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The crass among us might say "Sex sells."
But this is no longer the era when
50 Shades of Grey
sizzled the page and movie screens.
Studio Heads might say
"More of what sold before."
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But the collapse of recent
box offices puts the lie to that.
Samuel Goldwyn would ask his
writers to
"Give me more of the same ...
Only different."
William Faulkner said,
"The only thing worth writing about is
the human heart in conflict with itself."
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But we're talking literature here.
When was the last time you put down a new
book and said,
"This is literature."
Have you pushed yourself
in your writing lately?
Have you contented yourself with
"the same old, same old"
And wondered why you are getting
the same tired results?
Going in a new direction is scary
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You may not like where you land ...
But you will have grown by the attempt
and the encounters with the unknown.
Try it ...
You have nothing to lose but new sales.
I often ask myself if I have what it takes to write something truly literary. I would like to. But when I read the really good stuff, it wows me. I feel like the true literaries are like the Babe Ruth of the book world and I am in the minor leagues. I'm okay with being a minor leaguer, because they serve a purpose too. I do try to give a reader the best story I can. I feel like phoning it in is like stealing their hard-earned money.
ReplyDeleteGood post. You made me think!
Emily Dickinson was not considered "literary" in her day ... only afterwards did her poetry gain literary status.
DeleteNo one is in the "Minor Leagues," Elizabeth, who puts her dreams into prose.
If you speak to the human heart in crisis, then you are literary. :-)
If you can capture the imagination of the human heart, you are literary also.
ReplyDeleteThat is what I feel also. What is considered "literature" today was written merely to tell an entertaining story. The plays of Shakespeare were written to entertain theater goers of the day.
Delete