What Ho? A Double Standard in the Literary World?

Sometimes, while I'm wandering along the various fields of the literary world (I'm currently in one full of thistles, but that is beside the point), I stumble over a big, fat incongruity. This week, it's an incongruity directly related to my own writing efforts:

WHY do people snicker if I tell them I'm writing an Urban Fantasy with elements of crime fiction, like mythical stories are sooo lowbrow, but still consider things like Le Morte D'Arthur and The Faerie Queen to be high brow, glorious literary productions? Why is a mystery novel "sure to make you rich" but not sure to bring you the literary acclaim that, say, a historical/memoir/women's fiction "literary" novel will? Why do I feel embarrassed to admit that I'm a "genre" writer?

On a surface level, it's all about money. Popular literature is "lowbrow" because it is easily accessible to all kinds of people. Readers do not have to have a master's degree or a PhD to unerstand the underlying ideas and themes that shape the novel and make it significant. And, because popular literature is neither rare nor hard to "get" in either sense of the word, there are no obvious bragging rights (cultural capital--the ability to value yourself above other people because you are able to access and "understand" rare and highly valued art). In this light, one could claim that there are NO SOCIAL STATUS BENEFITS TO BE GAINED BY READING GENRE FICTION.

Of course, one would be wrong. But one could say such a thing, and be accurate to the social consesus on the subject.

Have you ever noticed that popular art can, and often does, become "classic"? Bugs Bunny, Abbot and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, the Three Stooges, Shakespeare (oh yeah, he was a popular artist back in the day), and FilM Noir are all notable examples. Although popular art becomes high brow art as it becomes less and less accessible (as it ages and generations of people who don't use the same cultural cues [things like slang, symbol]), thus tending to validate the monetary system of valuing art, that isn't entirely why it turns into highbrow art.

If popular art can BECOME high brow art, then such art cannot be, for all intents and purposes, VOID of any social/cultural value, can it?

Okay. I will climb off my giant soapbox and go work on my lowbrow fiction now. Thankyouverymuch.

It's Not Simply Revision, It's Radical Renovation

I've recently (but not so very recently) stumbled across two very interesting terms: upcycling and re-purposing. Now, these terms aren't new--in fact, they're just really specific terms for recycling via craftiness--but they are much better at expressing something that should be a large part of a writer's day-to-day life.

As an English instructor, I come across some very skewed conceptions of "revision" on a frequent basis. Most people seem to think that "revision" is the act of editing: spell check, grammar check, punctuation check, and maybe a quick rampage through the thesaurus for good measure.

I'm sorry to burst your collective bubbles, but that's not really the case.

Revision is the radical renovation of something that exists--it's like turning your dark, tiny, frumpy bathroom into a wonder rivaling an ancient Greek temple, complete with beautifully tiled floors and a jacuzzi. In that respect, writing itself is an act of revision--it is the manipulation of an existing thought or series of thoughts, an addition or change to any pre-exisiting existing body of work on the subject, the shift from "light-bulb!" to "tangible-product!"

I say all of this because I finally acknowledged the nagging voice in the back of my head, demanding a real revision of my work in progress (WIP). That little voice has been dissatisfied with my protagonist for quite some time, it's been suggesting that I nix her because the real story I am trying to tell revolves around two of the secondary characters.

In short, I'm not merely "revising" (editing) my story, I'm purposing my story. The same fibers are being used, and even though it looks completely different, it's more or less the same book, but in the end, it will be a messenger-bag instead of a suit coat.

The Importance of Being Awkward

Long, long ago, my grandpa told me not to let people call me a genius. I never understood why being called a genius was such a bad thing. I like to study, and being noted for my smarts is much better than being termed "dummy," isn't it?

It's taken years, but I think I might have figured it out. If naming something is tantamount to defining it, deciding what its value is, then grandpa's advice makes some sense. I don't want to be simply smart. I don't want to be boxed in by the expectations that accompany the label "genius"--in fact, I have a propensity for using words like "um" and "howdy" when I speak, not to mention my frequent use of contractions. Besides, I can't do rocket science or advanced math, so how much of a genius could I possibly be?

Ironically, while I've successfully evaded the "genius" label (for the most part, maybe, certain individuals insist on calling me one--probably because it makes them feel less defeated when I beat their pants at scrabble. They can justify their loss by my prowess--if I was "normal," they would have beat me [ha]) I seem to have stumbled head-on into another one: awkward.

I'm not exactly sure how small talk works. The other day, when somebody asked me how I was doing, I told them "no," because I was still stuck in  another conversation and the correct answer ("great, how are you?")  evaded me. I then had to explain myself, with further awkwardness. Oh, the tangled webs awkward people weave, when they first, awkwardly begin to speak.

Still and all, I'm pretty sure this term is a distortion, an odd return of a certain, specific label that has been repressed (ehem, "genius"). Isn't awkwardness--social awkwardness--a sign of genius? Answer honestly. Don't tell me you've never seen Shelden on Big Bang Theory.

Maybe my nerdy, bookwormy side is just something that shouldn't be suppressed. I can't avoid it. It must be expressed. So, FYI, If I'm wearing a badge that says "genius" next time you see me, it may not be a sign of egomania. I may be advertising my social awkwardness.

What I Talk About When I Talk About Procrastination

Occasionally, I get inspired to write.

Inspiration is problematic because what it really consists of is my brain deciding that it doesn't want to study, or grade another stack of papers, or make a paper-clip chain and string it around my office. It consists of my brain seeing some mediocre rehashing of a story that's been done to death (Snow White, anyone?) and rebelling against the fact that my less obviously unoriginal stories are still not quite ready to be thrown out into the world (they also lack sparkly vampires, so perhaps the world is not quite ready for my stories, either). Mostly, it consists of me scribbling madly on scraps of paper, only to realize that's I've turned my story upside down and inside out, and I don't have time to put it back together before class.

Yep. You've got it: inspiration acts a lot like procrastination.

But, maybe procrastination is all in the eye of the beholder. Am I procrastinating by working on my novel, or am I procrastinating working on my novel by studying and going to work?  (I promise I'm not being [completely] facetious. I know what my priorities are: I have to have money to feed my cat or she might kill me in my sleep). I'm not sure what it's called when your cat kills you--maybe convenient-human-who-feeds-me-icide. Whatever it's called, it sounds unpleasant.

And you thought I was going to talk about Facebook, didn't you?

Finishing the book...

I usually have an ending in mind when I start a book. The fantasy series I'm working on with my good friend, A.L. Brown, is actually a good example. Although our "end" turned out to be the "big end" of the series, rather than the actual end of the book, we had something to work logically toward. We had something to anticipate.

This, however, has not been the case with my mystery novel. I deliberately avoided planning the end. I planned the crime, had a rough idea about who the villains were, and planned several major plot points. But, I wanted a mystery and so I wrote as though I was going through it day by day, with my characters. It's been a long, but mostly fun process.

And now, within chapters of the end, its become a slow slog toward the finish line--at least as far as plotting goes. I don't know exactly how this thing's going down. It may get messy. Anticipation is weighing me down. I want to know how it ends and the tension is crippling...

Maybe that means it's good, eh?

What Writers (might) REALLY Want for Christmas

It's that time of year again. Everyone in your life suddenly has an agenda, and they typically express it in one of two ways:

1. Blatantly. These are the people who pester you with questions for the twenty-four days prior to Christmas morning. "Whaddya want?" "What can you use?" "Do you like marshmallows?"

2. Covertly. These are the people in your life who suddenly resemble stalkers and/or zombies. They're constantly looking at you sideways, trying to read your mind and/or decide where to shoot you with a tranquilizer gun.

Anyway, in recognition of the season, I've complied a list of things that I think writers may actually enjoy. Notice that there are no fancy shmancy notebooks on this list. In my experience, these very lovely notebooks are never used because, well, they're just a little bit too lovely. And intimidating. My writing will never match the two-tone Italian-lambskin-leather and hand stitched pages...

Some Things Writers (might) REALLY Want for Christmas:

1. To be published. I know, this one is kind of impossible to fulfill, but there you have it.
2. Time to write.
3. Time to eat good food and to spend with friends and family.
4. A USB typewriter!
5. Something good to read...
6. Coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. Also,  a "writer" coffee mug like this one.
7. The next season of Doctor Who on DVD (and also, a sonic screwdriver). No, I'm serious, this is a universal for writers, not just my own preference!
8. A Great Writers Finger Puppet Set. (Yes, I did pass the first grade).
9. Sticky Notes. Like these, for example...
10. Cookies! (You thought I was going to say "pie," didn't you?)

Name Change

As it turns out, I probably won't be keeping To Die For as a title for my current mystery novel as it's already the title of a fairly popular Women's Fiction novel. Since my blog was named after my novel, my pending novel name-change needs to be applied here as well. Syncopated Synonyms seemed like an appropriate choice for the blog, given my excitement over finding a free, brand-new and very snazzy thesaurus the other day...the novel is yet to be renamed.