunities.

Types of Collaborative Writing

Ghost Writing

In ghost writing, an experienced and capable writer is employed or invited to write a story on behalf of someone else, often a celebrity or someone with a unique and fascinating story or both. This is most often done with memoirs, but can happen with fiction. In many cases the ghost writer is paid and his or her name does not appear on the cover or may appear but in a secondary fashion (eg Deva Star with Jane Smith).

Jeanette Grant-Thomson has done some ghost-writing, in addition to her own fiction and non-fiction.  For instance, Healing Song was co-written in connection with Merrilyn Billing and tells Merrilyn's story.

Illustrators

In picture books particularly, the illustrator contributes as much to the story as the writer. There are many wonderful examples of this synergy between image and word such as Wombat Books' Same by Katrina Roe and Jemima Trappel, Can God See Me by Penny Reeve and Shannon Melville, Do You Remember? co-written by Kelly O'Gara and Anna McNeil, and illustrated by Kelly O'Gara.

Though I do confess a particular affection for Colourful Memories, written by Catherine Bauer and illustrated by my daughter, Kathleen O'Hagan.

Partnerships

In some cases, a more established well known writer might partner with a newer writer with fresh ideas.

In other cases, two or more writers may combine together to write the one book or series of books.  In fiction, each writer may be the primary writer for one of the main characters.  Of course, the writers need to agree on a range of things like settings, the plot, the subject, the themes, characters etc and may need to write the other writer/s character in their own character's scenes.

Meredith Resce, Rose Dee, Paula Vince and Amanda Deed worked together to write The Greenfield Legacy together, each one writing one of the characters to produce a great story about the legacy of past decisions.

Anthologies

In anthologies, authors can contribute short stories and/or poems that may centre of a theme or subject matter, or genre, or setting.

Glimpses of Light (published in 2015, the International Year of Light and edited by myself and Nola Passmore), includes a range of short stories, non-fiction pieces, flash fiction and poems on the theme of light. Contributions were from both new and more established writers, including Jo-Anne Berthelsen, Jo Wanmer, Adele Jones, Lynne Stringer, Nola Passmore, Adam Collings, Paula Vince, Anusha Atukorala, Ellen Carr, Jeanette Grant-Thomson and others.

The science fiction and fantasy anthology, Medieval Mars, has stories set in a futuristic Mars conceived by Travis Perry, that is a Mars that has been terraformed, settled and then regressed to a medieval level of technology. Each story is set in different spots in the world and written by different authors, including Adam Colling's Lynessa's Curse. The stories were published both as the collection Medieval Mars and individually as short stories by the authors.

Book Bundles

In book bundles, multiple authors contribute their books (either full length novels or novellas) usually of similar genre, theme, or setting.

Narelle mentioned some romance book bundles in the November genre post.

I've participated in two - On the Horizon - which involved 22 authors writing sci-fi & fantasy set in low technology worlds. Akrad's Children was included in this and the aim was for volume of sales over a short period. Over 900 copies were sold over the three month period the bundle was available.  The boxed set continued in an altered form in Limited Horizon - with 12 Fantasy and Science Fiction Novels, Novellas, and Short Stories from 12 authors, including my Heart of the Mountain. Many of the authors in this series are secular, but write in the same or similar genres to me.

Book Series

This year, I was part of a group planning on writing a series of full length novels set in the same world. Initially we had maybe 10-12 people involved. Three or four of the authors got together and formed a premise, setting and timeline of the world. I wasn't initially that keen on some of the elements, but after much thought, come up with a premise for a storyline that fitted into the world & which I liked.

We set up a calendar of publication for 2019 on a monthly basis (I had May), with the idea that each author would bring out a novel set in the world (and consistent with each other's works). We started with a lot of enthusiasm and I was quite excited about the idea though I had other writing projects to finish before I could get started.

Then over time, one by one, people began dropping out for various reasons. Much to my disappointment, the main organisers decided to pull the plug on the project. I have still got my plot synopsis, which maybe one day I will write.

I think multi-author book series a great concept and would love have another attempt at something like this (novel or novella) again, hopefully with better success.

It has been done. Again, Narelle mentioned the Tuscan Legacy book series, romance novels with a common setting and plot thread.  There's also the Jane Austen project - in which various well established authors were invited to write modern adaptations of the different Jane Austen novels in a contemporary setting.

Pros and Cons

Advantages

Writing in partnership with other writers may spark imagination and creative energy. It may draw on the strengths of each writer and add depth to characterisation or setting. Plus it builds in feedback and editing on each other's writing.

Sometimes the more established writer/s brings visibility and connection with a larger fan base while the newer, up and coming author can bring new ideas and inspiration and a freshness to the stories or a particular insight (if, say from a particular demographic or culture).

In much collaborative writing, authors can be introduced to the fans of the other authors. While readers, attracted by an author they know and love, may discover new authors with similar writing styles, themes or genres.

Different forms of collaborative writing often enables authors to pool or share marketing efforts, thus allowing a bigger splash or more impact per buck.

Disadvantages

With partnerships, the partners may have different understandings of what needs to happen or want the story to go in different directions. So there is a potential for disagreement which may derail the project.

Logistics may be a problem; for instance, finding the time to plan, to share segments for feedback or  different writers may write at different paces etc. Finances, copyright, royalties, costs must all be worked through and agreed upon and then held to.

The bigger the group, perhaps the more likelihood that either the project may take a long time or fall apart altogether.



There are pitfalls to consider in collaborative writing, but such projects can be both fun and worthwhile.

Have you ever been involved in such a project or considered doing so? What advantages and disadvantages did you find? Would you do it again?




*****

Jeanette started spinning tales in the world of Nardva at the age of eight or nine. She enjoys writing secondary world fiction, poetry, blogging and editing.

Her Nardvan stories span continents, time and cultures. They involve a mixture of courtly intrigue, adventure, romance and/or shapeshifters and magic users.

She has published numerous short stories, poems, two novellas and her debut novel, Akrad's Children and Ruhanna's Flight and other stories.

Her latest release, Stone of the Sea (the third novella) is now available. .


Subscribe (here) to Jeanette's monthly email newsletter for the latest on cover reveals, new releases, giveways, and receive the short story Ruhanna's Flight for free.

You can also find her on:

Facebook |Jeanette O'Hagan Writes | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

Collaborative writing, ACW-CWD Crosspost, exploring genre, Jeanette O'Hagan, Book Bundles, collaborative book series, ghost writing, co-writing,

Exploring Genre: Steam Punk and Gaslight

by Alison Stegert

Historical Fantasy Sub-Genres: Gaslamp and Steampunk

Gaslamp (Gaslight) fantasy and steampunk are atmospheric sub-genres of fantasy that exploit historical features and foibles of the 19^th century, particularly in Britain and its colonies.

A Bit of Background…

The European Enlightenment of the 17^th and 18^th centuries exalted Reason above all else, a focus that both ignited scientific enquiry and spawned revolutions. At the same time, the Enlightenment calcified the imagination. Two centuries of constrictive rationality created a hankering for escape and a hunger for whimsy. In other words, at the turn of the 19th century, the world was ripe for fantasy.

The Nineteenth Century

Welcome to the Romantic Era, the age of sturm und drang—intense emotion, when fairies flitted in gardens and mad scientists cooked up monsters during electrical storms. This shift of focus to emotions and intuition, myth and magic provided fodder for creatives of all types, not least writers.

The 19^th century in England was a time of incredible social change. Starting in Great Britain, the Industrial Revolution (1780 – 1840) heralded a new urban lifestyle, featuring a working class, advances in trade and business, and the mechanical manufacturing. The power of steam was harnessed for transport, textiles, iron production.

The Royal Circus

A series of formidable monarchs ruled during the 19^th century. George III’s chronic illness and mental health issues came to a head when his youngest daughter Amelia died in 1811. His intense grieve left him unfit to rule, so his son, the Prince of Wales, ruled as regent from 1811 - 1820 (aka, The Regency Period).

The Prince Regent made a right royal mess of things, running up debts, flagrantly spending, and generally behaving immorally. Upon his father’s death in 1820, he was crowned King George IV, dying ten years later after a prolonged illness.

His brother William IV took over, ruling for seven years, during which he did not produce a legitimate heir. His niece Alexandrina was next in line, ruling as Queen Victoria from 1837 to 1901. The British Empire grew during her long reign, and she, dour and indomitable, left an indelible mark on history.

Her son succeeded her, reigning from 1901 to 1910 as King Edward VII.

Historical Fantasy Genres

Both gaslamp/gaslight and steampunk occupy the above piece of historical real estate, Regency to Edwardian eras, but they use the space differently.

Gaslamp (or Gaslight)

Gaslamp fantasy is historical fantasy with magical possibilities. The setting is usually Regency, Victorian or Edwardian, and usually it’s placed in Britain or its (former) colonies. The name refers to the ambiance created by the gas lamps that lit the streets of the time. The nomenclature derives from the comic series Girl Genius by Kaja Foglio.

Gaslamp Hallmarks

The tropes of gaslamp differ from those of straight fantasy (e.g., Tolkien) or straight Faerie (e.g., MacDonald). Victorian times saw a spike in curiosity about the spiritual world with many people dabbling in seances and other occultic practices. These themes sometimes make their way into gaslamp fantasy. Similarly, there was a resurgence of interest in fairies and other fey creatures and folklore.

Gaslamp explores fantastical possibilities and supernatural elements, time-slip, alternative histories and parallel worlds. Its tone can range from broodingly gothic to ‘swashbucklingly’ adventurous. A librarian from the New York Public Library described gaslamp fantasy as: “Jane Austen or Charles Dickens meets Harry Potter.” It can include mystery, boarding schools, pirates, monsters, spies, and manners.

Classic Gaslamp Examples

The gaslamp classification didn’t exist at the time these works were published, but they fit. Consider:

Peter Pan and Wendy by JM Barrie – Victorian, magic, parallel worlds, magic, mythical and fey characters

Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll – Victorian, magic, portal, time-slip

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens – Victorian, time-slip, ghosts, eerie ambiance

Dracula by Bram Stoker Victorian, mythical character, magic, eerie ambiance

Contemporary Gaslamp Examples

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clark

The Prestige by Christopher Priest

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman (Australian author)

Steampunk

While gaslamp plays up magical possibilities, steampunk emphasises the technological possibilities afforded by 19^th-century advances in steam power. Some argue that this focus on technology pushes it more toward science-fiction than fantasy. Often the technologies are anachronistic, for example, steam-powered robots or androids; or they can be ‘retrofuturistic’, for example, a reimagining of a blimp as a family vehicle or a war machine.

The punk aspect of steampunk refers to the tone of the genre, which can be irreverent, brash and disaffected. There’s a vague or overt sense of dissatisfaction with the state of affairs, often an anachronistic callousness, and sometimes a lack of optimism about the future.

Steampunk is not only a literary genre, it’s also an aesthetic. Costumes and settings are Victorian but amped up, for example, women wearing corsets as daywear or men donning thick goggles as eyewear. Clockwork and steam engines of all sizes and descriptions abound.

Variations on a Theme

Some steampunk incorporates supernatural elements such as vampires, werewolves, and witches. Although usually set in Victorian times and generally in Britain (or its colonies), a strong off-shoot of steampunk is ‘weird west,’ usually a wild west setting with gadgets and horror elements. More recent additions to the steampunk canon include non-British settings and POC protagonists.

Image Credits: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1889_Verne_poster.jpg   

Classic Steampunk Examples

Consider the following works as forerunners to the steampunk genre. Again, the classification of steampunk didn’t exist at the time of these authors, but their works nonetheless fit:

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

The Time Machine by HG Wells

Twenty-thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne

Contemporary Examples of Steampunk

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen by Alan Moore

Leviathan by Scott Westerfield

Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger

The Tremblers by Raquel Byrnes (Christian steampunk)

Maiden of Iron: A Steampunk Fable by Edie Melson (Christian steampunk)

 Other images: Upslpash

Bio

Ali Stegert writes gaslamp fantasy adventure for children. The Temple of Lost Time, book one of The Whitherworld Chronicles trilogy, is currently in submission. Set in London’s theatre district in an alternative 19^th century, cheeky theatre child Toby Fitzroy must find his long-lost father or end up in a notorious Workhouse for Wayward Children. But his search intersects with the dying, magic-addled king’s quest for the time elixirs of the mythical Temple of Lost Time and sends him to another world…

Writing gaslamp fantasy gives Alison a playground in which to indulge in her passion for Victoriana, fairy tales, and history. A former school counsellor, Alison now cares for her elderly father-in-law and writes books for children. She lives near the beach in Australia with her husband and two naughty dogs. Find out more on her blog, Spilling Ink.

Exploring Genre - Crime Mystery

by Donna Fletcher Crow

The Mystery of Writing Mysteries—

Or Why Would an Author Kill Her Characters?

Saint Cuthbert made me do it.

I started out as a romance writer. I wrote wonderful, dreamy stories, historical or contemporary, set in lush locations that I loved researching and then living in in my mind. (Settings have always been one of the most important story elements to me.) I published several books and even won a few awards. Then one day I realized I couldn’t read another romance.

If you can’t read them, you can’t write them. So I concentrated on my lifetime love of English history and wrote a number of historical novels, including my Arthurian epic Glastonbury, The Novel of Christian England, still my best-known work.

Then I met Saint Cuthbert. Not in any mystical sense, but the way I meet most of my characters: researching another project. At Durham Cathedral I heard the story of this soldier-turned-monk who transformed the north of England by his holiness. I knew I wanted to tell his story. But what could I do with a character whose claim to fame was his sanctity?

My greatest challenge in writing had always been plotting. My family knew my struggles so well that when my writing flagged, my young daughter would say, “Mama, you don’t have enough conflict.” I seldom did. I had once mentioned my struggle to an editor who advised, “You need to read thrillers.” He promptly sent me a box of mystery novels he edited. I was hooked.

My love of history took me back to the Golden Age. I devoured Dorothy L. Sayers, Josephine Tey, Margery Allingham and, of course, Agatha Christie. I saw that mystery writing incorporated not only the rich backgrounds and alive characters that I loved, but also kept me involved with that all-important strong story question that must be developed early in the story and solved at the end.

That was it—what I needed for Saint Cuthbert was a story question strong enough to keep the pages turning. I needed to involve my reader with strong characters in interesting settings so they would care enough about what was happening to be willing to read about an ancient saint whose beliefs are still valid for our day and can transform our world as they did his own.

The Monastery Murders were born. I had understood the story question idea from the early days of my writing—I had some great teachers, especially Lee Roddy. But I had never applied the story question principle with blood before. Let’s face it—nothing keeps the pages turning like a dead body.

In this third permutation of my writing career I author three mystery series: The Lord Danvers Investigates, Victorian true-crime mysteries; The Elizabeth and Richard Literary Suspense series; and The Monastery Murders. In each of these I try to develop the rich backgrounds, vital characters and historical elements that have always driven my writing, but now I also concentrate on keeping the story question moving forward to what I hope will be a satisfyingly surprising conclusion.

Once I plant my story question—which may or may not be an explicit query followed by a question mark, but must raise a question in the reader’s mind—I then develop my chapters by focusing on small elements of the over-arching question. A clue or red herring leads my sleuths (in my books, all amateurs) to explorations, evaluations and then a new question to be explored in the next chapter. This is a mystery-writing application of the classic scene and sequel structure which I discovered many years ago in the classic Techniques of the Selling Writer by Dwight V. Swain. I highly recommend it—there’s nothing better for understanding the bones of fiction writing.

This question and answer method, which I first applied to A Very Private Grave, Saint Cuthbert’s story,  has carried me through the writing of  fourteen more mystery novels. I’ve never been bored for a minute—and I hope my readers haven’t either.

Donna Fletcher Crow is passionate about English history and loves telling the stories of the men and women who have shaped the world we live in. She is the author of some 50 books--all available on her website along with pictures from her research trips--something else she is passionate about. Her newest release is A Lethal Spectre, Lord Danvers Investigates 

CWD & ACW - What's The Difference?

By Jeanette O'Hagan and Narelle Atkins | @JeanetteOHagan @NarelleAtkins

Happy New Year and welcome to 2018!

We’re looking forward to showcasing the writing from Christian writers in Australia, New Zealand and the wider Australasian region on our group blogs this year.

On the first Monday of each month we share a cross-post on the Australasian Christian Writers (ACW) and Christian Writers Downunder (CWD) group blogs.

Many of our group members have asked why we have two group blogs for Christian writers in our part of the world.

Today we’re going to answer your questions concerning ACW and CWD and let you know how you can contribute to each of the group blogs.

Question 1. What’s the goal and purpose of ACW?

Narelle: Our overall goal for ACW is to connect writers and readers who enjoy reading a wide range of genres including fiction, non-fiction and children’s books. We're planning a few changes for 2018 to engage with readers more on our blog and in our Facebook group.

Our blog members include Christian writers who are traditionally published, indie published, and aspiring to publish. Some are writing for the Christian market, while others are writing for the general market. Many are targeting the US market, as that is where most readers are based.

Although we focus on supporting writers and readers in Australasia, we welcome international writers and readers on our blog and in our ACW Facebook Group. We actively promote books on our blog and social media, including Facebook, Twitter @ACWriters and Pinterest.

Question 2. What’s the goal and purpose of CWD?

Jeanette: Christian Writers Dowunder is aimed at Christians writers (and those associated with writing field, e.g. editors, illustrators, reviewers and publishers) who live in or are from Australasia. We aim to provide a safe and encouraging place for Australasian Christians who write – whether they are taking their first baby steps on their journey as a writer or have been travelling this road for some time – to ask questions, celebrate milestones (new releases, awards, or finishing a first draft), interact, pray, encourage, help and inspire each other. 

We encourage mutual support through social media and other means. We have a CWD Facebook Group, Blog and Twitter list. In the past we published an anthology with contributions from members, Glimpses of Light. Like ACW we are also an affiliate of Omega Writers.

Question 3. Who can join the CWD Facebook Group?

Jeanette: 

Christian writers – whether just starting out or veteran, whether writing non-fiction or fiction, poetry or blogs, whether published or unpublished, whether aiming for the Christian or general market or both, and also Christians associated with writing – editors, illustrators, publishers, reviewers. We encourage our members to share their milestones and new releases, but discourage spamming the page or being argumentative or disrespectful to others.

While we will accept applications from Christian writers from outside the Australasian area, if they have an active friend in CWD or a trusted recommendation, our primary focus is ‘Downunder’.

Question 4. Who can join the ACW Facebook Group?

Narelle: We welcome writers and readers from around the world in our Facebook Group.

We have group etiquette guidelines regarding self promotion by authors in our Facebook Group, particularly that we don’t allow promotion of books published by vanity presses.

Question 5. How can you contribute to the ACW blog?

Narelle: We post five days per week, Monday-Friday, and we set up our ACW blog calendar many months in advance. We will start organising the May-August 2018 blog calendar in early March.

I encourage all writers who are interested in contributing blog posts to join the ACW Facebook Group. Blogging opportunities will arise from time to time which we’ll post in the Facebook Group.

Please contact either myself, Iola Goulton or Jenny Blake if you’re interested in guest blogging on ACW.

We share new book releases on the ACW blog. In 2018 we’ll post New Releases on the second Monday each month. We collect new release book information in the ACW Facebook Group.

Question 6. How can you contribute to the CWD blog?

Jeanette: 

CWD generally posts inspirational blog posts related to writing (inspirational, craft posts, the writing and publication journey, short fiction and poems, conferences and events, and also new releases or member achievements) on Mondays and Thursdays. Our blog team are highlighted on the blogsite with images and a short bio.

In 2018, we are looking at some tweaking of this—with Mondays continuing our current content, with writing related and inspired blogs and Thursdays as a series of ‘Meet our Members’ interviews. We may also have occasional writing-craft series.

From time to time, we do have opening on our CWD blog team. If you are a CWD member and are interested in guest blogging for us, please contact myself or email. We also value comments on the blogsite as this encourages our bloggers.

Question 7. How do you see CWD and ACW as groups that complement each other and also connect with Omega Writers Inc.?

Jeanette: 

All three groups have historic connections and many members in common, with some different emphases. It’s been a delight to see the groups working together with strong connections and support between the administrative teams.

CWD aspires to provide an encouraging faith community for writers in which questions can be asked, achievements celebrated, and their books or other publications highlighted. We value interaction and mutual support between members.

Both CWD and ACW do not have a paid membership or financial backing, and are primarily active on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Blogsites).

Omega Writers’ paid membership and structure enables it to have local writing groups and to provide workshops, Book Fairs, the annual Writers Conference, and the CALEB prize. Omega Writers has made an enormous contribution of writers in the Australasian region and we would encourage you to become a paid member (it’s not exorbitant & has benefits), join a local chapter in your area, and/or one of the focused FB groups.

Narelle: ACW strives to promote and market books by Australasian authors. We want to share our love of books with readers and provide posts that will interest readers.

Our blog calendar is structured to include educational posts that support writers with relevant information on writing craft, publishing and book marketing.

We share a quarterly blog post with CWD from Omega Writers and encourage our members who live in Australasia to join Omega Writers.

Omega Writers offer many benefits for writers that aren’t available in ACW, including writing chapters with online and in-person meetings, writing contests for published and unpublished writers, critique groups, writing retreats and an annual writing conference.

We support Omega Writers in their goal to promote Australasian authors and books to the wider reading community.

__________________________________

Do you have any other questions regarding CWD or ACW?

Jeanette and Narelle are more than happy to answer your questions in the blog comments on both blogs and discuss how you can become more involved in our vibrant Christian writing community in 2018.

Exploring Genre 2017

by Jeanette O'Hagan

This year, the cross posts between Christian Writers Downunder and Australasian Christian Writers are focusing on genre. I've found it an interesting series and some more in depth look at different sub-genres in more depth. So just to recap -

Why Genre?

Iola Goulton started off the year asking the question - why genre?  She reminded us that genre's are useful for managing reader expectations and in helping to target promotion and marketing.

Then over the next several months we've looked at specific subgenres - or some broader categories - in fiction, non-fiction and poetry.

Fiction

Fiction has a number of broad categories such as romance, speculative fiction (science fiction and fantasy), crime and detective fiction, historical dramas, thrillers, military, women's fiction and literary - among others.  Fiction can also be aimed at children (picture books, chapter books, middle-grade), young adult (teens), new adults (teen-early twenties) or adults.

Romance

While romance can often be a subplot or theme in a range of other genres, in category romance the focus is on the relationship and the obstacles to a romantic relationship between the hero and heroine or romantic couple.  Category romance is hugely popular and generally has some firm expectations. It can also range from sweet to steamy (or blend into erotica, which is really another category).

There are a wide range of sub-genres with romance.

Carolyn Miller introduced us to historical romance (romance set before the present day) and in particular regency romance - romance inspired by Jane Austen and set in or around the regency period - eg. early 19th century.  You can find her delightful post here.

Nicky Edwards took us on a tour of rural romance (set in the country) and medical romance (with nurses or doctors as protagonists and which includes medical drama), usually set in contemporary times. You can read more here.

Speculative Fiction

Speculative Fiction images a different reality - whether that be a variation of earth as we know it or different world altogether. It is generally divided into Science Fiction (where science or a imagined science explains the world) or Fantasy (in which a non-scientific - often super-natural - explanation is given), though these can cross-overs such as science fantasy and mixtures. There is easily over 100 sub-genres within this field - including crazy mash-ups like gaslamp fantasy or weird west.

Adam Collings  introduced us to Space Opera - epic Science Fiction set in space with a focus more on the story than a detailed or hard science - think Star Trek or Doctor Who.  And, also the Superhero sub-genre which can used a scientific (Superman) or a supernatural (eg Thor) explanation for the special powers.  Read more here.

Jeanette O'Hagan introduced Secondary World and Portal fantasies - both of which are set on an alternative (non-earth) world. In the first the world exists without reference to earth, whereas in the second, the protagonist travels through a door or portal to the other world. Read more here.

Ian Acheson introduced us to Supernatural Fiction - which focuses on supernatural beings such angels, demons and/or ghosts (and is related to paranormal and urban fantasy). It can have a faith or Christina focus or be more 'secular' in its approach. Read more here.

Shorts

We also looked at 'short fiction' from flash to novellas (though it could also be non-fiction). Read more here.

Poetry

Poetry can be non-fiction or fiction, it can be strongly narrative (ballads, for instance) or focus on a moment or a feeling or be metaphorical.

Valerie Volk gave a wonderful introduction to Poetry (here)  while the following week we explored Free Verse (poetry without a set rhyme) and Verse Novels (telling a narrative in verse)  (read more here).

Non-Fiction

And finally, Nola Passmore introduced us to creative non-fiction (and how that differs from reportage). Read more here.


It can be tempting to see genre as a straitjacket or a way of pigeon-holing our fiction.  It can be seen as restrictive or reducing writing to formula (the HEA, the red herrings and clues, etc).  Some genres have stricter guidelines  - the category romance, the cozy mystery - while others almost by their nature tend to push the boundaries  or like cross-overs with a meld of different genres (speculative fiction, Young Adult).

Writing within a genre still allows amazing variety and ingenuity, especially when there are so many.

ACW & CWD are thinking of extending this dip into genres and subgenres next year. With that in mind,

Have  your found the series helpful? How?
What did you learn (if anything)?
And are there any particular genres you'd love to find more about?

List of posts (chronological order)

Genre  

Space Opera and Superheroes

Portal Fantasy and Secondary World Fantasy

Poetry

Free Verse and Verse Novels 

Regency and Historical Romance

Rural and Medical Romance

Supernatural Fiction

Short Fiction

Creative Non-Fiction

Spaceship image courtesy of digitalart at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Cover Image Valerie Volk  In Due Season
Other images copyright Jeanette O'Hagan

...............

Jeanette started spinning tales in the world of Nardva at the age of eight or nine. She enjoys writing secondary world fiction, poetry, blogging and editing. Her Nardvan stories span continents, time and cultures. They involve a mixture of courtly intrigue, adventure, romance and/or shapeshifters and magic users. She has published numerous short stories, poems, two novellas and her debut novel, Akrad's Children. Find her on Facebook or at her webpages Jeanette O'Hagan Writes or Jenny's Thread.

Exploring Genre - Supernatural Fiction (A Cross-over post with CWD)

By Ian Acheson

This year, the cross posts between Christian Writers Downunder and Australasian Christian Writers are focusing on genre. So far, we’ve had posts on meeting genre expectations, in Space Opera and Superheroes, Portal Fantasy and Secondary World Fantasy, Poetry, Free Verse and Verse Novels , Regency and Historical Romance and Rural and Medical Romance 

Today I’m looking at the Supernatural Fiction sub-genre and will also reference Speculative Fiction together and Paranormal Fiction.

Supernatural fiction. What is it you ask? Let’s look at a few definitions. 

It is often included in the “speculative” catchall that features in many places, whether it is award programs (eg, ACFW) to certain publishers that focus entirely on novels that “explore the boundaries of the imagination” to borrow from Marcher Lord Press now rebranded Enclave Publishing. We even have a publisher down under in New Zealand that specialises in such fiction: Grace Bridges’ Splashdown Books. 

It’s pleasing to know that the world’s largest Christian publisher, Thomas Nelson, has it’s own supernatural fiction category. It is the home of some of the biggest authors of the genre: Ted Dekker, Jim Rubart and Erin Healy to name just three, all of whom happen to be particular favorities of mine.

Back to the definition. In its most basic form it is simply that the story contains elements that are outside the laws of the physical world. The story typically involves a power that goes beyond natural forces and is attributed to a god or deity. The ghost story is the archetypal supernatural story. However, some commentators would treat a ghost story as “paranormal fiction.” There’s a big overlap in all these genres and sub-genres of weirdness. Angels and demons fit in the supernatural while vampires, werewolves, zombies are probably classified as paranormal. Paranormal would also include extraterrestrial life (think ET, Independence Day), UFOs, etc.

In the past decade or so we’ve seen an explosion in secular artforms showcasing all this weirdness. Whether it’s the Twilight novels and movies to The Walking Dead graphic novels and TV series plus the many spin-offs where other worlds are portrayed that typically collide with our physical world in the shape of creatures including vampires, fairies, werewolves, zombies and such like.

Increasingly we’re finding Christian authors are exploring some of these boundaries with an uptake in horror novels and even the undead. I don’t read such novels but having spoken to readers who do, they have indicated these stories explore how God triumphs over Satan in his various evil guises.

Supernatural Faith

Our faith is a supernatural one. We believe in God who exists outside of our physical world. The Bible is a supernatural book and we’re participants in a spiritual war whether we like it or not. There is another world that exists all around us. In fact, it continually intersects with what we experience with our five senses. It is in the intersection where supernatural fiction typically resides. 

I think we’d all be familiar with Frank Peretti’s Darkness duo of novels (“This Present Darkness” and “Piercing the Darkness”) that had such an influence over our generation of Christian readers. Certainly there were other novels before Peretti that portrayed supernatural themes but these two are famous for their demonstration of a parallel world of angels and demons being influenced and influencing what occurs in the physical world.

When I chat with readers who are passionate about such novels, I find three recurring themes.

1. An interest in the unfamiliar

This is perhaps a key difference to romance novels where certain underlying central themes can be familiar to the reader. Spiritual warfare, a particular personal area of interest, is often not something we hear or read much about. It’s rarely a topic of discussion around the dinner table, catch up with friends nor is it often preached about in some churches.

2. Triumph over evil

Most supernatural novels will feature a strong theme of good versus evil. This can take many forms whether it’s the direct influence of a demon on a human, or villains allowing their fleshly desires to guide their actions. In evil being defeated, the reader is able to witness an expression of God’s incredible love for His creation.

3. Strengthens their faith

This third element can be applied to any genre where we see faithfulness, forgiveness, grace or any number of God’s attributes on display. We close the book with hope in our heart having been reminded of God’s awesomeness.

Writing Christian fiction that’s not preachy is especially challenging. One of the advantages I believe speculative fiction has over other genres is that it is ‘easier’ to introduce a Christian theme by using an otherworldly character, for example, an angel or demon, or a human with a special supernatural gift, or a story that is set on a completely different world/realm/time continuum.

Realm Makers Conference 

Just as the secular world has its Comic Con gigs a group of Christian authors created Realm Makers a few years ago and now host an annual conference. It was recently held in Reno in late July and I understand over 200 people attended to listen to the likes of Dekker, Rubart, Mary Weber and David Farland to name just a few. I’m hoping to get to it next year. 

Recent examples of Supernatural Fiction

I’m always looking for good supernatural and speculation fiction. Craig Parshall’s new Trevor Black Series is a good one that combines the grittiness of crime drama with supernatural suspense. 

I’m a big fan of the Harbinger novella series. It’s now finished having produced 20 novellas written by 5 authors: Bill Myers, Peretti, Angie Hunt, Alton Gansky and Jeff Gerke. Clever story, form of creation and distribution. We’ll see more of this multi-author style of story in the years to come.

If you haven’t sampled any supernatural fiction recently or ever may I encourage you to put a toe in the water. Perhaps start with one of the Darkness novels, which I mentioned above, or one of Jim Rubart’s. Jim’s latest, The Long Journey to Jake Palmer, is superb and was my favourite novel of 2016. You won’t be disappointed and who knows, you may become a convert.

Ian Acheson is an author and strategy consultant based in Sydney. Ian's first novel of speculative fiction, Angelguard, is available in the US, UK, Canada and Australia. Angelguard was recognised with the 2014 Selah Award for Speculative Fiction.You can find more about Angelguard at Ian's website, on his author Facebook page and Twitter

Genre - Exploring Poetry

by Valerie Volk

I grew up with a father whose simple philosophy was expressed (often!) in verse quotations:

Life is mainly froth and bubble;

Two things stand like stone,

Kindness in another’s trouble,

Courage in your own.

From Adam Lindsay Gordon to Longfellow:

Life is real! Life is earnest!
And the grave is not its goal;
Dust thou art, to dust returnest,
Was not spoken of the soul.”

These were my father’s creeds  - but he would never have classified himself as a lover of poetry. How intriguing that lines of verse expressed best the values that were so important to him!

Why does the word ‘poetry’ set up barriers?

Two preliminary thoughts spring immediately to my mind, and they are both significant. One is the poignant moment when I stood in an Adelaide bookstore and watched people pick up my just-released verse novel Passion Play – only to put it down immediately saying “Oh, it’s poetry ...”

The second, equally sad, comes in that very popular 1989 film, Dead Poets Society,  where before the advent of the charismatic Mr Keating, a poetry lesson consists of the dreary reading aloud of chapter one of a ponderous tome on the topic “What is poetry?”

Perhaps this second thought explains the first. Too many schoolrooms where the study of poetry has been a soulless dragging through besmirched classics with a relentless analysis of rhyme, rhythm, symbolism, similes and metaphors  -  and let’s not forget alliteration, assonance and onomatopoeia – these have been the breeding ground for a general automatic response: “Poetry is hard work!”

But prose writing is relatively recent!

“Too hard’ is a sad reaction, because poetry has been throughout the centuries the instinctive response of people (not just that breed we call ‘poets’) to an experience that they wish to communicate as vividly as possible to others. It’s interesting to recall that novel writing, prose fiction, any of the non-poetic genres of today, are comparative newcomers on the scene, only a few centuries old, where poetry was the natural form of expression for thousands of years.

In ages before people could read and write, audiences in the great halls of castles, gatherings around camp fires, villagers welcoming travelling minstrels, fair ladies being wooed by optimistic troubadours, all were being entranced and entertained by poetry. What did it offer them?

Certainly, for the pre-literate ages the use of verse made communication much easier. The epic poems, the sagas of a heroic age, depended heavily on the devices and techniques that made the oral traditional tales easy to listen to and to remember. Rhyme and rhythm were important as an aid to understanding and literary devices such as assonance, with its repetition of vowel sounds, and alliteration, with its use of repeated consonants, were there not to be clever or ‘poetic’ but to get right into the hearer’s consciousness and memory. So still today works like Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, the Anglo-Saxon Beowulf, Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, Milton’s Paradise Lost, Shakespeare’s plays are part of our literary heritage, all of them in verse.

So what does poetry offer us today?

Here we come to the crux of it: what really does poetry offer? It provides the opportunity to capture experiences, emotions, ideas in a more precise and meaningful way, for this is what poets of all ages have wanted to do: to communicate at the deepest level with readers in ways that make their words a shared experience, and one to remember. Poets want to open our eyes to see things in a new way, whether it’s Wordsworth standing on London Bridge on a fresh new morning, a sight so touching in its majesty, or Shelley, listening to a skylark, and marveling at its unpremeditated art, or Wilfred Owen, bringing home to us the horrors of World War One, with its returning soldiers bent double, like old beggars under sacks, knock-kneed, coughing like hags.

Difficult? No. The fact that poetry has been, traditionally, broken into lines seems to make casual viewers think that some special initiation into this art form is needed. Yet the line divisions in fact give us the chance to pause, hesitate, feel the emphasis on words in a way that allows them to carry special weight and power. Similarly, the language use in poetry is often richer and more flexible than that in everyday speech. Again, it heightens our responses. The potential of even standard devices, such as alliteration, is recognized in today’s advertising world – how many product jingles depend on alliteration! Try watching commercial television with an ear to this, and you’ll swiftly see its value in making an impact.

We read poetry to be moved and challenged to see the world in new ways. When Hopkins writes The world is charged with the grandeur of God we catch our breath with the sudden shock of his words – and that’s exactly what he wants.

This one line actually crystallizes what I’m saying. Take that word ‘charged.’ In a single word it opens so many thoughts, from the sense of electric vitality and force with which God created the world to the responsibilities we are charged with as custodians of the earth. It would take prose several paragraphs at least to explore these ideas, but in the succinctness of poetry they are evoked with one word. That is poetry’s potential.

But what we are talking about with this term poetry anyway?

Let’s move away from the blanket definitions, like Coleridge’s famous ‘the best words in the best order.’ It’s not a genre in itself, but almost needs a series of discussions on the various types of poetic genres: epic poetry, narrative poetry, descriptive poetry, lyric poetry with odes and idylls, dramatic poetry and the dramatic monologue, didactic poetry with its focus on teaching a lesson, satirical and humorous verse, specific forms such villanelles, sestinas,  triolets, rondels, ballads and sonnets, foreign forms like haiku, tanka and cinquain. What about song lyrics or rap poems? Poets can write in strict rhymed forms with lines that follow a huge variety of patterns, or they can choose unrhymed forms such as blank verse or the even more open free verse. Or further still these days, prose poetry, where it is only the heightened language use and phrasing that makes the classification ‘poetry’ possible.

Why do I write poetry?

I write poetry because I want to share as intensely as possible a scene, a person, an idea, that has been important to me, and I try to communicate this by calling on all that poetry makes possible. I try very hard to overcome the threatening reputation this genre so unfairly has acquired.

What makes me happy is when someone reads my work and says: “I’ve never read poetry, but you know, I could understand that. It really didn’t seem like poetry.”

I like to think my Dad would have felt the same. And I’m intrigued by the realization that many of the important ethical lessons he taught me I recall easily because they are expressed in poetry.

This blogpost was also published on Christian Writers Downunder 

**************

Meet Valerie Volk:

As a seven-year-old I wrote embarrassingly bad fairy stories. Now, many decades later, I’m still writing  ... but I hope there’s been improvement. In between, there have been years as an academic, a researcher and an education program director in three Australian states –  but at last I’m a full-time writer with awards for both poems and short stories, which are to be found in journals, anthologies and magazines.

My first published collection, In Due Season, won the national Omega Writers CALEB Poetry Prize in 2010. The following year produced A Promise of Peaches, a verse novel, (Ginninderra Press), while my third book, Even Grimmer Tales, (Interactive Publications) is a dark and wickedly funny modern take on Grimms Tales, but, as the sub-title warns, definitely ‘not for the faint-hearted.’ My fourth book, Passion Play, an extended verse novel (Wakefield Press), is a modern reincarnation of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, with the medieval pilgrims replaced by twenty-first century characters travelling to the famous Passion Play at Oberammergau. Next came two shorter collections of verse, Flowers & Forebears and Indochina Days, while 2015 brought a Biblical fiction prose work, Bystanders, (Wakefield Press) and 2017 will launch Of Llamas and Piranhas, South American poems.

My main interests, apart from writing, are reading (especially crime fiction), film and theatre going, music, and food - both cooking and (as a lover of good restaurants) eating. I’m an enthusiastic traveller, especially overseas, but my focus is always the writer’s first question: What if ...?

Web link:    www.valerievolk.com.au