Gender, Genre, and Morphology

Novelist and freelancer Stuart Sharp recently had to issue an apology for a piece in The Story Hub entitled Talking Sci-Fi Romance in which he postulated that the next big thing in science fiction is Sci-Fi Romance. In the same way that romance writers took to writing Urban Fantasy, eventually forming an entirely new genre of Paranormal Romance, Sharp predicts a similar “invasion” in the sci-fi genre.

His piece set off a minor war. Take author / blogger Foz Meadows’ retort earlier this month at HuffPo in Romance Cooties: Women and Science Fiction, in which she claims Sharp’s article is nothing but “a thinly veiled sexist tract.”

While there’s certainly some utility in distinguishing the differing roles that romance can play in various stories, it’s grossly inaccurate to say that, if the romance has primary status, then nothing else really matters to the narrative — and especially not when you’ve already made the distinction between “real” sci-fi and the romantic kind.

This isn’t the first time gender and genre have collided in the world of sci-fi lit.

While the subject is quite sticky, I must admit I agree more with Meadows than Sharp. No, I’m not a huge fan of Paranormal Romance and Paranormal Fantasy. In fact, I’ve suggested elsewhere, that Paranormal Romance has killed the undead, turning “real” vampires into Chippendale dancers with imposing fangs, er, abs. Nevertheless, it’s also brought an infusion of life via sales, new writers, new readers.

And, ultimately, doesn’t this benefit purists?

Publishers Weekly’s recent report from the annual World Horror Convention touches upon a similar demographic shift. In Horror Convention Questions Horror’s Convention (thanks to Jonathan Ryan for the link), Rose Fox reports:

Times are a-changing at the annual World Horror Convention. Genres are blurring and blending, small presses are popping up like dandelions, and the convention is drawing new attendees, including those in two sought-after demographics: people under 40 and women. (Ethnic diversity was less in evidence.)

“I’ve been coming to World Horror off and on since 2002 and in the last 10 years it’s changed a lot,” said Leah Hultenschmidt, an editor at Sourcebooks who acquires both YA horror and romance for adults. “There are a lot of new faces, a lot of young folks and a lot of new writers I haven’t seen. It used to be you’d see the same people, every single convention, and now I don’t know a lot of these folks—and that’s exciting!” (bold, mine)

So what came first, the “genre blurring and bending,” or the “new faces… young folks and a lot of new writers”? Undoubtedly, this infusion of a new demographic could be threatening to the “old guard.” However, it could also be quite thrilling.

Much of this year’s geeking out was focused on taxonomy, said Christopher C. Payne, president of JournalStone, a relatively new small press focusing on horror and dark fantasy. “The genre of horror seems to be blending more and more into other areas with the term ‘cross-genre’ being thrown about throughout the weekend,” he said. “I heard terms like ‘dark fantasy thriller,’ ‘dark urban fantasy,’ ‘paranormal thriller,’ and ‘paranormal fantasy’ used quite frequently. I personally had a few debates on what horror really was being defined as today versus the definition 10 years ago. What really makes a book horror? It seems to be getting a little vague as more authors cross over into other areas.” (bold, mine)

Apparently, genres morph.

From Bookends blog, literary agent Jessica Faust commented on Women’s Fiction and, in the process, genre-blending itself:

The first thing to understand about genre definitions is that there’s a reason they are so difficult to understand. Genre definitions, like genres themselves, are fluid. They change with the market and with the times. In other words, years ago, there was a very clear line between what was considered romance and what was considered fantasy. Now, not so much. Books that were previously considered strictly fantasy are now finding their way into the romance section at bookstores and vice versa. Which is why I try to encourage authors not to get too hung up on the specifics of a genre. (bold, mine)

This is all quite fascinating. On the one hand, many writers I know like NOT being pigeon-holed, like reading and writing hard-to-define genres, stories that blur the lines. But while Ms. Faust encourages authors “not to get too hung up on the specifics of a genre,” most sales and marketing is concerned with just the opposite. Writers are told to find their audience, which usually means narrowing down demographic realities like gender, age, education, and race.

Then there’s the issue of genre purists.

Are specific genres “ruined” or “subverted” by a new demographic of writer? Is old school science fiction something that needs to be protected against romance writers? Does traditional horror have something to fear from “genre blurring and blending”? Or should every genre be fair game?

There are reasons why young people, females, and ethnic diversity have NOT been amply represented among horror writers. The same could probably said for sci-fi, and why there’s such heated discussion about gendered assessments.

Here’s my theory:

The assimilation of other genres, other ethnicities, other demographic distinctives into existing genres — especially those genres that appeal primarily to a narrow readership — benefits those genres in the long run.

For one thing, it brings in new readers and writers, it creates new sub-genres, new possible outlets. Not to mention, it expands the borders of possibilities and reaches into new demographic strongholds. Furthermore, traditional genres become more defined by their variants. In other words, I learn to love real vampires even more because of the sparkly ones.

So how does an industry — whether sci-fi, horror, or whatever — go about growing, expanding its appeal? If this report from the WHC is any indication, it may not be in defending the “old guard,” but in throwing the doors wide open and encouraging genre-blending.