In another in the Writer’s Digest series on Mistakes Writers Make, editor-in-chief Amy Jones discusses something we didn’t know was a thing: Writers shaming other writers over genre.
“’Guilty’ pleasures shouldn’t exist; they should just be pleasures,” Jones says. “Romance novels with shirtless men on the cover may not be for everyone, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t for someone. Or a lot of someones.”
If you accept the fact that your writing will not be for everyone, you can resist the attempts to make you feel shame over writing what you like, Jones says. “So when you’re making the choice about what direction your manuscript should go, what genre to venture into next, what monsters or love story or outlandish subplot to include, make those decisions based on what brings you joy and excitement,” Jones says. “Your considerations should never be about what other people—whether that’s your family, friends, co-workers, or the random person on the internet—find shameful or silly.”
We agree wholeheartedly.
