Nathan Bransford - The Forums

I write Urban Fantasy with hints of Psychological thriller (sounds like a cocktail). I want to branch out into Sci-fi and traditional Fantasy though.

I read fantasy, sci-fi, historical fiction and horror.

Thanks Dios4vida!

Like everyone else on the planet (okay, not really, but some days it feels like it), YA urban fantasy/gritty paranormal. What can I say? I grew up reading the stuff, plus sci-fi and horror, and still love adult urban fantasy. If it's by Jim Butcher, Simon R. Green, Kim Harrison, Douglas Adams, Neil Gaiman, etc, I've read it.

I'd probably be much happier if I wrote in a genre that had just a *little* less competition, but that's how it goes. There are too many monsters running around in my head for me to write a moving work of literary fiction that will influence people for generations. I'm happy if I just entertain people. I like to blame it on Stephen King and H.P. Lovecraft. They warped my poor young mind back in the day. ;-)

AMSchilling, competition is fun! Besides, imagine how good it would feel to beat the staggering odds and get published.

And Mira darling, I write fantasy. Love it. I currently have five characters, all with their own series, and every one of them is firmly in that genre - urban or otherwise. Like, dios4vida, I tend to get bored if there is no magical element.

I write fantasy, all the time, and I read quite a lot of it. I like to step outside of the genre every now and then, most of the time to pick up mystery books. I will never say no to a novel written by Henning Mankell.

I tend to write "heavy" fantasy, in the sense that I love worldbuilding and that I rarely set more than one or two novels in the same world. Most of what I write isn't YA, but while I can be cruel to characters, the story rarely are dark and gritty. I'm afraid I don't have G.R.R. Martin's talent for destruction (I wish).

But really, though, I'll pick up any good book that makes it to my bedside table. There's a pile on it at the moment, and it makes me wish I had more time.

I read much more non-fiction than fiction. Probably 50% of what I read are books about religion. Also, I'm always looking out for the latest from Seth Godin (marketing), the Heath brothers (business and marketing), Malcolm Gladwell (what do you call his stuff?), Donald Maas (writing), and C.S. Lewis (he hasn't written much lately.) I tend to love academic and/or classic political treatises as well.

In fiction, I'm all over the map. I love Dean Koontz and Stephen King and Michael Crichton. I grew up on Ray Bradbury and Isaac Asimov but haven't revisited them in more than a decade. I literally take whatever people recommend to me. My last was The Song is You by Phillips. Before that it was American Gods by Neil Gaiman. In my queue, I have The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky, Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon, The Gone Away World by Nick Harkaway and The Robe by Lloyd Douglas.

Oh, and my first novel is a love story about a husband who cheats, repents, and tries to win his wife's heart back, but gets caught in an intergalactic religious war. And his wife has to go save him. It's kind of a mix between Cold Mountain and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. I have no idea what genre it is. That may become clearer in the 3rd draft.

I read anything and everything. I tend to lean to literary fiction or crime/pyshological thrillers but also read some fantasy, some sci-fi, comedy, biographies and non-fiction.

Fave authors include Margaret Atwood, Neil Gaiman, Ruth Rendell and Agatha Christie!

As yet novel 1 is a psychological thriller so I guess I read my writing genre....

Heather, dearest, fantasy, awesome. I have one thing to say: hurry up. I love fantasy, and all of you great fantasy writers - hurry up and get published.

I want to read your books!

Just for you, Mira. And I'll be sure to include your post in my next query.

Heather, that's a good idea. I think it will make a big difference if you tell them you have a readership eagerly awaiting your book. :)


p.s. if you query Nathan, say 'hi' for me.

I write fantasy. How unique right? :)

Currently working on a YA urban fantasy, YA suburban fantasy (because I've decided it's only fair to have that as a genre), and an adult sci-fi novel for a change. Been known to write high fantasy as well if the planets are in alignment. Though my much neglected high fantasy manuscript is dangerously close to being straight up sci-fi, but you know, with swords.

Also have an idea for historical fiction. One of these days.

But yes, without magic I also tend to get bored. All us aspiring fantasy writers should start a club.

S.B. reads lit fic and nonfiction. I read science fiction/fantasy.

Our novel is fantasy/alternate history.

Go figure.

Emily J wrote:All us aspiring fantasy writers should start a club.

Yes, we really should!!! I didn't realize so many of us were fantasy people...I thought I was a lone, strange writer. I feel so...less freakish now. :)

dios4vida wrote:

Emily J wrote:All us aspiring fantasy writers should start a club.

Yes, we really should!!! I didn't realize so many of us were fantasy people...I thought I was a lone, strange writer. I feel so...less freakish now. :)

I should warn you, it could all be part of a nefarious plot to eliminate my competition.

I'm very sneaky sneaky :)

dios4vida wrote:

Emily J wrote:All us aspiring fantasy writers should start a club.

Yes, we really should!!! I didn't realize so many of us were fantasy people...I thought I was a lone, strange writer. I feel so...less freakish now. :)

Also on the plus side, fantasy sells. It's recession proof (like beer!).