Genre Favourites Blogfest - Genre? What genre?

Just back from yet another weekend camping, a glorious one, I might add, only to remember that I'd signed up for Alex J. Cavanaugh's Genre Favourites Blogfest. Ye gods, I can barely see through the yawn-induced rivers seeping through my crusty eyes, never mind think clearly. For one panicked moment I thought about bailing on the blogfest but then I realized Alex has the easiest fests in the blog biz so I poured some coffee and put on a sweater (because it's frickin' freezing in here) and got to it. 

If you'd like to join in the fun (and Alex's bloghops are always fun), click HERE. In the meantime, here's the rules:

One blogfest, four favorites!

List your favorite genre of:

Movie

Music

Books

And a guilty pleasure genre from any of the three categories!

Now here's the thing – I don't really think in terms of genres and there's nothing I won't read/listen to/watch as long as it's well crafted. For example, I love Stephen King's books but I don't read them because they're horror, I read them because his writing is so darned good that he sucks me into the story. I mention King because I had a dream about him last night. He was doing a charity event in our town and for some reason only a few people showed up. I casually told him that I had just finished the first draft of my book and he asked to read it. (He did! He asked ME! I didn't even hound him – I know, hard to believe.) Then he offered some constructive criticism and told me he liked it, but then our cat started yeowling and Dave yelled "SHUT UP," and King's dear face disappeared in an obtrusive cloud of consciousness. 

The upshot is I have to think long and hard about what genres I DO prefer.

Movie: Chick flicks, I guess, even though I'm not sure what that term means to most people. In our house "chick flick" means anything that doesn't involve car chases, spaceships and fight scenes. It means that, for every nine Avengers, Bournes and Batman movies, I get to see one Hope Springs. My favourite movie is the kind that makes me laugh out loud and cry in the same breath. It makes me fall in love with the characters. It expands my horizons and makes me think. It lingers with me for days afterward and I talk about it to everyone who will listen. That's my favourite movie genre.

Music: Folk, I guess. Quiet music, beautiful lyrics. One of my favourite songs of all time is America by Simon & Garfunkel, but I also love I Feel Pretty from West Side Story. Go figure.

Books: No genre, just good writing. Two of the best books I read this year were completely different: City of Thieves by David Benioff and Still Alice by Lisa Genova. One is a survivalist adventure involving two men on an unusual quest. The other is about a woman with early onset Alzheimer's. As I write this I'm in the middle of Carrie Clevenger's Crooked Fang, about a bass-playing vampire. So you see, I'm all over the map.

Guilty Pleasure: True crime books, especially by Ann Rule, the more blood and guts the better. (I know, I'm sick, I can't help it.)

Wanna tell the world what your favourites are? Go see Alex! And happy Monday, everyone!