By: Francis H. Powell
Do writers write in a certain genre, because they are good at it?
Perhaps they are trying to emulate their favourite writers.
What about writers whose work cross over two genres?
Stephen King and the art of crossing multiple genres
When we think of Stephen King, we have him nailed as a writer of frightening stories. However, he doesn’t stick to the confines of horror. We can also find works he has written including, surprisingly, an alternate history of The United States as well as mysteries and hard crime novels (which I guess mirrors horror in a way) and even an epic fantasy.
I guess first and foremost, writers can use words, describe things, and imagine things. They just need to programme their minds to do work slightly differently to work in another genre. It is hard enough to make a breakthrough in one genre. So to find success in another is a notable achievement.
Roald Dahl’s transition from child to adult writer
One of my heroes, Roald Dahl, wrote for both adults and children. Last year, I read a number of his books to my son. I could see a correlation with his adult stories that I have read.
I read a lot of stories to my son, some are cute, some are witty, but many are soft and gentle. Some of Roald Dahl’s stories present odious characters and terrible things that happen to the children in his stories, like being turned into mice and hunted by witches.
Not the best of ideas to send your child to sleep with. My son was not totally enamoured by these stories, though he quite liked Fantastic Mr Fox.
JK Rowling’s genre reinvention
JK Rowling made a daring leap from being an incredibly world famous children’s book writer to presenting her first adults book to world. Obviously, she is a talented writer who was able to cross the divide without getting her fingers burnt.
I suppose famous authors challenge themselves to see if they can gain equal success in another genre to be able to say, “I can do it.”
I suppose it is a bit like a typecast actor attempting a totally different role, trying to reinvent themselves so film goers see them in a totally different light.
Painters also challenge themselves to paint in different styles, the obvious example being Picasso. If he had remained a Cubist for the rest of his life, would people have considered him such a great painter?
H.G. Wells, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Ian Fleming
If we go back in time, we find H.G. Wells was another author who crossed the divide. Primarily, he is considered the father of the modern science fiction genre, which is surely honour enough, but on top of this, he was also a wildly popular historian of the day. We could say he was not only looking into how the future might pan out but also capable of describing the past.
Arthur Conan Doyle, who is best known for detective fiction, being the creator of Sherlock Holmes, also wrote science fiction: The Lost World (1912), The Poison Belt (1913), as well as historical fiction and horror.
It is only recently that I discovered Ian Fleming was the author of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, perhaps one of my favourite films, despite the petrifying character of the child catcher. When we think of Fleming, we immediately think of James Bond. Apparently, the story was born after he told his son bedtime stories about a car that can fly and float.
Writing for my son
I would love to write a story for my son and for it to be published. However, at the moment, I haven’t manged to come up with a character or an idea that excites me.
I went to art school. I had dreams of being a professional painter. The art world, like the publishing business, is tough nut to crack. There are a few people who get lucky, like Damien Hurst, who found success, before he had left art school.
My transition from artist to author
I have had a few incarnations since my art school days. In the nineties, I was making electronic music, part of the “rave scene.” When living in Paris, I was making music of different kinds: experimental, Trip Hop, mellow music. I also began working with VJs (video DJs) and later got into making videos myself.
While living in Paris, by chance I answered an advert for a magazine called Rat Mort (French for dead rat) which was looking for short stories, and this began a new evolution, that of being a writer. The first story I contributed to this magazine was called “Flawless,” about a man who is about to get married when he swallows an insect. Following this, his face changes, he becomes ugly and horrific. His brother steps in, and he offers to marry the girl. Meanwhile, the man who has seemingly contacted some appalling disease becomes more and more isolated and bitter until he reaches the point where by he wants revenge on his brother.
I have no idea where the idea came from, but it is a story I will always relish, like a parent and their first born child. This story set me up as a horror writer. However, like my constantly changing creative pursuits, I am sure further evolutions will follow.
About Francis H. Powell
Born in 1961 in Reading, England, Francis H. Powell attended art schools, receiving a degree in painting and an MA in printmaking. In 1995, Powell moved to Austria, teaching English as a foreign language while pursuing his varied artistic interests, adding music and writing.
He currently lives in Brittany, teaching English and history while writing both prose and poetry. Powell has published short stories in the magazine, Rat Mort and other works on the website Multi-dimensions. His first book is called Flight of Destiny while his most recent is called Adventures of Death, Reincarnation and Annihilation.
Synopsis of Adventures of Death, Reincarnation and Annihilation
Death is always a wild adventure; that can’t be ignored. With the Doomsday clock slowly but surely clicking away, our world getting ever more polluted, our weapons of destruction ever more deadlier.
Read my book if you want to meet some quirky characters and unusual storylines, with a mix of horror, science fiction, but with elements of wit.
Set in in a variety of settings and time periods, the past, the present and the future, the book explores the inevitable unknown that lies before us all: “death”. Death can arrive in a multitude of forms. Each part of the book explores different themes. There are characters who, following their demise, have to face up to their lurid pasts. There some who face annihilation and others who are in a crazy pursuit of world destruction. The book aims to contain some ironic twists. Even as young children, we build up nightmare visions of what death involves. The reader is often left to distinguish between what is real and what is not as stories reside within stories and the storytellers can never be fully trusted. Not all the book is doom and gloom. There are Elsa Grun’s bizarre encounters with men and Shelly’s hapless husband, Arnie.
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I love it – I think it can show the true talent of the writer to be able to transition across new genres.