This is the 2nd post derived from kindle threads.
A few days ago, I started a thread in the fiction forum, inviting people to promote their own or other literary or general fiction. 2 days later, one reply. So, thinking this location might lack visitors, I started a similar thread in the main kindle forum - this is the landing stage when people log on so plenty of traffic. A couple of books were posted this time, along with posts suggesting that maybe people couldn't cope with a category as 'undefined' as general fiction and that maybe I should try the literary fiction forum as it is very active (it isn't).
This generates lots of worrying questions - and remember we're dealing with an almost entirely US environment here and their understanding of genres etc may be different from mine. Also, bear in mind, if anyone dared venture into the first post, I pointed out that I was meaning any well-written general fiction, or novels that didn't necessarily conform to all the rules of a particular genre.
Now, it could be that no-one wants to read literary or general fiction. And if this is the case, that could be the reason why virtually no-one is publishing it. It could be that no-one is writing literary or general fiction - and if they're not, the reason might be because they know it won't get published traditionally. Certainly, it's easier for publishers to market books which they can fit neatly into the same genre/category/list.
But I think the main problem is people are scared of the word literary, that readers are scared it might mean something with arty concepts and no story and that writers are scared it assumes a level of ability that their book may not have reached.
I will now play down the word literary in favour of the word general and if anyone can suggest a word to describe a well-written or imaginatively-written story, please let me know!
A few days ago, I started a thread in the fiction forum, inviting people to promote their own or other literary or general fiction. 2 days later, one reply. So, thinking this location might lack visitors, I started a similar thread in the main kindle forum - this is the landing stage when people log on so plenty of traffic. A couple of books were posted this time, along with posts suggesting that maybe people couldn't cope with a category as 'undefined' as general fiction and that maybe I should try the literary fiction forum as it is very active (it isn't).
This generates lots of worrying questions - and remember we're dealing with an almost entirely US environment here and their understanding of genres etc may be different from mine. Also, bear in mind, if anyone dared venture into the first post, I pointed out that I was meaning any well-written general fiction, or novels that didn't necessarily conform to all the rules of a particular genre.
Now, it could be that no-one wants to read literary or general fiction. And if this is the case, that could be the reason why virtually no-one is publishing it. It could be that no-one is writing literary or general fiction - and if they're not, the reason might be because they know it won't get published traditionally. Certainly, it's easier for publishers to market books which they can fit neatly into the same genre/category/list.
But I think the main problem is people are scared of the word literary, that readers are scared it might mean something with arty concepts and no story and that writers are scared it assumes a level of ability that their book may not have reached.
I will now play down the word literary in favour of the word general and if anyone can suggest a word to describe a well-written or imaginatively-written story, please let me know!
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