I know exactly what you mean. When I tell people I write romance/chick-lit, some get I can just see them thinking, “Romance? Poor woman must not be able to write anything else.”

When I tell people that I write feature articles for a newspaper, I get more of a “Wow. That’s really interesting” response.

I’ll admit that I have my preferences when it comes to reading. I’m not a big sci-fi or horror fan. But anybody that can sit down and write well — whether it’s a 10-line poem or a 150,000 word sci-fi novel — has got my respect. 🙂

Have you thought about using a pen name for one part of your work? That’s what Nora Roberts does. Her romances are published under NR, but her sci-fi mysteries are written under the name J.D. Robb.

Using a pen name is an easy way for authors to write in more than one genre without alienating their fans.

Jennifer (who one day hopes to actually have fans)

Thanks for this post! Myself, I write “literary” poetry and fiction, and I write “genre” — horror and science fiction. People really do discriminate, from both sides. Almost nobody I know reads the full range of work that I’m interested in, or responds to both of these two sides of my own writing. But, to me, there has always been continuity. Good writing is good writing, and I can’t generate much interest in the divisions that some find so essential.