So You Write Romance... Can You Write Anything Else?

I've been writing for three years now. And yet, it wasn't until halfway through last year that I started making it public. And if there is one question I find that gets under its; 'Oh. You write romance. Can you write anything else?'

To be honest, it's one of those questions you should never ask a writer. It's like asking J.K. Rowling to write the weather report. Writers write what they love to write. You force them into something else and you mess with their muse.

But in answer to this question, yes, I can write in other genres. But Romance is where my heart lies.

Currently, I am writing a philosophical collection of four narratives that address feminism and Romanticism. There is no romance in those, but if there is one this I am finding is that theses stories will remain short stories. I will most likely never turn them into novels. To be honest, I like them the way they are. My muse agrees with them to but as always my current romantic WIP is calling me back to the world of sexy Irishmen and Sassy Aussie women.

As a lover of fiction, I have dipped my pen into all types of fiction. In high school I was expected to write a number of short peices and that is where my push to write started. But the day I decided to write, I knew I wouldn't write Scifi or mainstream or philosophical. I was a writer of Romance and my love of rural life was there to push me into Rural Romance.

So, if there are any lessons to be learn from this post these are it:
- If you've going to ask a writer if they can write anything else, prepare yourself for a verbal shut down.
- And secondly, all you Romance writers out there, don't be affraid to write in the genre you love just because some people you know might consider it of 'lower quaility'. And if you find yourself needing some proof, hand them a pen. 'You, the fool who thinks they have a right to criticise me, take this pen and write a romance. You have 90 000 words and six months. And you have to get it published by the end of the year.'
See how many will step up to the challenge and fall.

You see, it doesn't matter what you write. It's how much you commit yourself to it. If you hate the genre, you're clearly not going to write in no matter how many people will buy it just because they love the genre. The genre will not sell you. You sell yourself. If you don't believe in yourself, who's going to believe you?

And here I jump into the art of pitching. You cannot convice an editor to request your novel if you yourself have nothing to love about it.

Now, I see I have broken the rule of short, punchy blog post, but I do hope most of you kept reading.
Always believe in what you love writers. And always keep working on achieving your aspirations.

Whit