tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773759989225356372.post4470552858197724285..comments2024-03-27T19:24:05.285-05:00Comments on Stupefying Stories Magazine: Why do you write genre fiction?~brbhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10845253722980029012noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773759989225356372.post-51610145926095868212021-07-02T19:13:06.097-05:002021-07-02T19:13:06.097-05:00As a kid, I was unhappy with my life (for a dizzyi...As a kid, I was unhappy with my life (for a dizzying number of reasons). I escaped into books when I hit adolescence (which exacerbated most of the reasons...) into science fiction which seemed to be way more positive than the books my teachers were having me read: OLD YELLER (the dog is shot); THE OUTSIDERS (everyone is alienated...I hated that because I was ALREADY alienated and why would I want to read about OTHER people who were alienated); SHANE (a rancher tries to bully people out of his way -- and is scary and threatening...I was NOT scary and threatening...I was pudgy and weak); there were others, but that seemed to be the kinds of books I had to read. Science Fiction, (disreputable in the late sixties and early seventies -- at least for junior high kids!) offered HOPE mediated via technology. While I wasn't a technogeek (or a cyberpunk), I was handy with the tech of the time! I could MAYBE do something to escape. Maybe be smart and then become an astronaut. EDUCATION as a "superpower" seemed to override guns. Which meant that I had a chance! HAVE SPACESUIT, WILL TRAVEL; THE ZERO STONE; OPERATION: TIME SEARCH along with STAR TREK (there was no The Original Series...it was The ONLY Series!) I read SF and eventually wrote it because it offered me a chance to be free of the me I loathed...GuyStewarthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01268114053763665577noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773759989225356372.post-53987916593066287682021-07-02T18:06:19.842-05:002021-07-02T18:06:19.842-05:00My first reaction to this question is, "Defin...My first reaction to this question is, "Define fantastic." Which wouldn't do any good because genre definitions are changing so fast I can't keep up. Unless you're using the word fantastic as meaning extra good.<br /><br />The first thing everybody wants to know about a writer is their genre, but they all intend to use that info in different ways. Publishers want to know how to market your book. Agents want to know which publishers to pitch it to. Brick and mortar stores want to know which shelf to put it on. Online stores want to know what category to put it in. Amazon doesn't bother asking what genre a book is. They assign it several different genres according to I have no idea what.<br /><br />What I'm writing has too many genres in it. When I decide it's ready to publish, either the situation will be different, or I'll have to go Indie. Or stick it in a virtual drawer and start on another book. Arisiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08171607978526875237noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3773759989225356372.post-31498385675473288822021-06-30T13:07:09.360-05:002021-06-30T13:07:09.360-05:00Wait, you can choose to write something else?!? Da...Wait, you can choose to write something else?!? Damn it, now you tell me...<br /><br />Ultimately, I write this stuff because that's what fits my perspective and how I think about the universe at large. It's not the only type of material I write, but it's definitely my default. I tried other flavors of fiction, especially while I was steaming through my graduate work, but when it comes to fiction, the fantastic feels natural to me.Invictushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15084084077090130137noreply@blogger.com