Do you write the same genres you read?

[vapidink]

Been wondering about this because I see a lot of people that might, for example, say they don't like reading romance, but they write romance. I love fantasy stories, but I haven't written any--or at least, I haven't posted any. Most of my stories are superhero stories, sci-fi, action, comedy, romance, and some niche stuff like dream punk. There's some WIPs that are fantasy, but I keep pushing them aside to work on other stuff. My latest story will be the first time I go full on wizards and magic, but even then it's a modern setting.

So yeah, what kinda stuff do you all like to read and do you write the same kinda thing or just do something completely different? If you don't, what is it that keeps you from writing in genres you enjoy reading?

[Wirdhere]

Absolutely, Reading other slice of lifes gives me inspiration on what to do in my own. tropes that i personally like and ideas for types of characters. also if another Slice of Annoys me ill know what to avoid in my own writing.

[vapidink]

That's a good point. I do get some cool ideas from reading fantasy for what I like and don't like in my WIPs. I used to read a lot of horror stories and I really picked up some things that are sorta annoying and make me drop a story.

[TheSingularitySeed]

I used to only like fantasy

But when I started making fantasy, I found myself consuming less of it.
I think I get too analytical now when I read fantasy. It's like I'm always trying to learn instead of enjoying myself.

Other genres are easier to enjoy as is. Most of my currently reading comics are at least part romance now so I guess that's what I like to read lol

What stops me from writing romance is that I wouldn't be good at it.
Apparently genre conventions require a happy ending and I love mess and chaos too much.

[vapidink]

That happened to me with horror when I was writing a short story. Still love the genre but I stopped reading it as much for a while.

Romance is always tough for me because it's hard to add some conflict without it being too much drama so I have to make romance the secondary genre to make it work. That one time I wrote a pure romance story people seemed to like it, but I dunno, that story has its issues, lol.

[powerplantanimations]

Some genres are fun to write while others are just fun to read.

[GumshoeComix]

I actually tend to read and watch more sci-fis and slice-of-life stuff which I think are some of the few genres I've never written

[ueonts]

I should probably think about genre more. I generally just write whatever premise comes to mind and sometimes that is a totally different genre than I am used to. This can be bad sometimes since it means I am not "writing what I know" but it just depends.

[TheLemmaLlama]

if another Slice of Annoys me ill know what to avoid in my own writing.

Lmao I actively get content for my own stories based on what annoys me in other stories, because I feel the need to not just avoid them, but subvert them XD

I generally just write whatever premise comes to mind and sometimes that is a totally different genre than I am used to.

Basically I don't think this means you have to think about genre more though; I feel like the premise came to your mind for a reason, signifying that you 'know'/have a feeling for this topic in a deeper (even if less obvious) sense than a 'genre you're familiar with' level

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Anyways, to actually answer this thread myself:

What’s your favorite genre to read and to create?

I mean ... I don't really go by genre much when looking for thing to read; I mostly lean towards themes moreso than genres. So I wouldn't say slice-of-life/romance/drama is my 'favourite genre to read' in the sense that my favourite stories will be in those genres, but I probably lean towards those because they're harder to screw up; I'm less likely to drop them like a hot potato within the first chapter because they're making my head hurt.

I also like to write slice-of-life and drama, but I also like to go ham on the worldbuilding with fantasy XD I would say my writing tastes and reading tastes are pretty in sync, because I would absolutely adore a fantasy story with well-developed and presented worldbuilding (or maybe just presentations of worldbuilding I'm biased towards, given my own methods :P), but I don't tend to enjoy enough fantasy stories as a whole to declare that I like it as a genre (only that this genre has a high chance of topping my zomgamazing list - but it also has a high chance of bottoming my tc;dr (too confusing, didn't read) list :P)

[pixxiepinks]

I actually answered this question on a different thread not long ago, so I'm going to be a cheater and just copy the same post.

To read, it would definitely have to be fantasy (only once in a blood moon do I ever read anything that's not, and the things I do read outside of that would probably fall into the mystery/crime genre.)

I also write exclusively in Fantasy. But "Fantasy" is such a huge hard-to-define genre, that can pretty much mean a tiny unbelievable element all the way to LOTR and Dungeons and Dragons. And because Fantasy is such a huge and varied genre, I'll get a bit more specific and tell you the themes I always seem to end up writing into my works (and the themes I love to read!):

Pantheons (I don't know why, but I love writing stories that include multiple gods, and it's a theme in pretty much all my works. I really enjoy exploring the interesting tangle of emotions and meanings with divinity (Which is also why a lot of my works contain divine horror and trials of faith) If we are made in the image of the gods, then what does that say about the divine?)

Identity (What makes a person a person? It's a big question, and one I find myself often weaving into the narrative as the MC meets creatures and people from different backgrounds and/or species. At what point do we draw the line between monster and man?)

Family (I love reading stories where the main cast becomes a family unit, something that can never really be separated, a family of choice not blood. Perhaps because it mirrors my own real-life experiences with family,(with blood-family taking you for granted and found-family actually appreciating you) I always incorporate elements of the MC choosing who is theirs and vice versa. The Blood of the convenient is thicker than the water of the womb)

There are a few more tropes I use a lot, like there always being a child main character or LGBTQ+ themes, but I'll stop here before I ramble on forever.

[Glofernwolfe]

Nope, I read historical fiction and fatnasy. But I end up wiritng science fiction lol. Somehow reading never inspires me to write (but it's absoloutely important that I read everyday). Movies, cartoon series etc, these are things that inspire me to write. I don't know why my brain is so weird.

[Lensing]

I write songs in the genre that I mostly listen to and I read a lot of different genres and
write the genres that I grew up with and loved as a teenager