Genre Hetaera Archives

A Book's Life: Face it, we're all Future Forgotten Authors

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Mon, 30 Jan 06 20:58:00 UT

Over at Making Light, Teresa Nielsen Hayden discusses the sad fate of most books and authors in the long run (and unfortunately for so many, in the very short run). Yes, our works and we, the creators, are most likely to be forgotten by the public long before copyright expiration or heirs and estate dispute issues kick in.

Teresa says:

"The literature taught in schools is that which has survived: a collection of gross statistical anomalies. This is misleading. Falling out of print is a book's natural fate. We can belatedly train ourselves to believe that this will happen to other people's books. What's hard is for writers to believe it will happen to their own."

Considering this, wouldn't it make wise sense for all of us who write to strive to create works that might transcend their time, the kind of future classics that are not merely taught in schools to bored children but are honestly beloved by many generations? After all, isn't one of the most pressing reasons we write is to communicate (and hence transport) ourselves to others -- not merely our contemporaries, but those who will come after?

Sure, we might all say, I would love for my writings to be read several decades, or better yet several hundred years from now, to be considered fodder for tomorrow's Masterpiece Theater (or E-Theater Holo-4D in Trans-Dimensional Space). Who wouldn't?

And yet, in the back of our minds, most of us seem to settle for second best, for "whatever" and "let me just produce this piece and see what happens." We live in the moment, and we work in the moment, and our work, needless to say, reflects the moment.

Only the moment. And that's our shortcoming.

This may be a bit late in January to be making New Year resolutions, but why not take this opportunity to resolve to create timelessness with every fiber of your being? Why not put your spirit and full attention into the selection of detail, to pour the finest shot of meaning into all you write, whether it be high-lit or genre or the words on the inside of a greeting card? It's never too late! Take this moment; begin now.

There are no guarantees, and luck plays a part in what is remembered over what is forgotten. But we can at least do the utter best with what we have in our means.

Write outside the ephemeral moment. Write beyond, into the great permanent time stream in which you float.

Donât just send out a flimsy sailboat into the literary future, but start carving a dam, or laying bedrock for your very own island in the history stream.

On an amusing side note, here is an Amazon Short story of mine, "Old Farts" which gives a possible solution to the problem of having one's books go out of print and out of sightâ¦.

The Mutation of the Narrative Voice

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Tue, 17 Jan 06 20:50:00 UT

There is a fascinating discussion going on in the comments section of Sherwood Smith's LiveJournal sartorias.

Sherwood says:

"I was thinking it over today, wondering where the idea of the neutral toned infodump came from. Most of the old novels I grew up reading had distinctive narrative voices--with, in fact, distinct narrators. But first person narrators not part of the story went out of fashion along with omni roughly the time that realism and cinema-narration became popular. . ."

It seems indeed that tight third POV has taken over the current litscape, with occasional forays into first person cutesy snark, as popularized by chicklit. But what about that glorious freedom of the "overvoice," the 19th century omniscient narrator without attitude, but instead a friendly comfortable presence?

In this age of subtle and indirect onslaught upon our personal freedoms and the blurring definition of privacy, it is no wonder that the notion of a knowing "friend" inside our head is not as attractive as it had been in the days of Jane Austen when by solitary candlelight, a book was consumed in hungry loneliness, and the sensation of sharing an experience might have been perceived as a wonder instead of an intrusion.

I admit, the more of recent works I read, the more I miss that omni narrator, having started my own affair with reading with the stodgy classics in the original Russian.

And I refuse to let his comfortable ghost depart.

Is John Twelve Hawks really Vera Nazarian?

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Fri, 19 Aug 05 14:21:00 UT

There has been some speculation as to the true identity of the reclusive and mysterious John Twelve Hawks, author of the bestseller The Traveler, who supposedly "lives off the grid." The public seems to think it's . . . me. Apparently, earlier this week, Metro, a newspaper in London, UK, published a full-page article including betting odds and photos of myself and other potential "candidates" for this honor. The odds place me in the company of Dan Brown, Kage Baker, and J.K. Rowling. And they are not the only ones. Check out this busy discussion topic over at the Night Shade Books Forum. And then, I am told I am suddenly "famous in the UK" by a friendly reader in my Norilana LiveJournal. I am extremely amused, not to mention amazed, by this whole thing. Is Vera Nazarian really John Twelve Hawks? Well, my friends, the answer is... No, I am not.

Great writing advice from Catherynne M. Valente

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Fri, 29 Apr 05 14:19:00 UT

This is applicable to genre and beyond. Some great writing advice from Catherynne M. Valente. If you haven't already seen this, here are "Thirty-Two Statements About Writing" from her LiveJournal.

More on Atlanta Nights

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Thu, 28 Apr 05 22:19:00 UT

(originally posted: February 12, 2005)

The Atlanta Nights juggernaut continues to roll, with the LA Times picking up the story, and a variety of other news sources.

Also, Travis Tea, the fictitious author, now has an official author website, a hilarious parody. Be sure to check it out (yes, I designed and created the website, with many others contributing some superb content).

Atlanta Nights by Travis Tea - genre writers strike back!

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Thu, 28 Apr 05 22:14:00 UT

(originally posted: January 31, 2005)

And now I'd like to mention a certain collaborative sting project that I was involved in.

Several months ago, in response to a claim by a certain publisher that writers working in the SF/F genre believe it "does not require believable storylines" or "does not need believable every-day characters," genre writer James D. Macdonald got approximately 40 mostly science fiction and fantasy writers to cobble together an intentionally horrendous monstrosity of a novel (read it here as an FTP download in RTF and PDF format) and then submit it, in order to display the less than discriminating tastes of that same certain publisher in regard to the kind of work they accept for publication.

Earlier last week, the sting has been revealed, the publisher fell for it (retracting the acceptance as soon as news spread, of course), and I proudly own up to having authored Chapter 13 of ATLANTA NIGHTS by Travis Tea.

Here's a bit of an excerpt from my chapter:

"Actually, I think I am ready to order now," said Isadore, firmly ignoring it all, flipping back his red forelocks out of his face and beyond the back to where the bulk of the abundant and suggestive ponytail rested against his wide strongly utterly virile back -- a back that could do the beast with two backs so well, when one of the two backs came into question and under scrutiny (but the other back of course depended on the woman writhing with him, under him and on top of him ah, the beasts they would make!)."

Yes, you can even buy your own copy at Lulu.com to read for gut-wrenching hilarity and educational purposes (lessons on how not to write can be derived from the perusal of this book). Here is the stellar lineup of blurbs from the back cover. I predict this will replace THE EYE OF ARGON as midnight panel reading material at science fiction conventions.

This book, is purely and genuinely bad. So bad that it's great. In all seriousness, The Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest should give it a special achievement prize. :-) For more detailed coverage, including a list of contributors, of the ATLANTA NIGHTS atrocity -- or should we say, travesty -- see the Cold Ground blog, and Tor Books editor Teresa Nielsen Hayden's Making Light.

More on Atlanta Nights

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Sat, 12 Feb 05 14:17:00 UT

The Atlanta Nights juggernaut continues to roll, with the LA Times picking up the story, and a variety of other news sources. Also, Travis Tea, the fictitious author, now has an official author website, a hilarious parody. Be sure to check it out (yes, I designed and created the website, with many others contributing some superb content).

Clash of the Beowulf and Dante Writers

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Thu, 11 Nov 04 18:35:00 UT

(originally posted: October 24, 2004)

In his recent Slashdot interview, Neal Stephenson presents and discusses at length a fascinating view on a system dichotomy of genre and literary types of writers, and the resultant clash of worlds:

Neal says:

Nowadays, rock stars and movie stars are making all the money. But the publishing industry still works for some lucky novelists who find a way to establish a connection with a readership sufficiently large to put bread on their tables. It's conventional to refer to these as "commercial" novelists, but I hate that term, so I'm going to call them Beowulf writers.
But this is not true for a great many other writers who are every bit as talented and worthy of finding readers. And so, in addition, we have got an alternate system that makes it possible for those writers to pursue their careers and make their voices heard. Just as Renaissance princes supported writers like Dante because they felt it was the right thing to do, there are many affluent persons in modern society who, by making donations to cultural institutions like universities, support all sorts of artists, including writers. Usually they are called "literary" as opposed to "commercial" but I hate that term too, so I'm going to call them Dante writers. And this is what I mean when I speak of a bifurcated system.

To read more, see his response to the second interview question.

Of Note: a Multi-Voice Critical Blog

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Thu, 11 Nov 04 18:33:00 UT

(originally posted: October 12, 2004)

Take a look at the thoughtful common blogspace s1ngularity::criticism devoted to genre analysis and criticism.

The authors are well-balanced and present interesting perspectives on literary criticism as seen from both sides of the genre Iron Veil.

A Sea of Definitions

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Thu, 11 Nov 04 18:29:00 UT

(originally posted: September 26, 2004)

What is genre?

Such a loaded, vague, resilient term.

Let's take a brief look at some links that offer definitions.

An Introduction to Genre Theory by Daniel Chandler.

"The classification and hierarchical taxonomy of genres is not a neutral and 'objective' procedure. There are no undisputed 'maps' of the system of genres within any medium (though literature may perhaps lay some claim to a loose consensus). Furthermore, there is often considerable theoretical disagreement about the definition of specific genres. 'A genre is ultimately an abstract conception rather than something that exists empirically in the world,' notes Jane Feuer (1992, 144). One theorist's genre may be another's sub-genre or even super-genre (and indeed what is technique, style, mode, formula or thematic grouping to one may be treated as a genre by another). Themes, at least, seem inadequate as a basis for defining genres since, as David Bordwell notes, 'any theme may appear in any genre' (Bordwell 1989, 147)."

Definition of Genre from the Wikipedia

""Genre" is originally a French word meaning "kind", "sort" or "type"; in grammatical terminology, it refers to the artificial concept of masculine or feminine grammatical gender."

And here is an interesting comments-based discussion of genre definitions in Dan Green's "The Reading Experience."

The simple definition I chose to pursue for the purpose of this discussion comes from Dictionary.com and offers four entries from different sources.

Genre is defined as:

1. A category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, marked by a distinctive style, form, or content.

2. Kind; genus; class; form; style, esp. in literature.

3. (Fine Arts) A style of painting, sculpture, or other imitative art, which illustrates everyday life and manners.

4. A kind of literary or artistic work; a style of expressing yourself in writing.

And here is my personal definition:

Genre is a form of fiction or literature that can be described within a narrow framework -- either using theme, emotional resonance, or another type-bestowing label.

It is basically a sub-type.

In addition to the very broad-stroke definition above, I would like to emphasize one other aspect of genre.

At the heart of genre lies story.

Persistent Perceptions

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Thu, 11 Nov 04 18:27:00 UT

(originally posted: September 20, 2004)

Today I was going to begin with definitions of genre.

Instead, I will take a moment to address several readers' comments wherein the notion of "poor perception of genre" is something they donât see as a particular issue in the current publishing climate.

The sense I get from some of you is that here at Publishers Marketplace I am preaching to the choir, that genre does not need defending, that genre makes up a healthy chunk of industry acquisitions, and that topnotch quality genre works are making a huge splash, rising above the genre ghetto and "breaking out."

Yes, yes, and a thousand Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings times yes.

I agree. And yet, at the same time it quietly illustrates my point that genre as an entity still requires qualifiers, justifications, excuses, and token exemplary works, no matter how casual or open-minded most of us are.

Genre prejudice is still out there, and, as any other form of prejudice, it is a difficult-to-eradicate, subtle beast of the literary deep. And it resides in all of us.

Here's a pop quiz.

Do you think that, in general, a work of literary fiction or general mainstream fiction is superior to a category romance, a police procedural, or a space opera novel?

Answer quickly, with your natural first impulse.

If you respond with a reasonable "yes" to the statement above, then you are my audience.

Next up, definitions of genre.

Origins

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Thu, 11 Nov 04 18:24:00 UT

(originally posted: September 8, 2004)

What makes genre a secondary, lowly cousin in the literary world?

In this blog I will explore, define, and analyze this notion. I will also attempt to reevaluate its validity for our contemporary literary world.

At one point -- or better yet, at various multiple points historically, whether we consider the pivotal eighteenth and nineteenth centuries or as recently as the early 20th century -- mystery, science fiction, fantasy, romance, western, and horror-themed written works have acquired a justified stigma of being lower forms of written fiction.

They emerged as a vulgar morass of penny-dreadfuls, pulps, heart-pounding gothics, action adventure yarns, cliff-hanger serials, bodice rippers, and comics that appealed to the coarser human emotions, an unsophisticated under-educated mentality, and could by no means be considered contributions to the world's body of literature.

In a nutshell, the works of each and every flavor of genre were poorly written, one-dimensional "plot-only" story yarns. They were full of naivetÃ©, melodrama, bursting with clichÃ©s, had almost no character development, no higher thematic meaning, and left nothing for the mind to digest. The focus of such genre works was usually a single form of emotional entertainment -- fear, excitement, puzzle-solving curiosity, puerile lust, pseudo-historical costume drama, and simple comedy.

They engaged the audience only for the duration of the work, and often the audience was young, at different extremes of the naÃ¯ve-to-streetwise spectrum, and looking for uncomplicated, immature excitement, an easy escape.

Genre was for the masses, for the un-intellectual, for the ordinary.

Genre contained no full-bodied psychological balance.

Genre had no value.

And now, fly forward in a multi-century, multi-decade leap.

In 2003, in an unprecedented act of literary and cultural foresight and clarity, Stephen King was the controversial recipient of the National book Award, followed by Judy Blume in 2004.

What changed?

Another Chess Piece on the Board

vera.nazarian@sff.net — Thu, 11 Nov 04 18:22:00 UT

(originally posted: September 8, 2004)

It's amazing how many places one can fill with an online presence and still be unable to resist opening one's big, loud e-mouth yet again elsewhere.

Every blog, journal, forum, newsgroup, and other online seat of power has its own character and intent.

This place will be used for sparkle.