Carol’s comment in my last post got me to thinkin’. She said her suspense novel is turning into a romance. I’ve done that, started writing one kind of story and it turned into another, as if the story knew what it wanted to be and was going to be it whether I liked it or not. I wrote an urban fantasy once that turned romantic really quickly. I always wanted to have that element of romance in there, but it started taking over. Luckily, I was able to rein it in somewhat, but it ended up being a major theme.
In fact, I can recall seeing the phenomenon in books that I’ve read, too. It feels like one story, and then you get about halfway through, and it turns into a different story entirely. The author never got around to changing the front to match the back, or vice-versa.
Who’s had a story wander completely into left field? Do all your international terrorism novels turn into steampunk? Does romance creep into all your works, including zombie horror? Inquiring minds want to know.
