"I've been lucky in that my writing's been all over the place since the beginning, so the only pigeonhole I've had to deal with is that of being a literary writer.  While I sometimes wish publishers would recognize the genre elements in certain of my novels and market them accordingly—for their own gain, as well as mine—I'm just happy to get the books between the covers."

"One surprising result of the ghettoizing of speculative fiction, however, is that writers have enormous freedom within its walls. It's as if, having once confined us within our cage, the keepers of the zoo of literature don't much care what we do as long as we stay behind bars. What we've done is make the categories of science fiction and fantasy larger, freer, and more inclusive than any other genre of contemporary literature. We have room for everybody, and we are extraordinarily open to genuine experimentation."

"The Professional writer, whether consciously or subconsciously, knows exactly where his idea sits on the Literary and Commercial spectrum long before he starts to work."

"If there were a manifesto for 21st century fiction writers, I hope it would go like this: Down with high-flown literature! Cast off genre servitude! The revolution is founded in authorial liberty. It regards story and art as equals."

"Who cares if you can’t be classified? The imaginations that matter are those glued to your pages."

"I love short stories.  Imagine holding a small carved bowl, its weight and shape and size a perfect fit for two cupped hands.  The grain of the wood flows with teh bowl's curves.  The interplay of light and dark pleases the eye.  The texture is silken against your skin.  You turn it, admiring the craft the artistry, and the detail.  'It's lovely,' you say, handing it back to its creator.  Then you say, 'Now when are you going to make something real, like furniture?'  Now imagine the bowl is a short story.  Why do so many readers and writers consider short stories to be some sort of training wheels?  As if writing a short story is just a way of wobbling around until you find your balance, and are ready for the big-girl bike of a novel?"

"I never read, particularly, a mystery or a romance or a sci-fi.  I just read anything.  When I started out [writing], I don't think I had the concept of 'They must be shelved somewhere.'"

"My experience as a reader is that the category boundaries mean very little." (artist)

"For me, where genre ends and literature begins doesn't matter. What matters is whether a given novel hits me with high impact. If it does, it probably is fulfilling the purpose of fiction."

"At genre conventions the debate over genre boundaries is almost a sport. Only two conclusions seem to me certain: Genre writers don't get enough respect, and when they do they don't get much respect from genre writers."

"Judgment by genre is just wrong—stupid, wasteful.  Most people know that now."

"Today, genre bending and blending is more the rule than the exception."

"They're the stars: the genre authors whose books sell vastly better than most; so much so that they're no longer labeled genre authors. They're brands."

"Perhaps in part because they have fewer rules to follow, they must rely more on universal techniques and stay truer to their inner compasses. Without genre crutches to lean on they must walk the walk of true novelists. You can call them genre-bending if you like, but I call them genre-transcending. While they may establish a new category, they are genuine fiction masters."

"We have split in the 20th century between genre fiction, which tends to be about action, and fiction that's about interpersonal relationships and psychology."

"If you are a screenwriter, LITERARY AND COMMERCIAL translates to INDEPENDENT AND STUDIO. If you are a playwright, LITERARY AND COMMERCIAL translates to CHARACTER DRIVEN AND PLOT DRIVEN. If you are a nonfiction writer LITERARY AND COMMERCIAL translates to JOURNALISM AND NARRATIVE NONFICTION. No matter your intended Story career path, the divide remains… and always will."

"I had discovered the first kind of boundary that marks the twin genres of fantasy and science fiction: the publishing category."

"Ultimately, the question 'Who's the target reader, and why?' must be answered by everyone in the publishing chain (writer, editor, marketer, publicist, publisher). Identifying the audience (the people who will buy your book) defines which of these two cultures 'Literary' or 'Commercial' you belong to."

"I don't like labels.  I don't like it when bookstores have sections labeled 'Women's Fiction' because they don't have sections labeled 'Men's Fiction.'"

"I don't think it's necessary to pin your work down to a subgenre.  You're querying agents who specialize in the field.  It might be best to let the pro make the determination as to where your work will best fit."

"Dickens used fantasy and no one ever called him a fantastic writer, it was all just writing back then.  Why do we need borders in the middle of a book shop?