Exploring The Different Types of Fiction

EXPLORING THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FICTION
EXPLORING THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FICTION

 Fiction is a general term used to describe an imaginative work of prose, either a
novel, short story, or novella.
 Recently, this definition has been modified to include both nonfiction works that
contain imaginative elements, like Midnight in the Garden Of Good and Evil by
John Berendt (Random House, 1994) and Dutch by Edmund Morris (Random
House, 1999), and novels consisting largely of factual reporting with a patina of
fictionalization, such as Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden (Knopf, 1997).
 However, in the truest sense, a work of fiction is a creation of the writer’s
imagination.
THE TWO MAIN TYPES OF FICTION
Commercial
Literary
COMMERCIAL FICTION
 It attracts a broad audience and may also fall into any subgenre, like
mystery, romance, legal thriller, western, science fiction, and so on.
 For example, The Bridges of Madison County by Robert James Waller
(Warner, 1992) was a hugely successful commercial novel because the
book described the fulfillment of a romantic fantasy that is dear to the
heart of millions of readers. Written in a short, easy-to-read style, the
book was as mesmerizing to 15-year-olds as it was to 100-year-olds
LITERARY FICTION
 It tends to appeal to a smaller, more intellectually adventurous

audience.
 What sets literary fiction apart, however, is the notable qualities it
contains — excellent writing, originality of thought, and style —
that raise it above the level of ordinary written works
MAINSTREAM FICTION
 Mainstream fiction is a general term publishers and booksellers use to describe
both commercial and literary works that depict a daily reality familiar to most
people.
 These books, usually set in the 20th or present-day 21st century, have at their core
a universal theme that attracts a broad audience.
 Mainstream books deal with such myriad topics as family issues, coming of age
initiations, courtroom dramas, career matters, physical and mental disabilities,
social pressures, political intrigue, and more. Regardless of original genre or
category, most of the novels that appear on the bestseller list are considered
mainstream.
GENRES
Suspense/thriller
Mystery
Romance Western
Women’s fiction Horror
Science Young Adult
fiction/fantasy
MYSTERY
 It is a popular genre, boasting a huge established audience. All
mysteries focus on a crime, usually murder.
 The action tends to center on the attempts of a wily detective-type
to solve the crime. The climax usually occurs near the end, in a
leisurely setting where all the elements of the mystery are neatly
assembled for the reader’s convenience. The solution, complete
with surprises, is then delivered to the characters and the reader
alike.
MYSTERY
 It is a popular genre, boasting a huge established audience. All
mysteries focus on a crime, usually murder.
 The action tends to center on the attempts of a wily detective-type to
solve the crime. The climax usually occurs near the end, in a leisurely
setting where all the elements of the mystery are neatly assembled
for the reader’s convenience. The solution, complete with surprises,
is then delivered to the characters and the reader alike.
 Mystery subgenres include spy, detective, and crime stories.
ROMANCE
 It is a huge category aimed at diverting and entertaining women.
 In romance novels, you have elements of fantasy, love, naïveté,
extravagance, adventure, and always the heroic lover overcoming
impossible odds to be with his true love.
having or
showing
 Many romances, especially the gothic romance, have an easy-to- unaffected
simplicity of
nature or
follow formula — a young, inexperienced girl living a somewhat absence of
artificiality;
remote existence is courted or threatened by an evil man and having or

showing a lack
then rescued by a valiant one. of experience,

judgment, or
information
ROMANCE
 Other subgenres include historical, contemporary, fantasy romance,
and romantic suspense.
 If historical detail and settings interest you, try regency or historical
romance.
 If you enjoy a dash of mystery or intrigue, then romantic suspense
novels are for you.
 However, if you’re interested in more modern stories with sexual
candor, then consider a contemporary romance.
WOMEN’S FICTION
 Chicklit
 It’s common knowledge in the publishing industry that women
constitute the biggest book-buying segment.
 So, it’s certainly no accident that most mainstream as well as genre
fiction is popular among women.
 For that reason, publishers and booksellers have identified a
category within the mainstream that they classify as Women’s
Fiction.
WOMEN’S FICTION
 From a writer’s perspective, some key characteristics of

these books include a focus on relationships, one or
more strong female protagonists, women triumphing
over unbearable circumstances, and the experiences of
women unified in some way.
SCIENCE FICTION/FANTASY
 Science fiction/fantasy novels depict distant worlds
and futuristic technologies that whirl readers far away
from the here and now and yet provoke contemplation
of contemporary issues.
Imaginative, thoughtful, and other-worldly, this robust
category is made even more popular by the Star Wars
and Star Trek series.
SUSPENSE/THRILLER
 Suspense novels and thrillers are tense, exciting, often sensational
works with ingenious plotting, swift action, and continuous suspense.
In this genre, a writer’s objective is to deliver a story with sustained
tension, surprise, and a constant sense of impending doom that
propels the reader forward.
Unlike mysteries, thrillers are dominated by action in which physical
threat is a constant companion, and a hero (James Bond, for example)
is pitted against a nefarious villain.
WESTERN
 Known simply as westerns, these novels about life on America’s
post-Civil War western frontier usually involve conflicts between
cowboys and outlaws, cowboys and Native Americans, or
Easterners and Westerners.
 While this category still has a mass-market audience and a thriving

regional market, it’s not the popular genre it was 25 years ago.
HORROR
Filled with gut-wrenching fear, this popular genre keeps
readers turning the blood-filled pages.
From a writer’s perspective, the defining characteristic
is the intention to frighten readers by exploiting their
fears, both conscious and subconscious: fears of
supernatural forces, madness, death, dismemberment,
and other terrifying notions.
YOUNG ADULT
This genre includes any type of novel with a protagonist in the
12 to 16 age range that speaks to the concerns of teenagers.
Currently, J.K. Rowling and her amazing Harry Potter
(Scholastic Press) books are dominating the field. Rowling’s
accomplishment — a truly universal story, brimming with
magic and fantasy as well as likable characters that readers
identify with — is an amazing feat
SPECULATIVE FICTION
It is a broad category of fiction encompassing genres
with certain elements that are nonexistent in terms of
reality, recorded history, or nature and the present
universe, covering various themes in the context of the
supernatural, futuristic, and many other imaginative
topics.
SPECULATIVE FICTION
SPECULATIVE FICTION
Dystopian fiction: stories about societies deemed problematic within the world of
the novel, often satirizing government rules, poverty, and oppression.
Apocalyptic fiction: stories that take place before and during a huge disaster that
wipes out a significant portion of the world’s population. The stories center
around characters doing everything they can to stay alive—for example, running
from zombies or trying to avoid a deadly plague.
Post-apocalyptic fiction: stories that take place after an apocalyptic event and
focus on the survivors figuring out how to navigate their new circumstances—for
example, emerging after a global nuclear holocaust or surviving a total
breakdown of society.

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EXPLORING THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FICTION

EXPLORING THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FICTION

 It tends to appeal to a smaller, more intellectually adventurous

remote existence is courted or threatened by an evil man and having or

then rescued by a valiant one. of experience,

 From a writer’s perspective, some key characteristics of

 While this category still has a mass-market audience and a thriving

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