Resource Sanctum Genre Guide

A key to keeping your writing fresh and your muse content is making sure that your writing rotation contains a bit of variety. We all have our favorite genres and our comfort zones within them, but even the most adept writers benefit from stepping outside of their comfort zones every now and again. Being a masterful writer of fiction is a laudable achievement, but sometimes, being a jack of all trades and master of none can be just as fulfilling, if not more.

This genre list is by no means comprehensive, and it shouldn't serve as your one and only guide to writing. The idea behind this guide is to give you a jumpstart on writing in a new realm of fiction. If you have suggestions for new genres to include, please message a mod or an admin with your ideas, but do not respond to this thread.

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Getting Started

Before you delve into a specific genre, here's a list of generic tips that may help you find your groove:

Immerse Yourself
One of the best ways to get in the right headspace to write something new (or something old) is to immerse yourself in the medium. Want to write a space western? Throw on some Firefly or grab one of the many bounty hunter Star Wars stories. Get your brain used to feeling the universe you want to write. Consider the rules by which you want that world to operate, and build yourself a playlist of songs that fit the mood. In many cases, if you search Spotify by keyword for playlists, you can find something premade. If not, soundtracks are often available, especially for newer productions.

Pick Up A Bestselling Author
Maybe you're looking more for an example of tone than for worldbuilding ideas. In much the same way that you'd immerse yourself in a genre, wrap yourself in the words of the wise. Looking to write some high fantasy, but the elves just sound… wrong? Pick up some Tolkein and pay attention to how he voices his characters. Mimicry is the highest form of flattery.

Learn The Lingo
If you're crafting a world rich in culture or built around subgroups or specific professions, a great way to add depth to your story is by sprinkling in relevant lingo. Writing a story that involves radio communication? Learn some radio speak (CB for truckers, 10 codes for first responders, general slang for amateur operators -- there's a lot out there). If you're crafting a cyberpunk world, there are tons of examples out there, and from them, you can undoubtedly find lists of relevant lingo. When in doubt, Google is your friend.

Check Out Concept Art
Sometimes, the best way to kick your brain into gear is by spending half an hour (or a whole hour… or two...) staring at collections of concept art. Scenic vistas and thatched-roof villages for your low fantasy epic, yawning space gateways and manmade ring systems around terraformed planets for your space saga, or stratified ecumenopolises with glistening towers rising over the neglected lower levels of the impoverished underbelly for your cyberpunk story -- sometimes, a little art is all it takes to spark the flame of a grand tale.

Slice-Of-Life

Slice-Of-Life

Genre definition: Any story that follows the mundane events of everyday life for a character or characters, most commonly in modern settings, but it can incorporate other settings and genres. This genre reads like a journal entry and tends to be driven solely by the character's whims and interests rather than by outside influences or thematic tides.

Casual storytelling at its finest, slice-of-life is your most basic genre that requires very little preliminary work and can go just about anywhere. It's a great starting point if you're just getting into writing, either on your own or collaboratively, and as an element of other stories, many writers consider it essential.

When it comes to examples of slice-of-life stories, anime is one of the best sources. The game franchise, Persona is a classic example that throws in an alternate reality twist. Fruits Basket is a popular anime that follows the daily life flow.

If you're looking to carve your own slice out of life, here are a few tips to get you started:

• Think of a raison d'être -- If you write a story that is an actual progression of someone's daily life, it'll be boring as all get-out. Figure out what your character's reason for being is and have that drive the story.
• Hang on to the tender moments -- This genre is defined by the human moments between characters, those little interactions you might not get to savor in other genres. Don't lose sight of those.
• Set the scene -- Your character's surroundings will help tell your story. Those surroundings can be friends, family, school, or the city in which they live. Show how they interact with the world around them.
• Keep it moving -- This genre can easily start to drag. If you feel the pace starting to slow, fast forward to the next day or the next big thing!

This is a great genre for beginners, and getting comfortable with writing out the simple moments and "unexciting" interactions between characters will help you fill out your stories in other genres as your writing evolves. Explore, get to know your characters, and get to know yourself as a writer.

High Fantasy

High Fantasy

Genre definition: An alternate world from our own, usually set in a distant historical context where magic is an integral part of the world. Stories set in this genre tend to follow an epic format with grand elements defining both world and characters.

If you're looking for a classic fantasy story with elves, orcs, magic, mystery, and adventure, high fantasy is where it's at. There are tons of existing worlds out there to pull from and play in -- Skyrim, Lord of the Rings, The Wheel of Time, Dungeons and Dragons, just to name a few. With such an extensive repertoire of existing worlds to pull from, high fantasy is probably the best genre to flex your world-adapting muscle.

A good high fantasy world:

• Is fleshed out -- You know generally what's where, either thanks to a map, a list of locations, or some other method of tracking landforms and settlements
• Has a logical magic system -- Don't over-engineer it! Keep it simple, lest you wish to welcome plot holes. Many magic systems are based on the five elements (earth, air, fire, water, and spirit). It keeps things simple and leaves a lot of room for creativity.
• Features geographic wonders -- Just about every high fantasy series out there has jaw-dropping scenery, whether it's manmade or natural. High fantasy aims to wow at every turn. Make it big!

When you're considering how to set up your high fantasy world, think about the kind of variety in settings that popular stories in this genre feature. Having quiet places like the Shire or the Two Rivers to use as contrasting settings to Rivendell or Caemlyn. Also, having a place with "Doom" in the name is basically a requirement (it's not, but it's definitely a popular trope, and having a Big Scary Dark Place is sort of the third element of the trifecta).

In addition to having varied places for your characters to explore, make sure that those characters are just as multifaceted and complex. There's no shame in starting with a cliché archetype like a mercenary, a thief, an orphan, or the obligatory Oh Shit, I Have Magic?! character. Don't stop there! Why are we following a story about this person? Why care about some random cutpurse or a person who has had magic unexpectedly thrust upon them? Maybe they're going on a journey of transformation, seeking answers or fulfilling a prophecy. Maybe they're trying to defy fate, only to fail as the threads of time pull them onto a set path over and over again. Your characters should be as dramatic as your landscapes, and that drama and all it entails should follow them and develop throughout the story.

High fantasy worlds are notoriously supersized. They contain myriad cultures, peoples, thoughts, and customs. Don't limit yourself to an entire world of cookie-cutter ideas. Explore real-world cultures and customs through the lens of fantasy. Pick a couple of Earth cultures and mash them together to make entirely new cultures for your fantasy world. Challenge your own views with new political and ideological communities in your fantasy world. Turn right and wrong on its head. Make your character's adventure into one you would want to go on! See the world, taste the food, explore the land, and live your adventure!

Low Fantasy

Low Fantasy

Genre definition: A world similar to our own with supernatural elements that are not widely known or outwardly apparent to the average person living in the world. The defining feature is the stark divide between the "mundane" world and the supernatural world. Subgenres include supernatural, urban fantasy, steampunk, and some medieval fantasy.

Low fantasy is a broad genre that encompasses everything from modern urban fantasy to medieval worlds where magic has been lost to time and all that lies in between. On the surface, these worlds appear much like our own, sometimes with changes to major historical events. The meat of this genre is beneath the surface. Operating outside of the public eye or lying hidden and awaiting discovery, supernatural elements weave together to create a strange new world ripe for exploration.

For as epic as high fantasy is in its grandeur of subject, low fantasy is impressive in its breadth and versatility. The best place to start is to pick a time period or an established subgenre that sounds appealing to you. From there, work out how magic is going to be incorporated into the story. For steampunk, sometimes minor magic is part of the workings of an alternate Victorian or Edwardian society. For a steampunk that is based more deeply in magic, try aetherpunk on for size (look up art for that one, for sure). Modern urban fantasy is often set in the digital era (post-1980) but has plenty of room for alternate events, minor incorporation of magic, and secret supernatural societies and interactions.

It's difficult to summarize this genre and all it has to offer, but the important steps to take in creating a low fantasy world are:

• Pick a time period -- Modern, medieval, you name it!
• Determine your world's magic -- Figure out how magic is involved in your world, how people know about it, and how they interact with it.
• Create characters -- Player characters, non-player characters, and any companions you find along the way.
• Bonus: Add political intrigue

If you want a story set in a near-analog of our world with a few differences and a bit of magic, low fantasy might be the genre you're looking for!

Historical Fiction

Historical Fiction

Genre definition: A world set during an actual historical time and either following a real person/people or individuals who might have existed in that time period. Stories in this genre tend to either preserve history as it actually happened or focus on evoking a historical era without strictly following events.

Whether you find nonfiction fascinating in its own right or you're just a diehard history junkie who wants to experience what it would be like to live in a different time, historical fiction is a straightforward yet deliciously complex take on inventive storytelling. You, as the writer, get to travel back in time and paint your own adventures on the canvas of time.

One of the most well-known historical fiction series is probably Outlander, which has been adapted into a wildly popular TV series. Along with Michael Crichton's Timeline (which is arguably as much science fiction as it is historical fiction), these stories are representative of a branch of historical fiction in which a person from the present travels back in time somehow and explores history as someone who doesn't belong. Native-protagonist historical fiction, where the protagonist is from the time in which the story is set, includes Anthony Doerr's All The Light We Cannot See and Kristin Hannah's The Nightingale.

When it comes to writing historical fiction, the setup is fairly straightforward:

• Pick a historical period -- Ideally, find something you're already somewhat familiar with, but if you are just endlessly fascinated by feudal Japan and know nothing about it, more power to you.
• Do your research -- This is the kicker. Historical fiction is an intensive genre to write well. Whether you're loosely following the events of a series of battles along the Eastern Front of the European Theater in World War II or creating a day-by-day account of life as a fictional Union soldier in the American Civil War, knowing your timeline of events is key to creating a believable and coherent story.
• Do more research!! -- Period and place aren't the only things to know for a historical fiction story. Understand the commodities, fashions, language, and societal standards of the time and place. If you're going for a historically influenced story as opposed to a by-the-books tale, determine what elements of the given period are being kept and which are being tossed in favor of something else. Consistency is key!
• Add a twist -- History isn't all rainbows and butterflies. Likewise, historical fiction benefits from an unexpected twist of fate or a downward turn of luck. It drives action, provides momentum for the plot, and can turn a prominent figure or cause into a lead for your characters. Everyone loves a martyr.

Historical fiction can be as historical or as fictional as you like. If you're someone who enjoys writing in a pre-established world with some creative license and a bit of reading on the side, there isn't a better genre out there.

Science Fiction

Science Fiction

Genre definition: A speculative future or near-future world defined by advanced technology and novel scientific achievements. Not uncommonly used as a method of exploring present-day political topics through a fictional lens, emphasizing the benefits and flaws in the process. The explanation of fantastic elements through technology, exploration of time and/or space, alien cultures, and parallel universes are common themes in science fiction. Science fantasy is a co/sub-genre of science fiction, combining elements of science fiction with traditional fantasy, often in an epic format.

If you're the type of person who likes to explore big ideas and ask "what if" questions, science fiction is a great genre to explore. Examples in media are in no short supply, from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek to Douglas Adams' absurd Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Science fiction is a platform through which to explore the unknown. What if we created life from scratch? What if we had a massive space federation in a post-scarcity society? What if we bummed around the galaxy writing a tourist pamphlet? Science fiction is a genre with innumerable possibilities.

Science fantasy, while similar, uses technology to explain and explore fantastical phenomena. It blends elements of fantasy (often high fantasy) with science fiction's scope and scientific approach to create worlds like we see in Star Wars and Dune. Space westerns are, in turn, similar to science fantasy. They superimpose old west themes over the extra-terrestrial scale of science fiction. Space westerns also often highlight organized crime, sometimes in contrast to a highly advanced government. Firefly/Serenity, Cowboy Bebop, and The Mandalorian are three unique examples of space westerns.

To build your science fiction world, take it one step at a time:

• Figure out what questions you want to ask/answer -- What if ___? How can we ___? Imagine ___.
• Pick your scale -- A two-dimensional plane? A city? A planet? A planetary system? A galaxy? Several different universes all tangled into one?
• Set your science -- Make sure your explanations are consistent, whether you bastardize actual science to make your world work or use wibbly-wobbly hand-waving to explain things away.
• Build your world -- Follow some of the high fantasy guidelines for creating epic-scale worlds and intriguing characters or craft around the simple concepts and delve deep into a narrow topic (à la Flatland by Edwin Abbott Abbott).
• Choose your tone -- Will you tell a serious story? Satire? Something absurd and goofy? All of the above?
• Learn your lingo -- This general advice subject is especially important when it comes to science fiction. Find your terminology and learn how to wield it well. Your work will gain so much depth.

Science fiction is a genre that has endless possibilities for new and exciting stories and allows you to boldly go where no one has gone before! For a more detailed breakdown of how to write science fiction, check out our Science Fiction Writing Guide.

Cyberpunk

Cyberpunk

Genre definition: A subgenre of science fiction that is set in a futuristic world and highlights the disparities between the ultra-wealthy and the ultra-poor in a high-tech world. The line between man and machine is blurred, both inside and out. Often featuring prominent crime and poverty elements as well as strong political lines, cyberpunk is a dystopian genre where scientific achievement and widespread use of technology has failed to unify or "save" humanity, instead further dividing groups of people.

If you enjoy dark themes with opportunities for crime, violence, shady characters, or sociopolitical commentary, cyberpunk is a fantastic genre to play in. Examples of cyberpunk include Altered Carbon (the books or the TV series), Ender's Game, or the many video games that preceded the obvious Cyberpunk 2077. Stories in this genre are often told from the perspective of renegade individuals operating outside the law and avoiding the crime syndicates or from the perspective of someone within one of the crime rings. Ultimately, these stories aim to tell the fall of those at the top from the perspective of those living below.

Another key element of cyberpunk is that it is almost exclusively a futuristic genre, in theme if not in date. Technology is prevalent, advanced, and often abused. Its existence has contributed to or evolved from a massive class divide, and much of the genre's story tension derives from the struggle of those at the bottom. Cyberpunk societies are often (though not always explicitly) teetering precariously on the brink of apocalypse either as a direct result of the technology created or societal collapse.

Important elements to consider when building a cyberpunk story:

• Technology everywhere -- It can be weapons and accessories, personal augments, eugenics programs, you name it. Before you write it, though, make sure you decide on what is and is not present in your world and what its existence means for the people who live with it.
• Transhumanism -- Bodily modifications, integrated tech, computers "improving" and changing what it means to be human. This concept and the struggle it brings about are central elements to any cyberpunk story.
• Class disparity -- Who owns the poor? Organized crime. Who owns the criminals? Corporations. Who owns the corporations? The people who own the world. What do politics look like among and between these groups?
• Dark themes -- Cyberpunk stories are not flowery and happy. There's crime, backstabbing, murder, intrigue, lies, and countless things left unsaid. If you don't have dark elements in your cyberpunk story, you ought to.
• A really cool city setting -- Never will you have a better excuse to look at cool concept art than when determining your setting for a cyberpunk story. Dig in. You won't regret it.

If you like dark themes with lots of politicking, violence, and deep dives into the limits of both the human body and technology, cyberpunk is a genre that's just waiting for you to take control. For a more detailed breakdown of how to write punk-genre stories, including cyberpunk, check out our Punk-Genre Writing Guide.

Post-Apocalyptic

Post-Apocalyptic

Genre definition: A blend of science fiction, dystopia, horror, and/or fantasy, the post-apocalyptic story genre features a world that has fallen apart after a great calamity, whether magical, natural, or manmade. These stories are characterized by resource scarcity, lawlessness, and the struggle to survive in an uninhabitable world. Society in this genre is either in the process of collapsing or has already fallen apart, and characters are left to strike out on their own, survive in small groups, or exist as a necessary part of a collaborative society.

Selling partners on "horror" as a genre can be tough, but convincing someone to write a story in a terrifying world of monsters, chaos, and uncertainty might be a bit more palatable. Post-apocalyptic stories can take place at any technology level and with just about any societal structure you can imagine. It's a flexible genre with room for writers to insert whatever details they need to make the story just how they like it.

There's no right or wrong way to do post-apocalyptic stories. Mad Max, the Metro 2033 series, and the Fallout franchise all take place in a world ravaged by nuclear war, though the stories and worlds left behind are all unique. World War Z and I Am Legend take the zombie/pandemic approach to the end of the world and what remains. Popular post-apocalyptic stories tend to fall into one of those two categories, but don't let that pigeonhole you into writing about nukes and zombies if you don't want to.

Formulating your own post-apocalyptic story starts with a timeline:

• What happened to society? -- What caused the collapse? Was it industry? Plague? War? Magic? Plants taking over the world? You decide!
• How did your characters get to where they are? -- Survivors? Descendants of those who made it? Wayward souls looking for a better life in the wastes of what was?
• Choose a rough date -- Is the world ending right now?? Did the world end a long time before the present-day or sometime in the future? Use this to establish technology levels, assuming anything is left.
• What does society look like now? -- Determine what groups of people look like in your world now. Is everyone on their own? Are there communities? What do they look like? How common and how large are they?

You can tell so many kinds of stories in the post-apocalyptic genre, and all of them have the potential to be action-packed and full of juicy tension. Weaving in threads of adrenaline-induced intimacy or companionship in the face of adversity is practically a no-brainer. Or be a lone wanderer and forge your way in this unforgiving world all alone.