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What's that Genre? Part 2
Health - This one is rather self-explanatory, I believe. If it has to do with health, it should go here. Maybe it is exercise tips, maybe it is a blog about daily maintenance of exercise goals, maybe it is an essay about how to maintain a healthy puppy or kitten, maybe it is even a collection of recipes that are healthy for the body - no matter what it is, if it deals with the health of our bodies (or maybe even an animal's), it can go here.
History - History has such a broad sort of spectrum it can pull from. Most "history" is considered much like what we see in a classroom, and that is what definition I am going to use here. If it happened in the past - war, colonizing, development of culture, development of literature, development of relition, etc. - and we can learn from it, then it is history. We may use the term, "That's all history now," when talking of our own lives, and it may be history to YOU, but when others are searching for this genre, it is unlikely that is what they are looking for.
Hobby/Craft - My hobbies are reading, writing, making jewelry, singing, and any other thing I decide to dabble in at the moment. If I wanted to help someone get started in one of my hobbies, I might write an article and use this genre. If I wanted to talk about my hobbies, I could also use this genre. Maybe you have hobbies of gardening, or cooking, or so many other things - if it is a hobby (even if it borders on a career), you could put it here.
Holiday - This one might just get confusing for some. In Britain, a "holiday" can be a vacation. I believe, though, this particular genre points to items that are about a holiday; Christmas, Hanukkah, Halloween, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Grandparent's Day, (my personal favorite) Talk Like A Pirate Day, or many more.
Home/Garden - Oooh, now this one is hard for me. When it comes to gardening, I have quite the black thumb. If I were interested in starting a garden (and actually keeping it without killing every plant in it), I would look for this genre! It also covers homes, which could really be a variety of topics - repairs, making furniture, decorating, etc. I believe this particular genre would often be paired with another that I have on today's newsletter - How-to/Advice.
Horror/Scary - Now, I have to admit, this is one of my favorite genres. I love the occasional scare, chill up my spine, or wrinkle of my nose when the picture in my mind shows me something quite disgusting. I have friends that write amazing Horror/Scary stories, and I only wish that I could write a story that was half as talented as theirs! Horror/Scary is the kind of story that makes you wonder if you're going to be able to sleep at night after you read it! I love it.
How-To/Advice - Do you know how to do something that you think others might be interested in learning? Well here you go! This is the genre for it! (Oh, and let me know some of those, too. I love learning how to do new things!)
Inspirational - This is another one of those controversial genres. What is inspirational to one is not necessarily inspirational to another, so I see a lot of reviews that say, "That wasn't inspirational! Blah, blah, blah, poo!" Well, don't worry about it. If you hope it might inspire someone, or it has inspired you, put it in this genre. It doesn't hurt to have it on there.
Internet/Web - Haha, no, you don't put this one on there just because your item is on the web. All of our items are on the web.  However, if it is ABOUT the web, put it under this genre.
Legal - The legal genre is very interesting to me. There was a time when I considered becoming a lawyer, and I decided on becoming a teacher instead. As it is, even with the different job, I have to know a LOT about legal things, at least pertaining to teaching. Legal issues are actually faced by every person alive at one time or another - the legal speed limits, legally parking a car, even how long our lawn is allowed to be before we are fined. As such, literally every person might have an article or story they might want to write about different legalities. Have at it!
Medical - This is one I don't expect to see too much here - medical journals would be the most likely place to run into an article about medicine. or newspapers, I suppose. However, we may get the occasional article here about medicine. Particularly because the majority of the nation has to visit a doctor at one time or another.
Melodrama - All of us hear of "drama". Well, a melodrama is the kind of story that exaggerates plots and characters in such a way that they try to appeal to your emotions. They want to tug those strings inside of you to make you cry, or laugh, or get angry. Melodrama is mixed with so many different genres - very often with Romance. It could even pair well with Horror!
Men's - Well, what can I say? Men, this is for you. Like those guy movies that blow things up and have jiggly parts, this genre is made just for men. It could talk about men's health, or even just have some of those stories that women might shy a bit more away from (though that is not to say that no women would like them - I actually love the occasional blow-everything-up-everyone-dies sort of movies).
Military - Near and dear to my heart because of my father's part in the military, this genre has to do with just that. Stories about experiences in the war, whether fictional or non-fictional, articles on the wars they are fighting, or simply stories about our military men in general can fit right in with this genre.
Music - La, la! Are you writing a song? Are you writing an article about how music touched your life? Perhaps an article how music can affect moods? Do you have a band you love, and you've written a story or article about one of their artists or attending a concert? Here you go!
Mystery - Mystery is one of my all time favorites. When I am going to read, more often than not, I am picking up a mystery novel. I simply adore the intrigue, and I am always trying to figure out the solution for myself. Sherlock Holmes, Scooby Doo, Hercule Poirot, Matlock, Encyclopedia Brown and many other television and literary characters have helped to shape what we know of as Mystery for all ages.
Mythology - Ooooh, we are touching on many of my favorites this time! Mythology is another one that I love - I lean more toward Greek and Roman mythology, but mythology can be found in many more places than that. This one was harder for me, so I had to look it up, and this is what I found. Myths are symbolic tales of the distant past (often primordial times) that concern cosmogony and cosmology (the origin and nature of the universe), may be connected to belief systems or rituals, and may serve to direct social action and values.
Nature - If your article or story has some tidbits about nature - perhaps it speaks of different sorts of trees, or how to tell a bird from its song - then it belongs in this genre. I do believe that there are things put in this genre mistakenly - if your story takes place in the woods, it doesn't necessarily mean that it is a nature story. It means your setting is in the woods, yes, but unless you speak of actual nature within it, it does not belong in this genre.
News - This genre is actually a bit controversial, I'd think. We call a lot of things "news". Did you hear the news? Sandy had a baby girl! However, when it comes to genre, news is more like something you would hear on a news station, or in a newspaper. Polls about who the next president will be - that's news. News is something that would be circulated through more than just a few people.
Nonsense - I actually typed nonsense into Google.com, just to see what would come up. The first link actually referenced wikipedia, and stated the following: Nonsense is a communication, via speech, writing, or any other symbolic system, that lacks any coherent meaning. I tend to think of Alice in Wonderland, where Alice would have a world of nonsense, if she could. Nonsense is actually hard to write, and when most people try to write nonsense, they end up making sense in the long run. Maybe that should be a challenge for our next newsletter!
Occult - This word is defined in so many different ways, I think the best way to describe what sort of items should go in this sort of topic is to show the different ways in which it is defined:
 Wikipedia says: The word occult comes from the Latin word occultus (clandestine, hidden, secret), referring to "knowledge of the hidden"....The word has many uses in the English language, popularly meaning "knowledge of the paranormal"...
thefreedictionary.com says: occult (-klt, klt) 1. Of, relating to, or dealing with supernatural influences, agencies, or phenomena.
dictionary.com says: the supernatural or supernatural agencies and affairs considered as a whole (usually preceded by the).
In short, I believe it has to do with the belief that we, as humans, can perform supernatural feats, or contact supernatural beings, or other such things.
Opinion - Oh, don't we all have a lot of these! We all do have opinions, and many of us state them, as we well should. I think this genre is far underused on this site. There are so, so many blogs, articles, etc. that state opinion, but do not have this in the list of genres.
Paranormal - Things that are paranormal have so much more than just ghosts to deal with. Anything that seems like it may have some influence on the afterlife could fit into this genre. Have some fun with it! This genre could be mythical, it could be spooky, it could be downright hair-raising, and it could even be mysterious.
Parenting - If it has to do with angsty teenagers, changing diapers, stubborn eaters, or even talking-backers, it probably goes in this area. This is different from the "Children's" genre, because the Children's genre actually covers a kind of story written for children. Parenting is unlikely to be a story genre - but it would be very common as a blog, article, or other sort of non-fiction type situation.
Personal - Personal is certainly a wide genre. If we are honest, everything we post on this site is likely personal in one manner or another. It takes something special to put our writing out there for everyone to see, and it is OURS, therefore it is personal. However, I think this genre refers more to something that relates back to you; something that means a lot to you.
Pets - I have added a few of these to my household recently, and I know many, many WdCers that have pets. I have written stories about pets I've had in the past, and if I'm perfectly honest, I believe I forgot to put this one in the genres! I'll have to go back and look. If your item is about man's best friend (or even a kitty), here is where it should be.
Philosophy - Any time I think of philosophy, I think back to a class I had the opportunity to take in high school called Theory of Knowledge. It is a very deep topic. It questions what is reality and what is imagined, it questions what is true and what is false, it questions, it questions, it questions. If you truly want a look at what Philosophy is, I suggest the book Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder.
Political - Goodness, with this being an election year, politics is on most everyone's lips. Parties, people, agendas, mudslinging, opinions, Presidents, Senators, Congressman, Representatives, candidates *gasps*... there's a lot. If it has to do with the elections or things going on in this country on the governmental level, it goes in this genre.
Psychology - When I think of psychology, I think of the question "Why?" Why does someone behave the way they do? Why do all children seem to go through the same stages? It is all about development - mental and behavioral characteristics.
Reference - The reference genre usually refers to books that can be used as reference - encyclopedias, dictionaries, etc. However, this genre could also go with a list of references, like a bibliography.
Regional - Regional will typically refer to something based on a certain geographic area. The southwest, for example, would be an example of a region, and a story related to its history or a myth related to it would be considered regional.
Relationship - This is a very wide genre. Relationships don't necessarily have to be romantic, there are so many different kinds. There are relationships between family members, friends, co-workers, etc. Anything that has to do with something like that would fit in this genre. This is not often a genre that stands alone - it is usually paired with others.
Religious - I think the biggest mistake made with this is assuming that religion means "Christian". That is not the case. There are many world religions, and they would all fit into this genre.
Research - This genre would lean toward more academic writing. Things that need to be researched before making decisions and putting it down on paper (or on the screen, as is the case here).
Reviewing - While there is a scene for reviewing products and published books, I believe this genre is more specifically geared toward this website. The one most unique and most awesome thing about this site is its reviewing system, and here is a genre designed for you to dive into it in ways other than actual reviewing.
Romance/Love - Oh, I think this one needs little explanation. If it's ushy, gooshy, spicy, or sweet... it likely goes here.
Satire - According to Google definitions, satire is "the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices." Some examples of satires would include The Simpsons, Brave New World, Animal Farm, Lord of the Flies, Fahrenheit 451, and many others. It is a fascinating genre probably best described by the books that lie within it.
Sci-fi - Ahh, the genre of science fiction. It is one of my favorites! I think that a common misconception is that it must involve space or flying cars. Indeed, while that does fit into the genre, that is not the only interpretation. This genre is for anything futuristic, so apocalypse type stories can also fit here quite well.
Scientific - Since Science Fiction covers the fictional portion of this topic, I think that Scientific would lean more toward the non-fiction. Scientific journals, scientific observations, all could fit here.
Self Help - I believe the name of this genre speaks for itself - if it involves improving one's self, it goes here.
Spiritual - I believe this genre is much like religious, so I will simply refer you back up that way.
Sports - Also rather self-explanatory. Hehe. Do we have any future broadcasters out there?
Steampunk - This genre is very much a mixture of something old and something new (usually mechanical in nature). At least, in part. It is considered sci-fi, but much of the background (clothing, mannerisms, etc.) seem more medieval in nature. The main form of power for the machinery would be steam, thus the name of the genre - steampunk.
Supernatural - Supernatural would be anything that refers to a force beyond scientific understanding. It might be very closely linked to paranormal, but not necessarily are the same. |
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Noticing Newbies: September 25, 2019 Issue [#9768]
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