Cross-Genred Freak!

That title's funny because genred - while being a made up word - is an anagram of gender!

It has occurred to me that, should I ever get published, and should all my books eventually reach publication, that I will be some sort of cross-genred freak of a writer. I mean, most people will probably get used to the idea of me writing books like Meet Sam, and my novellas, which aren't always as funny or dark in the same measures, are close enough to have the same audience. But, what about the other stuff I write? I mean, the first book I wrote was a young adult fantasy. I wrote a Sci-Fi book, too. And a couple of variations of that same idea, most notably The Jump, which isn't technically complete. And I started writing a Fantasy book called The Magical Emporium of Magical Things, which was similar in style to Terry Pratchett. And just now I've started a story - maybe just a short story, possibly a novel - that's a cross between mainstream and Sci-Fi; semblances of super powers in it, but with a focus on the human aspect of the story.

What in the hell?

I don't know why I write like this. I mean, I love writing, and I love these stories... but why do I write such different stories? I mean, it makes no sense from a "business" point of view. What use is it to have two genres of stories, if I don't even have one publishing contract? Yeah, it keeps my options open, but it also means that if I get published in one genre, it'll be a little difficult to arrange a second book of a different genre.

And if I got it? If I had two publishers..?

That means I'd have two groups of people looking for work from me. Yeah... that'd get complicated and difficult. I'd end up like Darren Shan, releasing two books a year, or something like that. And what if I ended up with children's books, Sci-Fi/Fantasy and mainstream fiction? Well, for a start that would be a lot of different books, a huge market and a lot of people coming to me for work... But it'd also be the coolest thing ever. I mean, I sort of like that idea. I have an almost pathological need to be busy. I've a friend who can testify that I get very, very annoying when I'm not busy, because I tend to forget that other people aren't in the same situation as me.

Yes, I notice what this means for me: it's sort of like the thing where children think the world revolved around them... only it's more like I'm getting thrown around the world really, really quickly, so it just looks like it's going around me.

I have ideas, anyway. That's a good thing, right? Even if it means that I have to go to three different publishers to get my work out there? I'd like to think I could get stuff like The Jump published, as well as The Magical Emporium and this new one I'm writing that might still be a novel, and Meet Sam. The latter takes preference, being the only "finished" project I have that's anywhere close to being publishable. Seriously, I've seen the crap I wrote before that. The smell of fail...

Which reminds me: when I was fifteen, going on sixteen, I submitted my first book to a publisher, entirely delusional but very hopeful. I'll just come out and say it - Poolbeg did not accept my 121,000 debut novel, a Young Adult Fantasy, and they were right not to. It was poorly written. I still think the story was excellent, at its core, but it wasn't publishable. I'm saying this now, because in the four and a half years since I received my rejection letter - which didn't upset me as much as I thought it would - I learned a few things. Firstly, I went to the wrong publisher for a book of its type. Secondly, it's common courtesy to thank the publisher for even looking at the manuscript (and it's obvious they did!), and I did not do this. So, thank you, people at Poolbeg, for looking at my very first manuscript, and for the very kind words of encouragement that you put in the letter. Thirdly, I wasn't ready for publication. I mean, I'd probably tell myself now that I'm ready... but my books aren't. And that was true of my first book, too. It still isn't ready, because I haven't really touched it since then, but that was lack of interest on my part, not a disheartening as a result of the rejection.

And you know what else..? I also write poetry.

Now that's a cross-genred freak of a writer! Don't even get me started on all the confusion so many publishers would cause in my brain!

I am aware it looks like I expect to get all this stuff published... I am merely looking at the best possible scenario for my writing. You know, with me being a freak. As per usual. (And damn proud of it!)