I grew up reading Tolkien, Lewis, and Eddings, and if you read my work, you can see how those OG wizards influenced my writing. I tend to tell a slower story—the intrigue unfolds in increments. And that’s okay because I write epic fantasy, and we expect a fair amount of world-building and setting up from the genre.

But lately, I’ve been all about urban fantasy, especially paranormal romance. It’s my jam.

I’m so intrigued with this genre that I’ve written a quarter of a paranormal romance novel. The style, voice, and overall story progression are completely different from my earlier books. And I’m in love.

So, it makes sense that I’ve been thinking about what it takes to shift genres. Do tropes overlap? Are structural elements different? What advice would I give to other writers on this journey?

Because I’m making the shift from epic fantasy to urban fantasy/paranormal romance, the examples I use will be from those genres, but the advice will work for any genre. Let’s get to it.

Before You Change Genres, Read, Read, Read

And when you think you’ve read enough, read some more. There’s a reason writers are forever told that reading is part of our job.

We absorb knowledge from books.

By reading a small mountain of paranormal romance books, I’ve learned about the tropes used most commonly in the genre. For example, if he’s a tall, dark-haired dude with a broody expression, he’s likely the romantic interest. He’s also likely an alphahole or alpha who will probably drive the heroine to her wits end with his controlling tendencies.

In epic fantasy, if our protagonist encounters a wise old man on a hill, we know those proverbial electric guitars will usher us into the training sequence.

Even if we don’t know what certain tropes are called, we learn what they entail by encountering them in the genre. And by encountering tropes, we learn what works—the books with the highest sales are usually the books that use the most popular tropes to their advantage.

Because let’s be honest. We want to write successful books. Every author wants a TV series, movies, merch, and the whole nine yards resulting from their novel. The only way to do that is to appeal to the largest reading population.

So, when shifting to a new genre, it’s important to seek out the most successful books in that category. Read the smashing Booktok sensations and the titles with the most five-star reviews on Goodreads. Even if you end up loathing the trending books (which happens more often than I thought it would), it’s necessary to know what the masses want.

But don’t only read the popular books. I used to walk away from books I didn’t like all the time. Life’s too short to consume bad content, right? Wrong. I’m trying to learn the genre, and one of the easiest ways to do that is by finding out what I don’t like and why.

For example, there is a wildly successful author (I won’t name them) with many, many books under their name, and I don’t enjoy their work at all. Most of their books feature the same plot with the same characters, just with different names and descriptions. But I’ll continue reading titles by this author (and others like them) to learn which elements I don’t want to include in my books and why their books appeal to other readers. If I can break the code, maybe I can write books that attract a wider audience.

Keep a journal of how often you encounter specific tropes, and list the ways authors make those tropes their own. What would you have done differently and why? What did you like or hate about the way tropes were handled? Could you combine tropes or twist them to suit your needs?

It’s also important to note which tropes are interchangeable and which ones are a must in a genre. For example, a romance novel without a happily ever after or happy for now WILL NOT SELL. Romance readers expect a HEA or HFN and will walk away rabid if we don’t get one.

The same thing goes for epic fantasy. Picture this: We finally reach Book 8 in a series. The stakes are sky-high, and we’ve lost multiple characters along the way to reach this mind-blowing final battle. The protagonist gives a rousing speech. Tears are shed, and our hearts are pumping. The Big Bad glares at the protagonist across the battlefield… Aaand then the Big Bad slips and falls off their battle perch, breaking their neck and thus ending the fight without the protagonist engaging them. Readers will riot, I tell you.

Give the people what they want—no matter the genre.

Genre-Specific Style Elements

When changing genres, it’s important to note how story structure, pace, point of view, and other style elements function in your new genre.

For example, epic fantasy tends to feature multiple viewpoints. Sometimes, some of those viewpoints only stick around for a chapter or two, or voices from the cast come and go as the author needs them. Or, you know, kills them off.

Paranormal romance uses fewer viewpoints. If the author uses third POV, the story will usually be told from one or both of the romantic interests’ viewpoints. If the author chooses first POV, chances are there will be a single narrator (two at most).

Obviously, some books do their own thing, but this is the general rule of thumb.

Another example. As I mentioned earlier, epic fantasy tends to unfold slower. We must introduce the reader to a new world, magic system, religion, races, caste structures, etc, and it can be A LOT. A wall of text telling the reader how the world works might be the fastest way to get across world-building info, but it’s also the easiest way to bore or alienate readers. Instead, we have to dribble in the information, drop by drop, until the entire system makes sense. This takes time. (And that’s also why the first books in epic fantasy series are often the ones with the slowest pace.)

For example, George R.R. Martin doesn’t hit you with the dragons, massive-scale warfare, and pulse-heightening stakes in the first ten pages of A Game of Thrones. He sets us up before the drama is piled on.

Meanwhile, urban fantasy doesn’t require as much setup. Readers understand how the modern world works—we live in it. Therefore, most of the world-building happens on a smaller scale. If the real world now features fantastical creatures or magic, the reader only needs to be told how this modern setting interacts with the supernatural.

Because we’re cutting out so much world-building dribble, urban fantasy allows for a faster pace, character-driven plots, and familiar problems.

Not that epic fantasy doesn’t offer character-driven plots or familiar problems—it does. The difference is that epic fantasy typically features familiar problems on an epic scale, usually resulting in warfare. In urban fantasy, obstacles tend to be smaller, like a thief or murderer loose in the city. And sure, if the hero doesn’t stop said thief or murderer, things can progress to a global scale, but the problem is still manageable enough for the protagonist to handle without an army.

I’d say the difference between urban and epic fantasy is the same as watching an episode of your favourite crime drama versus a ten-hour, eight-part miniseries on the Greek gods.

Doesn’t matter if you’re switching from middle grade to true crime, from romance to horror, or simply YA to adult—you must seek out the differences between those genres. What is expected of you in terms of style? Which POV is most popular in your chosen genre? How will world-building differ, and what’s the best method to introduce the reader to your world?

Have anything to add? Let’s chat in the comments!

Until next time.

Yolandie