Dani
asked
Josh Lanyon:
I have a question that has been on my mind since reading your unique and simply wonderfull "Come Unto These Yellow Sands". Have you written in other genres besides mystery and/or romance? Do you feel these genres are a perfect fit or do you sometimes feel restricted by their rules and conventions?
Josh Lanyon
Hi Dani,
Thank you for your kind comments -- I love this question!
With the exception of non-fiction and poetry, almost everything I write has a strong element of mystery and romance. And that's probably a very natural pairing given that what I find interesting in both genres is motive. What attracts people to each other is often as unfathomable as what sparks people to kill each other. Love and hate are the two most powerful emotions -- and motivators -- out there. They are the opposite side of the same coin, and that coin funds how most of us spend our lives...either loving or hating our way through our allotted years. I find this dichotomy endlessly fascinating.
Anyway, that probably doesn't answer your question. ;-) What I originally liked so much about the Male/Male Romance sub-genre was that there were really very few rules, which made it perfect for someone like me who wanted to write non-traditional characters in non-traditional relationships--and wanted to do all that while overlapping genres.
A book like CUTYS is largely a traditional mystery but it violates one of (traditional) mystery's most dearly held tropes -- not that you can't get away with that in traditional mystery, but it's a harder sell. Readers of Male/Male fiction are, almost by definition, more adventurous and open-minded (well, mostly). They're willing to go with that narrative flow and see what happens.
Having said that, I do respect the discipline of genre and the refinements of literary tradition. I can see why some writers get frustrated, but for me it's about mastering an art. Not everyone can do it. But being someone who can master an art...is something to be proud of.
So while I'll push the lines now and again, I'm not interested in completely shattering the boundaries. Maneuvering within those boundaries is often what makes the work so challenging and interesting.
Thank you for your kind comments -- I love this question!
With the exception of non-fiction and poetry, almost everything I write has a strong element of mystery and romance. And that's probably a very natural pairing given that what I find interesting in both genres is motive. What attracts people to each other is often as unfathomable as what sparks people to kill each other. Love and hate are the two most powerful emotions -- and motivators -- out there. They are the opposite side of the same coin, and that coin funds how most of us spend our lives...either loving or hating our way through our allotted years. I find this dichotomy endlessly fascinating.
Anyway, that probably doesn't answer your question. ;-) What I originally liked so much about the Male/Male Romance sub-genre was that there were really very few rules, which made it perfect for someone like me who wanted to write non-traditional characters in non-traditional relationships--and wanted to do all that while overlapping genres.
A book like CUTYS is largely a traditional mystery but it violates one of (traditional) mystery's most dearly held tropes -- not that you can't get away with that in traditional mystery, but it's a harder sell. Readers of Male/Male fiction are, almost by definition, more adventurous and open-minded (well, mostly). They're willing to go with that narrative flow and see what happens.
Having said that, I do respect the discipline of genre and the refinements of literary tradition. I can see why some writers get frustrated, but for me it's about mastering an art. Not everyone can do it. But being someone who can master an art...is something to be proud of.
So while I'll push the lines now and again, I'm not interested in completely shattering the boundaries. Maneuvering within those boundaries is often what makes the work so challenging and interesting.
More Answered Questions
Cider
asked
Josh Lanyon:
Hi,I love your Adrien English Mystery series!!Questions:1.How long would Jake really have waited for Adrien and would Jake really move to another state when they didn't get together when they did?2.Between Adrien and Jake, who would be the one doing the proposing?3.Will there be a possibility of you writing the scene when Jake begged for Adrien's life? Thank you so much and I can't wait to read So This Is Christmas :)
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