Too narrow for me

Let's face it. I'll always write books that are not romances - not in the narrow sense, anyway.

I have three choices - redefine a genre (m/m or gay fiction I thought was broad enough to allow the occasional maverick); conform; do something else.

Now, I can stretch the envelope, and I likely will, hoping to find enough readers that are tired of the same old formulaic stuff and are happy to take a risk. Which means a lot less sales, but hey, I'm hardly in it for the money.

Conforming is not an option. The day I write a book the way it's expected from me - and that's an art form and I respect anybody who can do that - is the day I go into ghostwriting (tried it, and it's sheer and pure horror).

Doing something else is tempting. If there's really only a 15 degree gap where everybody has to pass through to try and make a living writing - we're talking lowest common denominator stuff here - then I'll do something else. Then I'll focus my energy on making a writing career elsewhere. I might even go back to German. I might grow another "me" and publish "mainstream" novels as somebody else. It's just more work.

Whatever I do, the stories will keep coming. The muse keeps on singing.