Journal 4

Genre is very important in creating or reading a text. When creating a text, establishing a genre is important because it makes it clear who you want your target audience to be. I would find it to be very difficult to write something without having a genre as a guide for my writing. It would also be difficult because there is no ideal target audience in mind, which is not necessarily a bad thing considering the piece could be for everyone to read and understand. Being the reader, genre is important because it can affect how and if you read a piece of writing. Everyone has their own type of genre that they like, so if you're reading a piece that you're not particularly interested in, you will be less likely to retain the information that the text is providing. On the other hand, if you are reading a piece of work that has the same type of genre that you like, it will be easier to get information out of it because you are more interested in that subject and are more engaged in what the author has to say.  Genre affects the decisions made when writing by making itself the most important. I see genre as one of the first, if not the first, steps in the writing process. Before a piece is made, there should be an established genre. If not, then the piece of writing will not have a good structure and won't be as appealing to the reader. The choice of genre greatly affects the circulation and distribution process. It does so because depending on what genre the piece is, that can determine where the piece will go throughout the world, specifically what types of communities it will reach. For example, a piece about ancient literature would be aimed at those who are teachers and/ or students. However, the piece could be entertained by anyone who is not a teacher or student, just by someone who is actually interested in that subject. The genre can also affect where it goes geographically. For example, the 50 Shades of Grey book is a heavily sexual book. Some bookstores refused to sell the book when it first came out at their stores due to its content. Thinking in these terms, it might be hard to find a 50 Shades of Grey book in a Christian bookstore.