Choose the Right Genre and Category for Your Book as an Indie Author

You’re an aspiring indie author trying to make your way through a sea of books, and finally get around to writing your own publishing, but then, a notion gets thrown around that categorizing the book is a publisher’s job, not yours.

Our take? Don’t fall for it. Assigning a genre to your book is a crucial task, and skipping it will result in your book bearing the brunt.

In this article, we are going to discuss book genres and why categorizing your book is necessary. We will also explore some popular genres and help you find out what genre you should be writing in.

Stay tuned!

What is a Genre for a Book?

The word genre comes from the French language. It means kind or type. A genre is basically a category in which you would put your artistic, literary, or musical work.

In books, genre refers to the classification your book sits in based on its theme, style, and content, for example, horror, comedy, romance, fiction, action, thriller and such.

Along with genre, subgenre is also an important aspect of a book. They further divide your book to provide a detailed description.

For instance, as an indie romance author, you can further divide it into a historical romance, a romantic comedy, or a romantic suspense. Genres and subgenres link a book to their ideal readers, helping your book to reach the right audience.

Why is it Important to Categorize Your Book?

If you have finished writing a book or thinking about writing a book, sooner or later, someone is gonna ask you what genre your book is in. To answer that, you must know the value a genre adds to your writing experience.

When you categorize your book, it helps you reach the people who are most likely to applaud your content. Assigning a genre helps you reach your target audience, and builds expectations in the reader’s mind for your book.

Adding a genre also helps in optimizing your book. For instance, when a potential buyer searches, “best crime thrillers”, the search engine will go through all the books in this genre and display the ones at the top that are close to a perfect match.

Hence, if your book does not have a genre, it is likely to be lost in the sea of books online.

Evergreen Genres for Books

• Crime thriller
• Romance
• Science Fiction
• Fantasy
• Self-Help

What are Some Popular Genres in the Market Right Now for Indie Authors?

Before you start indie writing, it is important to have an idea of the ongoing market trends and the evergreen genres. That being said, trends change every other day, and yet, the classics are always in demand and never become outdated for any age.

Hence, if you’re a beginner just starting out in this field, it’s always better to avoid the trends and choose a genre that’s always a hot topic. Take inspiration from Pride and Prejudice, a masterpiece of the 19th century equally adored by the avid readers of 2025.

Following are some evergreen genres that are always cherished by the readers.

Romance:

Romance is the genre that always remains in demand by all age groups due to its high emotional appeal. Whether you are an old-school indie romance author, or like to give it a modern twist, if written well, it is always gonna sell.

Even if the main theme of your book is something other than romance, a love sequence on the side is almost always cherished by the readers, as long as you do not take away from the main plot.

Science-fiction:

This is another in-demand genre that has gained popularity in recent years. With the advent of science and technology, people have shown massive interest in content regarding futuristic technology.

Crime Thriller/ Suspense:

What’s more exciting than a nerve-wracking crime thriller? This is another category that never goes amiss. If you choose to become an indie mystery author, throwing in cliffhangers and nail-biting moments in a suspense story can never go wrong.

Fantasy:

Readers, tired of the real world and its problems, love to step into a world created by the author. Fantasy novels offer a sense of escapism that no other genre can. If written well, this genre is a massive hit.

Horror:

This is a genre which everyone can not ace. It requires immense talent to captivate a reader and evoke fear and suspense in them. However, if you manage to do that, it results in massive hits like The Shining and The Exorcist.

Self Help:

These days, people have become much more inclined towards books regarding personal development. They seek practical advice to improve their daily life and relationships. Hence, books related to the life stories of successful people inspire others and do well in the market.

Memoirs:

Memoirs or biographies are often cherished by the right audience. These books offer an insight into people’s personal lives, showing how we all have unique yet similar stories. For your first book as an indie author, you can write about your life struggles and lessons you have gained from your path.

How to Choose the Right Genre for Your Book?

After discussing the common genres, let’s move on towards the main goal of this guide, which is to help you choose the right category for your book.

Following are some key steps you should follow to reach the genre you can write best in.

Identify the Central Theme of Your Book:

If you have started writing your book, or have a plot in your mind, try to get to the central idea of it. To make it easy, you can start by trying to write a one-line summary of your book.

For example, “My book is about a young girl who finds out that she can manipulate time and now she has to stop a catastrophe while bearing the consequences of playing with the hour.”

So, your genre is science fiction with a touch of fantasy.

Reflect on Your Interests and Expertise:

If you have not started yet, and have no storyline in mind, you should most likely write what you can best. A good strategy is to start by analyzing your own interests. What kind of content do you love to consume? What are your go-to series, movies, or books?

If you love fantasy novels, start with that. If you like romantic comedies, give it a go. Indie writing is a challenging and time-consuming job. If you do not enjoy what you are writing, you may bore your readers too.

You can also try writing about your field of expertise. When you know much about a subject, you are likely to write well about it. For example, if you are a dentist, you might not be able to write well about space. However, you can ace a book about oral health or a memoir of your most fascinating cases.

Know Your Target Audience:

When you select a theme, recognize the audience that you are targeting. Based on the genre, you can have an idea of the group of people who will likely show an interest in your book.

If you identify your target audience, you can tailor your book according to their expectations. And when you keep meeting their demands, you can build an established platform in that genre, which means that these readers will return for your books. This is why most indie writers prefer sticking to the same genre for long.

Look at the Books Similar to Yours:

To know what genre your book should be in, you can look at books similar to your idea. If you are inspired by some content or have a liking towards a certain author, you can analyze their theme and target audience.

Reflect on the reviews of those books to know what that audience expects from the writer and try to work on that.

Research the Ongoing Market Trends:

At this time, when trends change with the date, sticking to the classics is a safe choice. Crime thrillers and romance are the two most popular genres right now. However, researching before opting for a category is always preferred.

Start by looking at the work of some best selling indie authors in your potential genre. If some genre has recently given back-to-back hits, that is probably the most “in”. Go through Amazon’s or Goodreads’s “what's popular” section to see what’s going on with literature these days.

Websites like Reedsy and BookBub also provide insights about market trends. Social media platforms like Twitter or Reddit also share the current literary trends frequently.

Experiment with Different Genres:

While it is important to stick to a single genre to build a target audience, experimenting with different genres is also necessary at the beginning of your journey. It helps you find out your true potential.

You may have written a good non-fiction book, but what if you could write great fiction too? If you never experiment, how would you gauge your talent? A piece of advice: Give it a whirl!

Will My Book Help Me Earn?

An absolute yes! Once your book is ready to rock n’ roll, uploading it to the right platform will make all the difference. Among the top indie author publishing services, Book Brackr takes the lead with an all-in-one platform for uploading your book, managing its subscriptions, and promoting it to the right audience.

With the right indie author marketing strategies such as email promotions, group promotions, and others, Book Brackr helps you create multiple reader magnets that ultimately assists in reaching your target. Try out this beginner-friendly platform today and your journey to become an author will be as smooth as it can be!

Conclusion:

To say the least, assigning a genre to your book holds great importance for an indie author. As a beginner, make sure you follow the above-mentioned tips to get to your ideal genre. Whether you write fiction, romance, thriller, or horror, make sure you log the right category to not confuse your readers.

Recognize the central idea of your book, include your interests and expertise, know your target audience and consider books similar to yours. Keep your content up to date with research on current trends and no matter what genre you currently write in, do not shy away from experimenting.