My daughter claims to be a trisquirclgon. She does not roll with the punches – any punches. She cannot be neatly pegged into any type of hole. In spite of her denials, she’s very much like her uncle who is admittedly OCPD. Their world is black and white, with no consideration of gray. They have to be in control, and they have to be right. It’s good that I am a circle. I have a few rough spots that catch from time to time, but for the most part, I roll. I am adaptable. I am gray.Gray is somewhere in between black and white. Being gray means being better able to accept opinions different from your own. Gray is not constant but rather reflects many gradations of the extremes of black and white. Each gradation is no more or less gray - they are just shades of the same.
Romance authors are encouraged to create a brand so readers will know what to expect, but there can be variations within each brand. Romantic suspense might be coupled with paranormal, and contemporary with a mystery. By adding these components, the original brand is enhanced. They are still romantic suspense or contemporary books but with shades of other elements.
Google “writers of America” and you will find several organizations probably familiar to writers.
Western Writers of America, Inc. promotes the literature of the American West. The founding authors wrote traditional Western fiction, but the organization grew to include historians and other nonfiction authors, young adult and romance writers, and writers interested in regional history.
Mystery Writers of America is for mystery writers, professionals allied to the crime writing field, and aspiring crime writers.
SFWA is a professional organization for authors of science fiction, fantasy and related genres.
RWA stipulates membership is open to “all persons seriously pursuing a publishing career in the romance genre.”
There are also listings for outdoor, horror, and garden writers; football, golf, track and field, baseball, bowling, dog, and young writers of America. And in all of these organizations, rules have been made to include – and to exclude – certain types of writers. The organizations were designed to help writers of their respective genres. If you write something different, that doesn’t mean you are less a writer - just that your focus is a different genre or area. A different shade.
We all have our own beliefs and opinions, wants and needs, likes and dislikes. Does that make any one of us more right or wrong than any other? No, we are just different. We are individuals. But the best part is there is an audience for every writer because non-writers are also individuals. Not all of us are the same, nor should we be. So reach out and grab your slice of life, go for your dreams, and don’t let being different slow you down. Embrace your uniqueness.
Embrace your shade of gray.
3 comments:
Great post:)
I think I am an oval...I can roll with the punches so to speak but sometimes it takes me a little longer to get "around" them.
I agree that each writer and reader are unique. Finding our uniqueness can be part of how we roll with the punches. Do we write what we think will sell while still trying to remain true to our vision? Or do we write only for ourselves without considering the audience?
As writers we need an audience and the audience needs our work to fit at least marginally into a certain shape so they know what to expect.
So I guess we are really the same in that we are all different:)
I have all the shades, I think. Not that I'm moody, but my feelings do vary. It's interesting you ask, HiDee and Lynn, because my trilogy is the Black Creek trilogy and it is based on shades of black. The first title uses the word black, the second uses shadow and the third dark. So fun.
-R.T. Wolfe
www.rtwolfe.com
Well said, Rebecca. We really are the same in being different! R.T., I was thinking more about shades of my personality, but you make a good point. Shades are important in writing, too. Thank you both for commenting!
Post a Comment