Book Printing Guide

Archive for the ‘Genres’ Category

As their name implies, these are novels which are set during historical times or events which occurred before the life of the author. Some people would argue that the event must occur at least 100 years before the authors life for the work to be considered a historical novel but there is no consensus around this belief.

Sir Walter Scott is often said to be the creator of the historical novel during the early 19th century. He produced such works as the novels Waverley and Rob Roy which showed Scottish history and Ivanhoe which harked back to the time of the Middle Ages.

History novels are usually centered around a particular history event and may even include references to actual historical figures. The author must conduct significant research in order to accurately represent the historical time to the best of their ability. There are times, however, when knowledge reveled in future generations shows that the information contained in historical novels is incorrect.

Most historical novels will have the plot center around fictional characters that are surrounded by an actual historical event. An example would be the use of the French Revolution by Charles Dickens for the frame in A Tale of Two Cities.

Historical novels have not lost their popularity these days as can be witnessed by the vast number of historical novels being written by contemporary writers.

Novels designed to horrify, terrorize, or otherwise unsettle the reader fall under the horror fiction novel category. Often these novels feature evil personified as a spirit or supernatural being. There are times where the being that is feared is really not evil, just misunderstood. An example of this would be a creature from another planet that comes in peace.

Many books have been labeled as horror fiction since the 1960s, especially when they include a gruesome or morbid theme. The umbrella category of speculative fiction encompasses the genres of horror fiction, science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, supernatural fiction, and magic realism. This distinction is helpful since many of these genres often overlap.

There have been tales of characters caught in incredibly horrific situations since the beginning of fictional writing. Examples through time include Beowulf, the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allen Poe. Much of the violence in early horror novels was alluded to rather than described as the authors used mood and setting to create the sense of fear.

Two of the great masters of this genre are Poe and H.P. Lovecraft. M.R. Jones who wrote classic English ghost stories is also an excellent horror writer. He avoids shock effects much like Poe and Lovecraft. Modern day horror authors have begun to include graphic violence in an attempt to shock their audiences and convey the horror of the situation. Some modern horror novels are full of glorified violence but utterly lacking in true literary merit. Two modern day horror authors who are able to artfully craft stories that shock and fear their audiences without the use of excessive violence are Dean Koontz and Stephen King

Often imaginary or mythical worlds serve as the backdrop for fantasy novels which often include the use of magic and other supernatural powers. The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien is a wonderful example of the genre. While there is often overlap between the horror and science fiction genres and the fantasy genre, it is usually possible to distinguish a fantasy novel by its overall theme.

The events and actions which take place in fantasy books can not and do not take place in reality. Either magic, supernatural forces or divine intervention is used to explain the occurrence of these events. Often the entire setting of a fantasy novel is completely different from one which we might experience. The laws of that particular time and place will allow for the occurrence of magic or other things which may be foreign to our experience.

Often one of the hallmarks of a fantasy novel is that the setting is affected by either magic or other abnormal forces to make it completely different from our own. While childrens literature is a completely separate genre than fantasy, we can often see the same principle applied in many of the books of Dr. Seuss.

Some of the most well known fantasy works include Beowulf, The Odyssey, and many fairy tales. The fantasy genre will often include works that features heroes and heroines, magical creatures, and deadly monsters operating within a mysterious realm.

While the fantasy genre is incredibly popular today, many are unaware that it stems way back to the time before Homer wrote the Odyssey. Some modern day indications of the popularity of the fantasy genre include the Harry Potter books, the Redwall series by Brian Jacques and the film adaptations of the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Chances are the fantasy genre will remain popular as long as we have creative imaginations and dreams.

While the majority of these stories have an adult protagonist these books are written for and marketed to young adults. Readers between the ages of 12 and 18 fit the American Library Associations definition of a young adult. Many titles which were originally written for adults, John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men for example, are often marketed for young adults as well. The boundaries between young adult and adult literature are not that clearly established.

While many books during the nineteenth century were incredibly appealing to young adults, Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island for example, publishers did not specifically market to this age group. During the 1960s and 1970s publishers began to tap into the large market of readers in their teenage years. The Catcher and the Rye and The Lord of the Flies were both originally written for adult audiences, however both of these novels were purchased at a higher rate by teens than by adults in 1954.

The move of authors and publishers to capitalize on the young adult reader was aided by librarians who began to create special sections of books that teen readers may find attractive. This helped to create a clearer distinction between childrens literature, adult literature, and young adult literature. One popular young adult author was S.E. Hinton whose books included The Outsiders, Rubble Fish, and That Was Then, This is Now.

S.E. Hinton is though to be the pioneer of modern young adult literature. Young adult literature these days includes such genres as romance novels, mystery, fiction, and comic books. Other popular contemporary young adult genres include splatterpunk (extreme horror novels), cyberpunk, Christian fiction, and problem novels.

A love relationship between a man and a woman makes up the main plot for those books within this subcategory of fiction. While these days it is not uncommon for these books to be told from the point of view of either the heroine or the hero, most of romance novels in years past were told from the heroines point of view.

The heroine falling in love with the hero is the usual formula for the romance novel. Often there are both internal and external factors that seek to undermine their relationship. While marriage is not always the outcome in these novels it is quite common for the two to live happily ever after once they have solved first the external an and then the internal challenges to their relationship.

The plot and tone of the entire book is usually set by the relationship between the hero and the heroine. The reader must be able to feel the sexual attraction between the two throughout the entire book. While a sexual encounter is quite common in romance novels, the details are usually not graphically described. It is common for authors of romance novels to focus on the sensual rather than the sexual aspects of the relationship.

Romance is often a key element of many different types of literary works, not just appearing in Harlequin romances. It is true, however, that Harlequin books are what made the romance novel what it is today.

There are three main categories of romance novel that can be identified. The first are often referred to as bodice rippers and focus on the sensual tension between the hero and the heroine. These novels will usually include at least one or two sexual scenes.

The spice romance novel is the next category. These often involve married couples who face conflicts, both internal and external, that jeopardize their relationship. These stories almost always have a happy ending after the characters resolve their conflicts.

The sweet romances make up the last category of romance novels. The Regency romance is an example of this type of novel. They usually feature a young, sweet, and very nave heroine. You will not find very many descriptions of physical sex in these novels, and like the first two they will almost always end happily.

Science, either real or imaginary, makes a dramatic impact on the story in a science fiction novel. While the use of science in literature has been around for quite some time, for example Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or Shakespeares the Tempest, the term science fiction novel has only been around since the 1930s.

The standard theme of a science fiction novel is perfectly illustrated in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde written by Robert Louis Stevenson in 1886. Often these novels feature an obsessed scientist whose own obsession proves to be his downfall or the downfall of civilization.

Science fiction novels often also deal with the great promise that science has to offer and the fear that in part of all technological innovation. Some common themes in science fiction novels include time travel, space travel, and alien encounters. Technologically advanced warfare has also been predominately featured in science fiction novels.