Why is "Literary Fiction vs. Genre Fiction" Even a Thing?
Author’s Note: With an upcoming submission call, I set out to type up a fun little “Why Silver Apples Loves Genre Fiction” post, as our last issue consisted of mostly literary fiction and we wanted to balance the scales. However, as I set out to detail why we wanted genre fiction for Issue 13, I came across a serious quandary: What do “literary fiction” and “genre fiction” even mean? As I took to Google and Bing and Reddit, I had a hard time finding any clear cut answers, and completely lost track of what I had originally planned to write in the first place. So, without further ado, here is my take on the “Lit Fic vs. Genre Fic” debate AKA “Why this way of categorizing literature doesn’t make any sense” (Silver Apples Staff approved)
Mom, Is Literature Having a Fight?
Apparently, genre fiction and literary fiction are at war and, according to the internet, it looks kinda like this:
Team Genre Fic: “Literary fiction is just so, ugh, boring. How could you expect a teenager let alone anyone to enjoy Tess of the d'Urbervilles? Gimme dragons! Gimme aliens!”
Team Lit Fic: “Oh yeah? And how many Bookers has your story about hobbits been nominated for? Call me when academia decides to take you seriously or you write something remotely unique.”
Wha? This battle between the two camps makes just about as much sense as like, any war, ever, and by that we mean that it’s a contrived chest-thumping competition between two vaguely defined entities who truly believe that their subjective opinion is truth. The fight has flared up on and off for the last 80 years or so, and most of the news articles about the subject haven’t been able to decide a clear winner.
While exact definitions of each side are a bit vague, most seem to agree that “Genre Fiction” can be categorized into fantasy, science fiction, horror, western, romance, crime, etc., and “Literary Fiction” cannot. Here are some acceptable definitions that I found on the inter-webs:
Genre Fiction
“Genre fiction, also known as popular fiction, is a term used in the book-trade for fictional works written with the intent of fitting into a specific literary genre, in order to appeal to readers and fans already familiar with that genre.”
— “Genre Fiction” via Wikipedia
Literary Fiction
“Literary fiction novels are considered works with artistic value and literary merit. They often include political criticism, social commentary, and reflections on humanity. Literary fiction novels are typically character-driven, as opposed to being plot-driven, and follow a character’s inner story.”
—”What Are the Different Genres of Literature? A Guide to 14 Literary Genres” via MasterClass
By these definitions, it seems like the main purpose of “Genre Fiction” is to entertain, and its stories are constrained by very specific rules (therefore predictable and formulaic) while “Literary Fiction” is only bestowed upon works that are free of conventional “genre” tropes (and thus more deserving of prestigious recognition from the literary community at large).
Hm. Okay, okay, okay, there a few problems here. Let’s dig in.
1. The comparison doesn’t logically make sense
First, a thought exercise.
What’s objectively better? A banana, or a fruit? A cat, or an animal? How about an Xbox, or a video game console?
If you find these questions difficult to answer, you also should find it equally impossible to take a side in the “Lit Fic vs. Gen Fic” debate.
Why, you ask? Because Literary Fiction is a literary genre just like Romance or Horror is: It can be characterized by similarities in form, style, and subject matter. In general, Romances tell a love story between two people and provides an emotionally satisfying conclusion, Horrors exploit and create fear to scare readers, and Lit Fic explores the human condition via the inner lives of its characters and quite often ends ambiguously.
The term “Genre Fiction” on the other hand, is kind of silly. Let’s break it down: “genre,” as you know, is a category of artistic composition, as in characterized by similarities in form, style, or subject matter, and “fiction” is literature in the form of prose that describes imaginary events and people. In this light, the argument of the “Lit Fic vs. Gen Fic” debate is not Literary Fiction vs. all other genres. It’s Literary Fiction vs. the fact that most literature fits into one genre or the other. It’s as if you are listening to an argument where a person says, “I only like Oscar-winning films!” and the other goes, “Oh yeah? Well, I like film genres!”
2. Literary merit has nothing to do with genre
Genre and literary merit are real things, sure, but genre is a method and merit is a result.
Now, if literary fiction is just as much a genre as fantasy or crime or thriller, then why is it characterised as having more artistic value and literary merit? Because it’s the only genre that endures across time and culture? Right, okay.
1984 is a dystopian science fiction
Frankenstein is a gothic horror
The Odyssey is an epic adventure tale that would probably be considered a fantasy by today’s standards
Okay, fine. Is it because literary fiction exclusively takes home the most prestigious literary awards?
Check out a few of the recent Man Booker winners and their categories:
2015 — A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James: experimental fiction, historical fiction, literary fiction
2017 — Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders: experimental fiction, historical fiction, magical realism
2019 — The Testaments by Margaret Atwood: dystopian fiction, science fiction
I GOT IT, it’s because literary fiction has more rounded characters and a deeper reflection on society, right?
Sorry again! Look at any of the above and you’ll be able to write any number of literary critiques on their themes, characterisation, and social commentary. Belonging to any specific genre does not guarantee the quality of a story. Sure, there are tremendously powerful stories and characters that stick with you in the realm of literary fiction, but there are just as many in the other categories and all of them can both entertain and teach you something.
3. What you enjoy reading comes down to taste
This one is pretty simple. If you want to have a fair debate concerning literature, ask someone what their favorite genre is, and don’t be upset if their opinion is different from yours. Sure, you might enjoy one genre more than the other, but this depends entirely on your taste and it absolutely cannot be touted as an objective truth or be used to discount other genres.
Anyways, why can’t you enjoy a story about a young woman facing the challenges of sexual morality in the late-Victorian age and a high-fantasy epic about the battle between good and evil? Spoiler alert: you can. In our opinion, you shouldn’t limit yourself to only one genre, especially when there is such a varied canon of literature out there. What’s better than a world that celebrates the diversity of creativity? Why can’t we all just get along? We’re all about that peace and love, man.
The takeaway?
A well-written story is genre-blind,
it surpasses its labels and aims for the heart.
What we like to publish in our magazine has nothing to do with the author’s genre of choice. Instead, we look at stories for how they are written:
Does the author have a distinctive voice?
Does it have a good mix of familiar elements and originality?
Is there some sort of conflict that is clear to the reader?
and, most importantly,
Does it make us feel by the time we reach the end? Does it stay with us for a while?
Our point is that, here at Silver Apples, we fervently believe that all brands of fiction (yes, all of them) hold value and they should be judged for how they are written, not by what genre they can be categorized into. We love stories for what they say and how they entertain us. Whether a story explores wider societal themes through allegory or realism or is written just for the sheer joy of it, what matters most to us is that we celebrate creative expression via the written word.