So not only am i more serious about completing a book, but wanting something unique. Im wanting something that isnt a carbon copy of everythhing else. Something like a comedy horror for example. A book that can make someone LOL. A type of book with observational humor. Does anyone else feel this way? Im sure somebody can chime in regarding unique / new genre. Or the next big trend.
I think you can do your horror comedy, I can see how this will work, though I don't know how unique it is, Im thinking of movies like ZombieLand or Shaun of the Dead...i dont know if they are based on books though. I think for it to become a new genre it will take some time, I would imagine a long time before it gets going so I wouldn't at this point even focus on that.
John Dies At The End and This Book Is Full Of Spiders are exactly what you're describing. Honestly, neither horror nor comedy are new ideas, and people already laugh at morbid things.
Ill look up christopher moore. Laughing at morbid things may be the direction. Like i said, just brewing some ideas. I havnt came up with a plot yet. Just curious.
Well the trick is do what you like and don't think about trend or genre - either in terms of wanting to fit in or wanting people to copy you. You never know what's going to catch fire and when - but if you're fascinated by a certain POV or combination of genre elements that you can't find in the current market, great. People tend to like things that fall between genre cracks, cut against the grain, or mix elements in novel ways. That's how a lot of trends get created. There's little bits of that in every trend-starting book - whether that's Harry Potter for modern youth literature, Hunger Games for Dystopian, or Gone Girl for Domestic Thrillers. And sometimes there's just a cultural zeitgeist where somebody hits a theme that resonates because it's so different, and then people start copying it. There were a lot of articles recently on the rise of "Dreadpunk" as a subgenre, which really is nothing more than modern horror/dark fantasy books that take most of their cues from Victorian "penny dreadfuls" rather than more modern works of horror. It was a hit, and now lots of people are writing about murders in the gaslight of old London. One thing you can't really do is try to write to whatever you think might blow up as the next trend based on some sort of analytics - that's a recipe for driving yourself crazy. I LOVE analytics, I love watching trends in everything from music to literature to politics - and yes I try to think ahead of the market in terms of what's emerging and what trends will rise and fall. However, if I actually tried to use that to determine what I write, I'd go nuts. What you can do is trust your gut - you're a modern consumer of media, right? You're a writer so I'd certainly hope so. You know what YOU want - and you probably want certain things because you've seen things you like and would love to see pieces of your favorites reassembled differently. Other people of your age and taste probably have similar thoughts, the question then is how to execute skillfully. Personally, I tell my story because it's a story I like, and a story that I feel is missing and needed in the media. I know exactly why it could resonate, but I also know that it could bomb because it might be the wrong time for it. Still, I know that people right now like sci-fi and fantasy - and they also like the Aaron Sorkin/Shonda Rimes workplace ensemble dramas. As a fan of both of those trends myself, I know I WANT an Aaron Sorkin plot set against grade-A futuristic worldbuilding - two of my favorite things together. Hence, I'm writing that story. I'm banking that there are enough people who like both Star Trek and The West Wing to go with me when I write about the internal drama of a cable news channel in 2034. But I could be wrong.
I agree with the Commandante Lemming. Just write about what you love and what inspires you. Don't reinvent the wheel.
Your right Jack, I should practice better punctuation sometimes. Im just using this forum as a debate tool on my many ideas. Im a new with the world of writing and spinning my thoughts.
Hmm, I think that would be something VERY difficult to create, considering different idea's and genres have pretty much all already been written. I would say creating something fresh or from a different sort of perspective within a genre or theme would be an easier task. Maybe writing within a genre or theme and going the opposite way to mainstream techniques (not that I would know how) would be an idea. Perhaps creating a romance with underlying horror themes and a not happily ever after.
I personally don't think that an genre at this point in time is going to original. However, there are always original ideas that people haven't dreamed up yet. I think it is possible to come up with a new way to look at any genre, and that if effect would sort of create its own genre. Like how post-apocalyptic stories have pretty much become their own genre, even though they are really a mixture of other genres. Just play around with the genres and try to find a new way to look at something, and then anything is possible.
The next trend is going to be... Ghosts in space! Actually, if I was inclined to reach so lofty a goal as "creating a new genre," I would write down random genres, words, ideas and tropes on little slips of paper, then mix and match until I found something intriguing.
I had a similar idea recently. What if the mood was very poetic, and a likable narrative? Then suddenly gore happens, such as dismembered bodies. Then continue with previous theme. I have one particular idea like this that needs building.
