#InkRipples Genres- MYSTERY

This month #InkRipples is focusing on genre, and today I will be taking a look at mystery.

To me, mystery is one of the easier genres to identify. Does your main story line center around answering "Who done it?" Then you've got yourself a mystery.

Like romance, mystery has several sub genres including:

• Cozy
• Police Procedural
• Suspense
• Noir
• Legal Thriller
• Medical Thriller

There can be romance in a mystery, but it isn't the driving plot of the story. Take cozy mysteries for example. The ones I've read have been a series where the heroine has a normal day job (baker, teacher, librarian, etc.) and stumbles across a murder that she helps the hero, usually a detective, solve. The heroine usually belongs to some kind of club (knitting, book, etc.) that is involved in helping to solve the mystery. During the course of the books, the heroine and hero develop a relationship. So, while there is romance, the main point of the story is to solve the murder, making this a mystery and not a romance.

All that being said, it doesn't mean a reader of romance wouldn't enjoy a cozy mystery (or any other mystery for that matter), but you don't want to mislead your reader into thinking they are getting a romance when, to them, it might not be.

What are your favorite types of mysteries? Who are some of your favorite mystery authors? Share in the comments below!

Next week we'll wrap things up with a look at Fantasy.

#InkRipples is a themed meme hosted by Katie L. Carroll, Kai Strand, and me, Mary Waibel. We post on the first Monday of every month. If you would like to participate compose your own post regarding the theme of the month, include any of the images displayed on the #InkRipples tab above, and link back to our three blogs. Feel free to post whenever you want during the month, but be sure to include #InkRipples when you promote so readers can find you. The idea is that we toss a word or idea into the inkwell and each post is a new ripple. There is no wrong interpretation.

This year's topics are:

• February: Genres
• March: Tropes
• April: Revision
• May: Fairy Tales
• June: Blurbs
• July: Heroes/Villains
• August: Author Options in Publishing
• September: World Building
• October: Career vs Hobby
• November: Finishing that Book!
• December: Goals

#InkRipples~Genres

This month #InkRipples is tackling the topic of genres. After an author has written their novel, they need to decide what genre it belongs in.

Sometimes choosing the correct genre can seem confusing, especially if the story contains elements from more than one genre. Let’s take a look at the genre possibilities.

According to Wikipedia, the main classical genres of writing are:

• Fiction
• Comedy
• Drama
• Horror
• Non-fiction
• Realistic fiction
• Romance 
• Satire
• Tragedy
• Tragicomedy
• Fantasy

That’s quite a list!

My writing and reading preferences tend to fall into three genres. They are:

• Romance
• Mystery
• Fantasy

So, how do I know where my story belongs? Throughout the month, we’ll take a look at these three genres to see why a story belongs there. Come join me next week for a look at romance!!

Don't forget to check out Katie L. Carroll, Kai Strand and the other #InkRipples posters (follow the tag on Twitter and Facebook!) Want to join in? Keep reading for more information.

Ripples in the Inkwell is a themed meme hosted by Katie L. Carroll, Kai Strand, and me, Mary Waibel. We post on the first Monday of every month. If you would like to participate compose your own post regarding the theme of the month, include any of the images displayed on the #InkRipples tab above, and link back to our three blogs. Feel free to post whenever you want during the month, but be sure to include #InkRipples when you promote so readers can find you. The idea is that we toss a word or idea into the inkwell and each post is a new ripple. There is no wrong interpretation.

This year's topics are:

February: Genres
March: Tropes
April: Revision
May: Fairy Tales
June: Blurbs
July: Heroes/Villains
August: Author Options in Publishing
September: World Building
October: Career vs Hobby
November: Finishing that Book!
December: Goals