What the Hell is Literary Fiction, Anyway?

A series of Guardian articles is attempting to address that question.  In the latest one, Elizabeth Edmondson makes a case for why "Genre fiction is no different from literary fiction."


She pulls together a few definitions:

"Literary fiction emphasises meaning over entertainment." (Venture Galleries blog)
"Literary novels are prose poetry … the subject of the work is engaged with something that might be called weighty … " (Dactyl Foundation)

And, joy of joys:

"Literary Fiction is experienced as an emotional journey through the symphony of words, leading to a stronger grasp of the universe and of ourselves." (Huffington Post)

 And then takes on literary snobbery:

            Lit fic: good. Popular, commercial, trash and pulp fiction: bad.

My own opinion is that you like what you like, and you write what you like, and there shouldn't be snobbery in either direction, but there is, in both direction. Ah the humanity.

Still, this is a good discussion. Follow it if you're interested.

More About Remainders

Remember me telling you how warehouses are cleared out and books bought for spare change, and then they end up on big tables with signs like "Any Book $5" and these are the remainders?

Konrath has more to say about it. Interesting stuff.

"Should I use profanity in my fiction?"

Excellent advice from Nat Russo.

Short answer: You're asking the wrong person.

Read here.

"Be a Writer."

If you have taken my class, you may remember that is one of your very first assignments from week one of the Basics class.

Are you a writer?

Are you being a writer?

Do you still feel awkward about calling yourself a writer, claiming the title, or do you feel like a fraud?

Bob Mayer has a few words for you on feeling like a fraud. 

When Writing Is Your Profession

When writing is your profession, you write whether you feel like it or not. You write to put food on the table. You meet deadlines, sometimes juggle multiple deadlines, and no matter what kind of heaven you think it will be to someday support yourself writing, the pressures of constantly producing imaginary worlds that people will pay money to read is immense.

That means writing from a hospital bed, or a hospital waiting room. Writing with a migraine. Writing when your family is sullen about you ignoring them, or taking advantage of the situation and fighting or getting into trouble. It means saying no when people ask you to a movie, to coffee, or call to chat on the phone. It means having people think poorly of you, if they don't understand the concept that working at home means actually working, and that may be at hours way beyond any they spend in day jobs that end at five.

All of this was brought home to me when I saw this image shared today, a reminder that even in hotel rooms, writers are writing. Is she there because she's at a conference, or on vacation, or...? I don't know. But she has a deadline and she's writing in a hotel room.

When you decide you want to be a stay-at-home writer, ask yourself if you're happier when you write in your spare time, knowing your bills are being paid and your benefits are covered? And then make more spare time by saying no more often.

Performance Anxiety

I've been asked to do two readings in the past few months. One went pretty well, but I was very frustrated because my book is set in England and my own Texas accent just bugs the crap out of me, whether reading the narration or--worse--the dialogue!  The second one was horrible because I picked it up and launched into it and realized I was reading the wrong piece, and the piece I was reading lacked cohesion and anything interesting that made sense. I ended quickly.

I am going to take a private lesson or two (yay, Skype!) from a drama coach who works with accents to be better prepared for 'next time' even though I have no clue if and when there will be a 'next time.'

Today, Barbara Claypoole White blogs about just such anxiety, and gives some smart ways to deal with it. If standing in front of people and talking about your book, or reading from it, strikes terror in your soul or even makes you mildly uneasy, check it out.

Bond Villains? Yes, Bond Villains!

I teach about the importance of a well-developed, complex villain.

Tee Morris is blogging about how great the Bond Villains are, and why. He's kind of convinced me.

See the Bond Villains.

 

Janet Reid: "Agents Going Off the Rails"

This is a solid--if not exhaustive--look on an agent's workload and things you should find out about an agent before signing with them.

Here.