How does literary fiction differ from genre fiction? There are several differences, but also a lot of similarities. It’s a type of fiction where people win awards, considered a prestige category. It’s normally the kind that you are assigned to read in school.
Literary Fiction Definition
Literary fiction’s definition is: a category of novels that emphasize character, theme, and style over plot. Basically, if you have a work that is more concerned with the inner character arc over the plot and moving it forward, that work is a literary work.
There is a lot of crossover between genre fiction and literary fiction. The determining factor is if the work is focused on the plot, or other elements of literature. If you are writing something, and you think it will be awesome to write the entire thing without using the letter c or something, to emphasize your character’s complex emotions around their own cock; that is going to be a literary piece. If, however, said character is going around killing people with a chainsaw that he calls Zip instead of using the word chainsaw (because of the letter c) then, it may be more of a horror novel. However, it does depend on how it’s written more than anything.
Differences in Vocabulary
Literary novels have a tendency to use words like magical realism (instead of fantasy) and verisimilitude when talking about great world-building. Because this is a ‘prestige’ category, they have a tendency to use different words from other genres when they mean the same thing. The books are normally about the inner journey about one person. Someone said that genre works are about extraordinary events happening to regular people, and literary works are about ordinary events happening to extraordinary people. Basically, plot v. character driven.
Length
The length of the literary novel: anywhere between 40 and 120,000 words, new authors should stick between 70 and 100,000 words. Good advice for any new author to any genre, if you are attempting to get traditionally published, do not submit something over 100,000 words. Also, do not say that it’s the first in a series of 17 or whatever. Although queries are their own thing, their own post.
Thank you for reading!! Let me know if this information is helpful or if you would like me to write about something different.
