eBook Categories in online stores

[richrock]

I guess this is almost a bit of a rant, I'm just really annoyed and also confused about something.

I went to WHSmith's ebook store online, clicked on Science Fiction (when I found it) and was bombarded with Vampire novels. What?!? I checked again. Same result. Out of the first 15 books, only 5 were actual Sci-Fi. I've complained to them, naturally, asking why they felt Vampire novels sat in Science Fiction so easily, when, from my own viewpoint, Vampires were a staple of the Horror Genre, which suprisingly, seemed to feature far less vampire novels.

I checked Waterstones, they had a bias towards Sci-fi novels (wish they would move the Star Wars/Star Trek novels into their own categories though, I don't want to wade through pages of those looking for non-franchised novels).

Does anyone else think this? Where should vampire novels go? I certainly have my ideas Surely it's not too hard to put them and urban fantasy (whatever that is) into their own group where people can look at leisure. I like my SF hard, military or space opera.... Not flippin' vampires falling in love with teen schoolgirls.

My reference point for Vampire novels being horror comes from the fact that Nosferatu is still considered the best classic vampire horror film...

[susan_cassidy]

I would consider vampire novels to be fantasy. Horror depends on the atmosphere in the novel, whether it is meant to be horrifying or not. I don't think the Twilight books would be horror, for example.

[rakulos]

Originally Posted by susan_cassidy

I would consider vampire novels to be fantasy. Horror depends on the atmosphere in the novel, whether it is meant to be horrifying or not. I don't think the Twilight books would be horror, for example.

Just 'horrifying'



On topic: Yes they are horror and not sci-fi - while you could stick one into a sci-fi setting, on its own, its just horror.

[Kevin8or]

Fantasy and/or Horror, depending on the book.

[Apache]

Brick and Mortar Bookstores have been doing this for years. It seems like anything they aren't sure of they stick it in Sci Fi.
Apache

[pwalker8]

Gosh, I can remember back in the late 70's and 80's when the SF purist were horrified that books stores were combining SF and fantasy in one category. Book stores (not just e-book stores) have had vampire books in the SF&F section since Anne Rice. Frankly, if they didn't group the vampire, urban fantasy and werewolf (i.e. thinly disguised romance) books in with the traditional SF&F books, it would be slim pickings in the SF&F book shelves over the last 10 years or so.

[ATDrake]

Some of those vampire novels might also be genuine sci-fi as well. Like Peter Watts' Blindsight*.

Anyway, in some of the big Chapters bookstores around here, it looks like the not-too-romance-y vampire/werewolf/demon-based fantasy-ish stuff is being separated out into a kind of midway "paranormal" category slotted between the fantasy and the beginning of horror, right across from the graphic novels which are also in that "geeky fandom pop culture" kind of section.

* Available to read/download free along with a bunch of his other writing under the Creative Commons license on his website. He's got a Hugo Award, a Paypal tipjar and a leg that used to be full of flesh-eating bacteria†. I buy his paper books in French translation.

† You think I'm joking about the flesh-eating bacteria, but I'm not. (Warning for moderately graphic photos of what a leg that used to have flesh-eating bacteria in it looks like if you open the posts that blog category). I now remind you about the Paypal tipjar.

[howyoudoin]

Vampire novels go in the category of 'glittering teen fantasy'

[taustin]

Originally Posted by richrock

Where should vampire novels go?

Personally, I'd vote for "the trash can," but I might be a tad extremist in my opinion. Shelving-wise, I'd think horror would make more sense, but so much vampire stuff these days really belongs in romance.

The problem is, there's no objective definition of any of these categories. I'd like to see science fiction seperated from all fantasy, but only if I get to decide which is which. It just isn't possible to come up with a single definition of either that everybody would agree to.

Not that any of that matters. The reason vampire books get shelved in the science fiction section is that the book store (or web site) believes (probably for good reason) that they appeal to the same customers. All genre definitions are, ultimately, marketing terms. It's unfortunate for you and me that we don't fit the mainstream demographics.