World Building: How to Choose the Right Genre (and Make It Your Own)

Genre is where creativity meets strategy, it is your launchpad and your calling card, your palette and your pitch — genre isn’t about limiting your vision — it’s about unlocking the right creative tools and making sure the right audience know where to find your work.

You have a brave new world taking form inside your head. Maybe there are slumbering dragons, or deactivated robots ready to be awoken. Maybe there are wars to be waged, or hearts to be broken.

But before you start crowning your queens or terraforming your planets, you’re faced with one question that’s deceptively simple:

What genre is this?

And more importantly…

What does that genre do for your story?

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In this blog, we’re going to talk about choosing the right genre, not in a box-checking, “what shelf at the book shop, or category on Netflix would this go on” kind of way, but in the sense of genre as a creative playground.

Genre is a set of loose rules and expectations you can either play into or absolutely shatter.

Let’s look into the whys, the hows, and the what ifs of genre.

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1. Choosing Your Genre

Let’s start with the obvious:

What’s the genre that best fits your story or world concept?

Are we talking epic fantasy, gritty sci-fi, creepy horror, or historical fiction with a dystopian twist?

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Ask yourself:

• What core ideas or themes am I exploring?
• What aesthetic am I drawn to?
• What genre naturally supports those?

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2. Let Genre Shape the World

Each genre gives you a toolkit:

• Sci-fi gives you technology and exploration.
• Fantasy gives you magic and quests.
• Horror gives you atmosphere and tension.
• Historical gives you context and consequence
• Mystery gives you questions and revelation.
• Romance gives you longing and connection.
• Thriller gives you pace and paranoia.
• Drama gives you emotion and conflict.
• Comedy gives you relief and reflection.
• Adventure gives you momentum and discovery.
• Dystopian gives you warning and resistance.

(And so on…)

So ask:

• How does this genre shape your setting?
• What are the hallmarks of your genre—and how do you twist them into something fresh?

Think beyond “what’s typical” and start asking, “What works for me?”

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3. Tropes:

Every genre comes with a loaded suitcase of tropes:

• Fantasy has magic, prophecies, mythical beasts and epic quests.
• Sci-fi has dystopias, utopias, space travel and time travel.
• Horror has the cursed objects, haunted houses, the final girl and creepy twins.

You don’t have to avoid tropes—but be intentional.

• Are you using a trope for comfort and familiarity?
• Are you subverting it for surprise and commentary?
• Are you ditching it altogether to do something wild?

Your genre is just the setup. Its tropes are just a useful set of tools you can turn to if you like. They can be a help but never a hinder.

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4. Explore the Big Themes

Genres often orbit specific themes:

• Sci-fi often explores humanity through technology.
• Fantasy wrestles with power, belief, and destiny.
• Dystopian fiction asks what happens when systems go too far.

Ask yourself:

• What themes resonate with me?
• How can I weave them organically into my world?
  

You don’t need to preach, but you do need to think. Theme adds weight to wonder and allows your work to speak to the real world and the audience in a more direct and meaningful way.

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5. Genre as Mirror

The best genre fiction doesn’t just entertain. It reflects.

Ask yourself:

• How does this genre help me explore real-world issues?
• What metaphors or parallels am I building into the world?

Whether you’re exploring colonialism through space empires or grief through gothic horror, genre lets you tell universal truths… with dragons.

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6. Know What the Audience Wants—Then Mess With It

Genre creates expectations. Horror fans want them chills. Romance fans want them feels. Fantasy fans want them… well, Fantasy fans want incredibly in depth, immersive lore!

But the trick is:

• Give them what they came for—but not in the way they expect.
• Surprise them. Challenge them. But don’t alienate them.

Respect the genre. Then break the rules.

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7. Mix and Match (Responsibly)

Genre fusion is like cooking: when it works, it’s delicious. When it doesn’t… it’s British food (I am British so I can say this!)

Want to do fantasy courtroom drama? Do it. Historical zombie romance? Sure.

Just be clear on:

• Which genre is driving the story.
• How the genres interact instead of clash.
• What core experience you want the audience to have.

Your genre doesn’t need to be rigid. It is a guideline. You are more than welcome to mix genres. Star Wars is obviously a sci-fi, but it is also a romance and a political thriller. Don’t feel trapped within your chosen genre. Done well, genre mixing makes your world richer and more unforgettable.

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8. Characters, Tone, and Narrative Style

Every genre carries character archetypes, tones, and storytelling traditions.

• Sci-fi leans into the intellectual or political.
• Fantasy often feels mythic or moral.
• Horror is raw, claustrophobic, personal.

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Ask:

Character:

• In the realm of your chosen genre, what types of characters are typically found?
• How do you plan to leverage or challenge these established archetypes to create compelling characters?

Tone:

• What tone is generally associated with your genre?
• Is it the dark and gritty or light-hearted, silly and whimsical?
• How do you envision invoking or subverting this tone within the elements of your world building?

Narrative:

• What kinds of plots and storytelling styles are synonymous with your genre? (First person? Fractured timelines? Unreliable narrators?)
• Are we looking at the hero’s journey in fantasy or complex political intrigue in a space opera?
• How will the structure and elements of your world lend themselves to these narrative styles?

Match genre with structure, not just setting.

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9. Complexity vs. Clarity

Some genres demand a deep dive—magic systems, new technologies, political factions. Others thrive on brevity and suggestion.

Fantasy and sci-fi often come with a complexity tax. Just make sure you’re not overwhelming your reader with expositional lore dumps and timelines before they care.

Start with the human (or non-human) story. Build complexity around that.

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10. Make It Look Like It Belongs

Genre also carries a visual signature.

• Cyberpunk has neon and rain-slick alleys.
• Fantasy has stone castles and flowing robes.
• Historical fiction has candlelight and corsets.

Ask:

• What’s the aesthetic of your world?
• How does architecture, clothing, and design reflect its genre?

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11. Writing for an Audience

You’re not building your world in a vacuum — you’re building it for someone. Knowing your target audience isn’t about selling out, it’s about creating a world that people will experience, and part of this is creating something that is sellable and marketable.

Genre can help you do this.

Ask:

• Who is this for?
• What do they already love?
• What expectations do they bring to the genre?

Understanding your reader helps you write better, pitch better, and deliver what they didn’t even know they wanted.

You can subvert expectations, but don’t break the emotional contract. Surprise, don’t confuse.

Know the genre. Know your reader. Then write the world they never knew they needed.

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Conclusion

Genre isn’t an anchor holding back your creativity—it’s a current, a compass, a map to guide you over the infinite sea of creative possibilities. It points the bow of your story in the right direction, without dictating the strokes of your oars.

It hands you tools, tropes, and themes, but remember it’s your world. Don’t just follow genre conventions: understand them, stretch them, and sometimes shatter them. 

Choose your genre with intention. Use it to enhance your world building, not to restrict it. Use it to target it at a specific audience with a specific taste, but don’t feel afraid to mix, match, twist, and subvert.

Build a world that feels both familiar and completely your own. Whether you're writing a tried and tested cyberpunk noir or a unique elven rom-com, remember: genre is there to serve your story, not the other way around.

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