Mine's about a Senators fall into evil as he runs for and wins the Presidency and ultimately declares martial law and suspends the Constitution. He is the only POV I am using and frequently I have a thousand words go by without dialogue, right now I am explaining what hubris is and how he has it. Is this Literary Fiction?
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14,759 / 50,000
Nov 23, 2008 - 11 13
Impossible to say! Will gladly read what you've written so far and tell you my opinion! x
50,646 / 50,000
Nov 23, 2008 - 18 37
It certainly could be! It really depends what the balance between character and events is.
52,756 / 50,000
Nov 24, 2008 - 07 16
Sometimes you won't know until you see how your agent pitches it. Donald Maas, the New York literary agent, calls guys like Robert James Waller (The Bridges of Madison County) "pseudo-literary." I find that term helpful. That book clearly surpassed common romance, but it didn't approach Anna Karenina or The Unbearable Lightness of Being. It has nothing to do with the writer's education, either. I'm educated in the classics, and I can write onerously literary passages, sometimes in iambic pentameter, for pages! Tedious, huh? But I'll never be as educated as Dr. Waller is. Hey, neither was Mark Twain.
Overall, I sincerely hope that I'm not labeled as "literary." That label could place you in bookstores where people, who need to read your story, may never see it. It could make teachers force you onto students who end up hating your work, at least until they're 30 or so.
I just hope that I can write a story that makes readers feel beautiful and act beautiful, because they are.
11,014 / 50,000
Nov 24, 2008 - 09 17
If you're really wanting to categorize your story, I would say it sounds more mainstream than literary. A literary fiction audience won't need you to explain what hubris is, since they will already be familiar with it. Plus I think it's always a good idea to adhere to the "show, don't tell" maxim when it comes to characterization. Otherwise, it sounds provocative and intriguing. I hope it's going well!