#writing genres

[alpaca-clouds]

Cyberpunk and Solarpunk

Someone wrote a comment in a retweet under my last post about solarpunk. About how maybe Cyberpunk is more suited to motivate us to work for a better future, than Solarpunk is. Because Cyberpunk can show us, how bad it can get, it can be a warning.

My issue is, that for the most part it isn't.

Now, don't get me wrong. I adore Cyberpunk. I basically grew up in Japanese Cyberpunk especially (which I like a lot more than Western Cyberpunk - but the reasons are to complex to discuss here). But I think for a plethora of reasons it does not work as a "warning".

Part of the reason is, that the dystopia of Cyberpunk is not that far away from reality anymore these days. Even in effective Cyberpunk, that really goes into the Late Stage Capitalism... It shows a stark divide between rich and poor, state violence, rule of coorporations, end of ecosystems. Yes, it is more heightened than our reality, but it is all that we see in our reality right now and... we are kinda getting used to it. We are getting used to all the horrible things happening right now, because we feel powerless and our minds do not know how else to deal with it. So they will just chuck it of as "normal".

The other reason, why I think, Cyberpunk fails, is, that it is objectively cool. And a lot of people, who consume Cyberpunk media, do not engage with the dystopia, but just with the power fantasy of being a cool street sam with a lot of awesome augmentations. They want Cyberpunk to be real, not to prevent it. Because to them, it is mostly a really darn cool aesthetic.

And a last reason is, that in the end Cyberpunk does not offer solutions. Half the point of the genre is a sort of hopelessness. In most Cyberpunk there is no big happy ending. The happy end is, that the characters get to survive. Maybe, just maybe, the characters manage to bring down one coorporation or at least one corrupt CEO. But the most the characters get, is, to survive and maybe kiss a love interest. The point of Cyberpunk is the hopelessness.

But you cannot build a better world from hopelessness.

Which is, why I see Solarpunk as so promising - and am at the same time afraid of it turning too much into an "aesthetics only" movement. Because Solarpunk at its core is about reclaiming optimism for the future. It is not (only) an art movement, but first and foremost a genre of both fiction and activism.

If you look into the Solarpunk Manifesto, you will find that, it is about optimism and rebellion against the current system. About the things, that we so desperately need right now.

It is supposed to offer those solutions, that Cyberpunk does not want to offer - or rather that Cyberpunk thinks are out of reach.

Because here is the thing about Solarpunk: Yes, it is Science Fiction, but a lot of the Science it presents is available today. If states were actually to invest in it, we could have clean energy by 2035. That is not unrealistic. Because the technology is here, we just need to use it.

Degrowth, which is another core tennent of Solarpunk, is also possible. And it does not need to mean "live bad", as so many publications try to make it out.

Building local communities, too, is possible. The reasons we lost local communities, is, that the current system we live under, does not want us to have those communities - because communities allow us to organize and retake our power.

Those tennents have been there in Solarpunk from the very beginning. And it is quite frankly frightening to see, how the movement gets kinda taken over by people, only being there for green aesthetics.

This is not meant to be escapism. At least not just that. It is supposed to be a root of activism.

[moonandris]

What, in your opinion, is the difference between paranormal fiction and supernatural fiction and which genre do you prefer?

🔪🩸👻 🧛‍♀️👽

I've been looking for a good way to define the differences in the genres but I can't find a good example online, so I thought I'd ask my writeblr friends since y'all are into this stuff like I am! Please lemme know what you think makes these genres different and why you like a specific one, please! 😊❤️

[tildeathiwillwrite]

Do you have a favorite genre to write in?

Fantasy! (I blame Brandon Sanderson)

I love crafting a magic system and worldbuilding and how the characters interact with such a system.

I've dabbled in sci-fi too (which is basically fantasy but future) with mixed results.

[thiswaycomessomethingwicked]

Just a start on the many many combos possible but I’d love to see people’s views

[1ntr0v3rted]

Hello my Tumblr friends I wanted to talk about movie stars I was watching the babysitter if any of you know what the babysitter is it’s a movie on Netflix and it’s crazy as fucking shit bro like damn that shit was so fucking nuts. I was watching it and I’ve figured out like the first movie was funny

Apologies for the misspellings I did this with voice to text.

The first movie was really really funny if I will be honest with you about Cole and the babysitter that he has and her name is B and you know if she calls them see if they do this so cute little thing with their fingers and it’s really cute but what happens is is that you know few spoilers up ahead is there’s some crazy stuff that happens. He gets told by his friend Melanie to stay up late at night to see what his babysitters doing because maybe she’s smashing somebody maybe she’s fucking somebody maybe they’re having an orgy And so like he’s like what’s an orgy he’s a very innocent kid and so what happens. Is that you know he stays up and he watches his babysitter and you know that they’re kind of doing regular teenage things or spinning a bottle and they’re playing truth or dare and you know the babysitter gets dared to kiss everybody in the group which is John, Max, Allison, Sonia, and John and so what happens is you know she kisses them all Allison she had she had a most sexual kiss with which makes sense for Allison being the most hottest girl in the group and Sonya kind of looks like an IMO girl and she looks pretty punk rock and we kind of figure out that out in the second movie and stuff like that and so it’s so cool to me and then the last guy name Samuel who’s a nerd that she’s been trying to you know get together with an invited she kisses him then she stops kissing him and starts stabbing him in the fucking brains. I was surprised he wasn’t dead yet like damn motherfucker was literally like his brain was stabbed. He wasn’t dead until they squeezed all of the blood out of him like how how does that work, I did I expect a lot thanks. They put it in a cup. They had like all that stuff and what they were meant to do was get the blood of a sacrifice in the blood of an innocent for a devil worshiper thing and I’m not going to really continue that much because the rest of it is colons and passing out because they try to get to the blood of an innocent which is Cole, Cole is a very innocent kid. He doesn’t know what an orgy is. He’s not a pervert, he doesn’t know anything And you know he called the police because he told his bullshit right he saw this guy getting killed and shit like that and so what happened was he ended up calling the police the police came and he was already to kind of tied up they found out that he was like watching them and they were kind of gonna let him go free they were just gonna take his blood drinking and then they were just gonna leave right there being really sweet towards him until you know they saw the police and they didn’t want to go to jail and they also their soul to the fucking devil, and the rest of them just kind of trying to kill colon losing it and about dying The second movie and it just starts up with everyone thinking that Cole is crazy. Jenna Ortega is in it that’s so fucking interesting to me because how they how Jenna Ortega ends up literally being in the most craziest as series and I’m going to say this, as a very unpopular opinion This like this is one of those craziest things out of the scream series, and I hated that that series OK I hated it you know the old movies they’re great, but like the new ones like the ones from this year and the ones from about last year weren’t really speaking to me and Chyna was like I don’t like it. I don’t like it in the fact that they might be coming out with a scream. Seven makes me like him, but I’m not talking about you know the scream series. I’m talking about the babysitter, duo series and later on, I will be with my cousin, and I’ll be watching a lot of more horror movies because I’ve been really wanting to get into horror recently and be a critic to that my most craziest movies I’ve ever watch number one would kind of be the babysitter, cause I kind of enjoyed it, but I also in a little bit didn’t and then the second one would be men and third one would probably be pearl

I cannot continue due to too long of paragraphs



[sentienceisoverrated]

People assign genres to things like I actually fucking care

[sanguinifex]

You gotta read and watch some old books and films that aren’t 100% modern politically correct. I’m not saying you should agree with everything in them but you need to learn where genres came from to understand what those genres are doing today and where media deconstructing old tropes is coming from.

Also, more often than you might think, they’re not actually promoting bigotry so much as “didn’t consider all the implications of something” or just used words that were polite then but considered offensive now.

Kill the censor in your head.

[slasher-fucker-and-sucker]

Do you have any preference on genres or tropes?

I love writing a mix of genres and tropes! Angst, slow burn, found family, and emotional reconciliation are some favourites, especially with characters in DC or Black Phone.

I’m also all for fluff and smut, especially in unexpected dynamics, like with typically tough characters showing vulnerability. In terms of tropes, I enjoy hurt/ no comfort, enemies to lovers, etc.

[hcvlach]

hi Tumblr I live

I was too sick to think for a few years but I'm gradually regaining the strength to think Large Writing Thoughts and I'm happily picking at a rough draft yay! I'm reworking my Stories of Aligare so the world is even softer and weirder and queer-er than ever. The new project name will be Our Long-Steeped Remedies. The deaths will be toned waaaaaay down and the formerly ant-like people are now gentle vegetarian spiders.

You know what else? I like "sweetweird" as a descriptor. Building happiness in the face of a frightening, confusing world? Refusing to answer cruelty with more cruelty? Centering friendship and kindness? Yes. I think my writing has always been a bit sweetweird. More of this in the world, please.

[lnk-and-lnspiration]

Exploring Different Genres of Literature: Finding Your Writing Niche

Literature offers a vast array of genres, each with its own unique characteristics and readership. As a writer, finding your writing niche is crucial for developing your voice, understanding your audience, and creating stories that resonate. In this article, we will explore various genres of literature and provide guidance on how to discover your writing niche. Understand Genre…

[ear-motif]

fanfic is so good bc the premise of some genres of fic are just inherently funny. I want these two grizzled crime drama protagonists to have some fucking fun for once, so they go to a water park. I dont care how i have to logic my way into them going there i dont care who has to drag them Theyre Going

[rustchild]

desperately craving weird surrealist arthurania. Knights with no faces wandering through the mists. Seams between Christian and pre-Christian Britain gaping like open wounds. Beafts and visions. Maybe a monk. Maybe the monk is gay

[hope-deferred-inc]

NaNoWriMo

So, I am going to attempt to do the challenge and stick to it (but am not confident enough to enroll in the challenge). However, I have like ten WIPs that I am working on, along with some new ideas I want to try in a different genre. This begs the question of what should I focus on? And the question is, can I only focus on one project?

The second question I can answer now. Nope. Focus has a different meaning in my mind.

Should I just count all the words I write between my various projects, then? But then, this presents a problem. I write a lot on my phone under a Notebook app, which does not have a word count feature. I guess I will just count the words I do on my computer.

Well, I have two days to figure it out.

So, all my writers, what you are planning on doing?

[katrinafaire]

This is such an important post, though? As writers, you can write for three potential audiences:

the bad faith people who are looking forward to misinterpreting and critiquing your work

the people who aren't really for or against you book; just not really their "thing"

the people who have been screaming with excitement, who love this genre as much as you do, who adore the plot line, who want this so much

It's easy to want everyone out there ever to like your book but that is statistically unlikely to happen. Who do you write for? Write for the people that showed up. The people excited, who want it, who want to talk about it with you and each other -- these people! These people are our audiences.

Indulge yourself, indulge them, play to what they came for and for heaven's sake don't throw in "twists" at the end that abruptly and without reason disappoint, shame, the readers and absolutely do not spit on the genre they picked up the book to read.

Be true to your audience.

Always weird when a fantasy story spends 95% of its time showing us how cool magic is, then in the last 5% switches gears to magic being bad actually and you should be happy it’s gone. What kind of person do they think reads/watches fantasy, exactly?