You may be asking…”Where do I start?”, “How do I start?”, or “What should I write?”
You are not alone. These are all common questions authors have when starting out. Selecting the right book genre for your message is a very important decision. Many authors are familiar with the basic understanding of the different genres but have not explored the concept in its entirety. Because our publishing company understands the importance of choosing the right genre for your message, we have developed this blog to empower you on the topic of book genre.
What is a Book Genre?
Genre comes from the French word for “type,” so a book’s genre refers to the type of story being told or “the category or style of a book.”
Understanding book genres is crucial for writers. Genre has a large influence on how and what you write. Book genres are usually split up into two basic categories:
- Nonfiction: “Prose writing that is based on facts, real events, and real people, such as biography or history.”
- Fiction: “Literature in the form of prose that describes imaginary events and people.”
For authors writing a nonfiction book, you are exploring a topic that you consider factual and truthful. Nonfiction can be further divided into narrative and expository writing. The difference between the two is that narrative involves telling a story, whereas expository involves the act of explaining something. For example, if you are writing your memoir or someone else’s biography, you are writing a narrative nonfiction book. If you are writing a cookbook, you are writing an expository nonfiction book.
Nonfiction can then be broken into multiple subcategories. There are too many to cover in this post, but we will present the nine most common. For a more complete list of subcategories, Goodreads: Nonfiction is a great resource to check out.
- Self-Help
Self-help books are books that guide the reader through self-improvement. These books can address economic, intellectual, and emotional growth. Usually, self-help books are written in the second person, but some also have some 1st and 3rd person narrative sections. A few examples are Intrinsic Motivation: Learn to Love Your Work and Succeed as Never Before by Stefan Falk, Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us by Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross, and Enchantment: Awakening Wonder in an Anxious Age by Katherine May.
- Biography
This is a book written in third person that explains the life and times of a person. An example of a biography is Rachel Jamison Webster’s Benjamin Banneker and Us: Eleven Generations of an American Family. The biography presents the life and times of Banneker, “The African American mathematician and writer of almanacs who surveyed Washington, DC, for former president Thomas Jefferson.”
- Autobiography
The only difference between a biography and an autobiography is that an autobiography is written about the life and times of the author (usually someone well-known) and is written in the first person instead of the third person. Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt is an example of the chronological life of the author, from his earliest memories in the slums of Ireland to almost adulthood.
- Memoir
Although often confused with autobiography, memoir is slightly different. The most notable difference is the focus. Memoir is French for memories, so the genre shares memories and emotions surrounding particular events (not all of them) in the author’s life, is told in the first person, and is flexible with chronology. In Michelle Zauner’s Crying in H Mart, she writes about her life but focuses on growing up Korean American and her relationship with her mother.
- Philosophy
The word philosophy means “the love of wisdom,” so the genre concentrates on the sharing of wisdom that is researched and tested. A good example of this type of writing is The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure by Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff. The book investigates the “assault on free speech and what it means for students, education, and our democracy” and provides some methods to fix the “mess” we are in.
- How-To
This type of book gives instructions on how to do something. It can cover just about anything that speaks directly to the reader (in the second person). A great book that starts with elements of a memoir and then moves into a “toolbox” for writers is On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King. The book starts out as a memoir of sorts that shares how King became a writer, and then the second half gives great advice to writers on how they can hone their craft and skills.
- Leadership
Books in this genre focus on helping people develop their leadership abilities and can also be memoirs, biographies, self-help, etc. For example, here are two vastly different books about leadership: Can’t Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds by David Goggins is a book Goggins wrote about his life and how he developed “The 40% Rule” to help others tap into their capabilities as leaders. Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience by Brené Brown defines 87 emotions in order to give readers the vocabulary to lead intentionally.
- Business
This category can be about successful companies, business leaders, success principles, proven systems, or processes. It can also provide guidance for readers to create their own success stories.. Some popular books in the category are Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek, Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki and Sharon L. Lechter, and Unraveled Potential by Octoryia Robinson.
- Food and Drink
This is any book that contains a collection of recipes and best practices for food and/or drink. Great books in this genre are pretty much anything by Stanley Tucci, including The Tucci Cookbook, The Tucci Table, and the memoir about food, Taste: My Life Through Food.
As you can see, books oftentimes fit into a number of categories. For instance, Dina Nayeri’s book Who Gets Believed?: When the Truth Isn’t Enough is listed as nonfiction, psychology, politics, history, memoir, sociology, social justice, philosophy, and mental health on Goodreads.
Nonfiction categories were initially very simple: you were either writing a narrative or an expository book, with clearly defined rules. However, the publishing industry has evolved over the years and even more dramatically in the past 10 years. The rise of self-publishing has introduced new subcategories to the world of literature.
What does that mean for you? It means you can write a cookbook that explains how to make your favorite dishes, but you can also include narrative portions about the family members who first shared those dishes with you, turning it into a delectable and poignant illustration of your family through the years. If you can dream it, you can write it! Dream That Big Publishing is always ready to empower you and help you write it and find your audience.
Join one of our in-person or virtual events to gain more personalized guidance, or connect with other authors through our Facebook group. For further assistance on writing your book, we also recommend tuning into two episodes of our podcast, the 7-Figure Authorpreneur, including Crafting Content That Sells and How to Find Your Niche and Stay Focused.
-Octoryia Robinson
