Meeting reader expectations

I’ve been working for a ghostwriting company on the side, doing writer engagement and training, and recently we discussed genre conventions and what readers expect from particular genres. It was a good experience to research the genres we work with, and I wanted to share what I found.

Below are some basic expectations, but I’d love readers to add to this list and/or discuss why these are important to meet when writing.

Religious/Spiritual

• Focus on an inspirational theme
• Underlying religious lessons or ethics
• Encourage spiritual growth
• Convey lessons about home/family, relationship, faith
• References to God/God’s plan – few references to Jesus Christ
• Lack of explicit sexuality – focus on emotion/relationship
• Moral values, traditional roles
• More defined framing of gender/gender and femininity/masculinity
• Character(s) have strong religious convictions, or do by the end
• Very light or no sexual content

Paranormal/Fantasy

• Fully developed, realistic-ish world
• Well-develop creatures that either follow mythology/folklore or are completely new
• Well-develop system or magic/abilities that either follow mythology/folklore or are completely new
• An epic journey – actual or self-discovery
• Unexpected hero/villain dynamic
• Use of archetypes
• Romantic relationship with non-human/supernatural beings common

New/Young Adult

• Unique voice/narration – often goes along with first person perspective
• Character is in the correct age group (12-18 YA; 18-25 NA)
• More simplistic prose
• “Firsts” subject matter/Coming of Age
• Tough subjects
• Happy For Now (HFN) endings more common
• Emotional development themes
• Focus on the personal rather than the outside world
• Parents are often absent, MC relies on friends for support

Contemporary romance

• Love is central to the plot, but lust can be the spark
• Characters overcome problems, HEA ending
• Full relationship arc – emotional develop is central
• Modern setting and language
• Realistic scenarios and outcomes
• Developed romantic backgrounds
• Realistic conflict
• Secondary storylines used
• Use of “sounding board” characters

Clean romance

• Sexuality/romance is PG-rated or less
• Focus is on emotional develop in relationship
• Little to no sexual overtly thoughts
• Little to no swearing/cursing
• Usually no non-realistic elements
• Usually limited to heterosexual relationships
• Off-camera sexual encounters debatable
• Focus on love not lust

Historical romance

• Details are accurate to the time period
• Time period is integral to the story
• Gender roles very important
• Focus on societal ideals/mores of the time on how it impacts the story
• Theme is interpreted through the lens of the time period
• Plot/conflict makes sense for the time period
• Romantic interactions follow the time period social rules, for the most part

Erotica

• Sex is central to the plot
• Romance/relationship development is still important
• Dynamic characters are a must
• Typically told from the female’s POV, but not always
• Graphic descriptions
• Multiple (more than 2) sex scenes
• Use of foreplay – descriptive
• Tension runs throughout the full story
• Unique tropes not typically covered in other subgenres (menage, BDSM, alphas, etc.)
• There’s still a line not to cross – rape, incest, abuse, etc.
• HFN or HEA ending

Romantic suspense

• Suspense is secondary or equal to romance
• Source of suspense is resolved by the end
• Fast-paced plot, high action
• Source of suspense jeopardizes the romance
• Realistic details in a modern setting
• Suspense/danger draws characters together
• Characters are equally matched, or close to
• Characters have a believable motivation to be involved in the suspense

Feel free to share any additional genre expectations!