Literature As A Form of Art

The main lesson I learned at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Conference at Montgomery College in Rockville, MD this weekend is that there's a big difference between 'books' and 'literature.'

Here are the things I liked about the conference. Susan Cheever, the keynote speaker, did a wonderful job. She was witty, engaging, and informative. The winner of the annual award for outstanding achievement in literature, Elmore Leonard, was also a pleasure to see in action, both during a morning panel about crime fiction and during his reading. And I enjoyed the workshop with Stacy Barton, during which she gave me a new way of thinking about character development through making murals.

I think it was a good experience to attend this conference, because it was completely different from the other events I've been to. At the same time, it is not a conference that I would recommend for emerging authors.

To many, literature is an art form. Novels are meant to be broken down, analyzed, their merits judged relative to the existing body of sanctioned works. Some people are allowed into the pantheon of great literature, and others aren't. F. Scott Fitzgerald never made a living as a writer. He is remembered not for his persistence or his marketing skill or his flexibility, but for creating what is widely known as one of the greatest works of American Literature. And that's great for him, and wonderful for all the people who celebrate his work. But it's kind of depressing for emerging authors who are looking to make a living, not looking to make art. Because publishing houses, in general, aren't interested in great literature. They're looking for something that will sell.

Personally, my goal isn't to write the next Great American Novel. Instead, my goal is to give someone a thrill, fill a need, leave them satisfied once the story is over, and sad that there isn't any more. And it's hard to learn how to do that from people who want to get to the essence of the written word. To me, it's not about essence, it's about substance. Characters readers can relate to. An engaging plot. A story that's easy to follow, and easy to understand. A book that children and adults alike will finish and say, "Now that was a rousing tale!"

What are your thoughts? What, to you, is the difference between 'books' and 'literature?' Is it possible to achieve success as an author without impressing the literati?

Upcoming Events: Maryann Miller, F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Conference, Watermark Gallery

Coming up is another Community Fridays interview. This week's guest is Maryann Miller, author, scriptwriter, reviewer, and editorial consultant. Stop by to learn how a chance suggestion led to a successful scriptwriting career, and find a lovely little place in Texas where a writer can go to get away from it all.

This weekend I will attend the F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Conference at Montgomery College in Rockville, MD. The schedule for the conference is packed with events, including workshops and a presentation of the Outstanding Achievement in American Literature to author Elmore Leonard (Get Shorty, The Bounty Hunters, Out of Sight, “3:10 to Yuma”).

I'm especially excited to meet the leader of the workshop From the Page to the Stage. It's hard to know where to begin to describe her: I chose the workshop in part because of her varied career experience. Stacy Barton is an author: her published works include a collection of short stories (Surviving Nashville) and a children's book (Babba and I went Hunting Today). She's also a poet, an actor, a film-maker, and a freelance scriptwriter for Disney.

Also up this weekend is another Lit and Art event at the Watermark Art Gallery. The event is titled "Rumi and More - Poetry, Music, Art and Refreshments." It will be held on Sunday, October 26 at 2:00 pm. The Gallery is located in the Bank of America building at 100 S. Charles St., Baltimore, MD. Not sure yet if I'll go to this one, but I did have an excellent time at the last event. If you're in the area, feel free to stop by!

Capclave Recap

Just got back from Capclave. Here are my thoughts on the science fiction and fantasy literary convention.

First of all, I want to thank all of a the wonderful people at The Washington Science Fiction Association, the panelists and speakers, the other attendees, and all the volunteers who made the convention a reality. A convention is a lot of hard work, and the organizers even stuck around at the end to hear people (constructively) complain!

And now, a breakdown.

Panels: Excellent! Great information, well-delivered, and good audience participation. I attended panels on YA Science Fiction, working on your fiction-writing career, working in a writing-related field while trying to launch your fiction-writing career, and magic in a mundane world (among other things). I think they're planning on increasing the amount of time between panels next year, which was the only qualm I had. I liked how they had three to five panelists at each talk so that we got to listen to some great discussions. The panelists all played off of each other well, and the talks were never dull.

Workshops: I attended the writing workshop moderated by Allen Wold. Allen is quite a force to be reckoned with! I received some great insight into my writing.

Socialization: I felt a little more comfortable meeting people at the GLVWG writers' conference I went to last March, mainly because the meals were in the hotel and shared by most of the conference attendees and speakers. But I did get to talk to some wonderful people at Capclave, including editors, gamers, authors, and librarians (librarians are quickly becoming one of my favorite types of people!). I only wish that I had known that the parties written on the board were "open parties" - I probably would have met even more interesting people!

Here are some of the people I did meet, in no particular order:

Allen Wold - Author, panelist, moderator, taskmaster. A man deft and encouraging in his criticisms who left the writers with the feeling they could make something good out of their writing. If you ever get a chance to take a class with him (he teaches at conferences and cons all throughout the year) I strongly suggest you take it. Allen is a multi-published science fiction and non-fiction author.

Edmund R. Schubert - Now, here's an interesting story. I found out that Edmund was editor for Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show, which sounded familiar. I realized that I had heard about that magazine through my interview with Jason Sanford, and I asked Edmund if he knew Jason. He said yes, then I said I'd interviewed Jason, and THEN Edmund said he'd read my interview! I checked my blog later, and I realized that, in his interview, Jason actually recommended Edmund highly. Talk about coming full circle! Anyway, Edmund was extremely helpful and knowledgeable about the subject at hand and all things science fiction. I'm very lucky to have met him in person. Check out his website to see his new book!

Larry Hodges - Now here's a guy who would make a great character in a story. Larry is working on is first science fiction novel. He also maintains a blog about politics, AND he's a retired table-tennis coach. Which is actually turns out to be a fairly lucrative profession. Did you know that table-tennis players in Europe can make more than a million dollars a year? Larry is the only person I know who can write, coach table-tennis, and recite the histories of every single president complete with terms of office. His frequent participation in workshops and overall enthusiasm about the writing industry make him a great resource.

Danielle Ackley-McPhail - Danielle is a woman who knows a lot about creative promotion! Her launch parties are apparently legendary in this part of the industry, and she gives away great candy. She's a fantasy author and an anthologist. She's also a great person to know, who really, truly gets joy out of her work.

Danny Birt - Danny is trying to single-handedly destroy the fantasy formula of 1.) person meets sage 2.) person quests for magical object 3.) person destroys the Great Evil. He's also a composer of both classical and filk music (a type of science fiction folk music), and an adept manuscript critiquer.

Davey Beauchamp - Davey likes to use his art for a good cause. He's an anthologist who has compiled science fiction stories to provide relief from natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina. Davey is also a YA librarian, and he provided some great insight into the kind of styles that would interest a younger audience.

Conclusion: Terrific convention. Great information. Beautiful location. Very accepting of and willing to help newbies, once they figured out I was one. :) If you're in the MD/DC/VA area, and you're at all interested in reading, writing, or learning more about science fiction and fantasy, put Capclave 2009 on your calendar!

Update: I also wanted to mention Darcy, who was one of the leaders of the writing workshop, and gave me excellent advice about dancing. She didn't have a nametag, but I'm guessing that she's Darcy Wold, Allen Wold's daughter. Thanks Darcy for your help!

GLVWG shoutout

In other news, there's one more shoutout I'd like to send relating to the Write Stuff conference. This one's to Timons Esaias. It's great talking to all sorts of new people at a conference, and it's somewhat of a shock to find out the person you were casually chatting about travel and databases with turns out to be a well-known published author and an actual workshop leader at the conference!

GLVWG Annual Conference - My First Writer's Conference!

I've decided to take the plunge - I'm attending my first writer's conference this weekend! The Write Stuff conference is being held by the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group in Allentown, PA from Friday, March 28th to Saturday, March 29th. People will attend the conference from all over the country, and I can't wait to meet them!

I first became interested in the conference when I saw that Karen Syed would attend as a speaker. Karen taught a wonderful class last year at the Carroll County Community College about how to get published. She demystified the whole process for me and helped me to once again regain my interest in becoming a published author.

Hope to see you there!