Christian Speculative Fiction discussion

Hey all! I am needing help with classifying my book for promos. I can find very few promotion sites that have speculative fiction as a category. It is a quest story, and does have some fantasy (angels/demons) and action/adventure (thriller?) qualities, but I'm not sure it can be fully classified a these, and it is a little frustrating that very few promo sites have any sub-genres beneath Christian. Anyway, there are a few cuss words in the book, and it is religion heavy (Biblical based history), but definitely designed for the general public and not just Christians. Anyone in a similar boat? How do you list your books when advertising with promos?

This is an excellent question! Here are my thoughts:

"Speculative fiction" is an extremely broad category that covers so many genres and sub-genres that it's not really useful for promotional purposes. Saying something is speculative fiction is basically saying it involves elements outside of what most people think of as reality, but that could be anything from historical fantasy to post-apocalyptic thriller, and everything in-between. I don't think there's a solid promotional audience for "anything speculative", as most people tend to prefer more specific genres.

Here are some of the genres that come to mind for me when looking at your book:

Apocalyptic/Post-Apocalyptic - You describe the book as being set in what appears to be a near-future version of Earth with an apocalyptic scenario taking place.

Supernatural - Yes, the word "supernatural" often conjures images of ghosts and vampires, but angels and demons actually fall inside the genre as well. One good example of this is the TV show Supernatural which has a wide non-Christian viewer base.

Action/Adventure/Thriller - While not specifically spec-fic genres, these genres describe the overall tone of your book and are helpful for categorical purposes (for example, you wouldn't want someone mistaking it for a romance).

Christian/Christian Fiction - I'd say if the book deals heavily with themes from Biblical history, it could go in the Christian category. Even though you designed it for a general audience, I know there are plenty of Christians out there who enjoy reading Christian-themed adventure/thrillers and we have quite a few authors here who write them, so you'll definitely want to let that audience know your book is out there. If a promo site doesn't have any sub-genres for Christian literature, that can be frustrating, but I would say you're safe to add this to any general Christian book list and see what happens.

I hope that helps!

Thanks, T.K. :) I'll keep plugging into these genres then!

-Crystal


T.K. wrote: "This is an excellent question! Here are my thoughts:

"Speculative fiction" is an extremely broad category that covers so many genres and sub-genres that it's not really useful for promotional purp..."

No problem, I wish you and your book all the best!

Hi Crystal. I was in your same boat. I wrote a Christian Fiction book that some told me was Spec-Fi, but it didn't have what I considered Fantasy, Science Fiction, and such. It was post-apocalyptic, but barely futuristic. I entered it in a Reading contest in five different categories. I ended up winning the Silver medal in Christian/General. Now I'm not sure how to market it.

I've had the same problem. Amazon decided for me and put my contemporary visits to Hell as 'Speculative Fiction' which, in a way, it is. Once your book is on Amazon, they seem to have algorithms which can do the job for you.