tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post5515455638373403496..comments2024-03-27T22:25:42.129-05:00Comments on Reading the Past: More notes from the conferenceSarah Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-71942796174487873162007-06-25T12:12:00.000-05:002007-06-25T12:12:00.000-05:00The French Revolution thing struck me when I was b...The French Revolution thing struck me when I was browsing the fall HarperCollins catalog this weekend and saw mention of James Tipton's <I>Annette Vallon: A Novel about the French Revolution</I>. The era must be a greater selling point than the fact that she was William Wordsworth's mistress. <BR/><BR/>(Or maybe that would have made it seem too literary? It's not listed as literary fiction.)Sarah Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-76876784455107413402007-06-25T11:49:00.000-05:002007-06-25T11:49:00.000-05:00I've had a French Revolution novel idea for years ...I've had a French Revolution novel idea for years now, but every time I propose it to my agent, I hear "Eek, not FRANCE!" <BR/><BR/>I agree with you, Sarah. I think Revolutionary France is definitely a "marquee era." <BR/><BR/>I have another idea for a marquee era (different era) book, but with fictional leading characters and historical supporting characters; but I'll keep it under my hat for now. I'm hearing that editors are gun-shy about it, too, and I need to write the book to prove them wrong!Amanda Elyothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06814163550383140976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-73334705422695043942007-06-25T11:31:00.000-05:002007-06-25T11:31:00.000-05:00What I'd call "literary fiction" has to do with st...What I'd call "literary fiction" has to do with style, tone, pacing (not always, but often), and whether the authors are deliberately using the past as a vehicle for expressing contemporary themes. (The latter can get me in trouble, as some commercial novels do this well, too - like anything by Steven Pressfield.) But the separation between commercial and literary isn't always so clear, and it's something I'm struggling with as I update my next "guide to the genre" book. Sometimes the difference has more to do with marketing than writing style, and whether a publisher feels an author should be taken seriously by critics and readers.<BR/><BR/>For me, there aren't any value judgments attached to either one. It's hard to get away with literary snobbishness as a librarian or readers' advisor - you won't get very far as either with that attitude. <BR/><BR/>Many recent historical novels are both commercial AND literary (those by Dunant, Chevalier, Naslund, even Diamant's The Red Tent) - I'd agree with that. I've heard Irene Goodman's comments on "marquee names," but it seems to me there are also "marquee settings" and even themes. As in: Renaissance Italy, Biblical women, artists, the French Revolution, even.Sarah Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-76503402057953471422007-06-25T06:58:00.000-05:002007-06-25T06:58:00.000-05:00I probably should have been clearer in my blog pos...I probably should have been clearer in my blog post on historyhoydens that I was referring primarily to what the publishing world considers "commercial fiction" as opposed to what they term "literary" fiction. Most of the books I refer to that broke the rules would probably fall into that arcane and nebulous territory called "literary fiction". So what the heck is "literary"? Does it have to do with tone? More sophisticated wordsmithing? <BR/><BR/>I've heard one agent describe (and this is her view of what publishers think ... not the agent's personal opinion) that "literary" equals "boring" and "a book no one buys," whereas "commercial" fiction is "what will sell."<BR/><BR/>Sophisticated and highbrow versus "bourgeois"? <BR/><BR/>Makes you want to take a sledgehammer to that narrow view of the marketplace, and the consumer/reader!<BR/><BR/>Can something be literary AND commercial? I certainly think so (think Sarah Dunant's 2 recent books, IN THE COMPANY OF THE COURTESAN and BIRTH OF VENUS). I would guess that MARCH is now considered "literary fiction," especially since it bears the imprimatur of the Pulitzer Prize.Amanda Elyothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06814163550383140976noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-34427760940258114202007-06-21T15:13:00.000-05:002007-06-21T15:13:00.000-05:00Rashi is definitely a "marquee" name in the Jewish...Rashi is definitely a "marquee" name in the Jewish community. This is a very well-written book, and the reader needn't be Jewish to enjoy it.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16517391544173570628noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-25425190962452074992007-06-20T17:40:00.000-05:002007-06-20T17:40:00.000-05:00I don't know what is so bad about France. I can't ...I don't know what is so bad about France. I can't even link it to the recent anti-French sentiments expressed by America around 2004 or so because French-set historicals have rarely flown for readers. I could say it is ironic considering the romantic and luxurious connotations France(Paris) holds for Americans, but the English-speaking press hasn't spun a favorable impression of the country and its people--ever.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-29003420307243606242007-06-20T13:16:00.000-05:002007-06-20T13:16:00.000-05:00It's unfortunate, isn't it? A few years ago, I re...It's unfortunate, isn't it? A few years ago, I read an article by librarian/readers' advisor Kris Ramsdell called "Getting Behind Reader Taboos: What's Wrong With France?" from the Romance Writers' Report. (Maybe it was you who turned me on to it?) Very illuminating. Seems to me the romance market has opened up for some new settings, but not yet France.Sarah Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340312953393474963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19307003.post-62227978207768034062007-06-20T11:01:00.000-05:002007-06-20T11:01:00.000-05:00Thanks for the links :) Will have to explore them....Thanks for the links :) Will have to explore them.<BR/><BR/>Re: France, yeah, I agree - having been told by many in the HRF world that my books set in France just won't fly, especially for a new author.Tesshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15636189059910920978noreply@blogger.com