As writers, most of us would admit to sometimes stifling our own potential because we’re afraid to fail at something new. In fact, most people can say that about their lives in general. But, because we are creative people, we have to expect more of ourselves than the status quo. But that expectation isn’t just limited to our lifestyles; we have to see new places, meet new people, and pursue new experiences—but we also have to push ourselves to try new things in the writing itself.

If you never experiment with your style, you’ll only ever be capable of what you’re already good at today. We’re hoping that you won’t be satisfied with just what you do well at this moment, but that you’ll try some of the following suggestions and push yourself to new heights in your writing.

In previous posts, we identified several genres and subgenres of fiction (See Genres Defined, Part I and Part II.) Here we’ll answer the question “What is a thriller?” and examine some of this popular genre’s subcategories.

Writers, especially inexperienced and unpublished writers, are usually advised to master writing in one genre at a time, and this is generally good advice. When you’re still learning your craft, it pays to focus on one thing at a time.

Less often, new writers are advised to experiment in several different genres to discover their strong points. For some, this exploration is a worthwhile learning experience.

If you have written a book or novel, you’ll want to be sure that it meets the basic criteria of book publishers and literary agents. Follow the rules of genre fiction (whether it’s romance, Western, thriller, fantasy, historical, sci-fi, or horror), and you are more likely to get your book published.

Creative nonfiction is a genre that holds great creative possibilities. It involves the use of factual events or characters to create dramatic nonfiction using techniques such as dialogue, scenery, and point of view.

It combines the fact-finding of journalism with the literary techniques of the fiction writer to create a dramatic story that just happens to be true. This is also called literary journalism, and, like journalism, it is a genre based on truth.