Mmmm.... Mysteries

(Well, Julie Weathers, we're talking mysteries today!)

I love a good Mystery. Cozies are fun. I can’t say I’ve read a whole lot of them compared to the SFF and Romance I’ve devoured, but the few I do read, I quite enjoy. Who isn’t a sucker for Miss Marple or Hercule Poirot or The Cat Who...? There’s a few others I’ve read over the years and sometimes they scratch that itch I get once in a while to be intellectually challenged without being called to account.

I like trying to figure out the whodunnit as I read along. Was I right? Did I get it? If I do, cool. Gold star for me. If I don’t, I marvel at the cleverness of the plot.

Question: if you read mysteries, do you try to figure it out, or do you just cruise along for the ride?
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Her Grace likes an occasional Mystery in her escapist repertoire because, unlike real life, she gets to learn how it all wraps up.

Books

I love reading. Books have been my dear companions for pretty much all my life.

When I was younger, I'd read anything that came across my path. If it was a printed word, I'd read it.

Now that I'm older and my tastes have settled, I find I am fond of escapist fiction--Romance, Fantasy, Science Fiction. The farther away from reality my fiction can get, the better.

I read to escape life. Because of this, I have issues with reading stories in contemporary settings. I also have issues with books that lack an HEA (or at least lack hope).  Yes, this covers many literary works. That said, I do have a soft spot for Paulo Coelho because of his beautifully positive messages.

Today's question:  Why do you read the books you choose?

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Secretly, Her Grace has always loved escapist fiction. She devoured The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe at age six.  Also, Her Grace has written several books. Go check them out.

A to Z Challenge: I am a Writer

I am a writer. You cannot read this blog and miss that fact.

I have always been a writer. I've always loved stories.

Technically, I prefer to call myself an author or a novelist, as that's mostly what I do, and what I want my career to focus on.

Honestly, I don't know what I can tell you here about being a writer. I write to escape real life. My fiction reflects that. So to sit here and write about why I write, when the reason I write is so I don't have to face reality works rather counter-productively. My writing and my reality should be invisible to my readers. All they should see is the worlds and characters I've created. I want my readers to escape as well.

Maybe I should tell you what I wouldn't write.

• True Crime Why: It's about Reality Gone Wrong. Humans are capable of wonderful things. Conversely, they are also capable of very dark deeds. I do not have the emotional capacity to write True Crime. In real life not enough crime is resolved by true justice. Even if a criminal is brought to justice, as our current legal systems know it, I still can't stand True Crime, because I never get to see the redemption of the criminal.
• Contemporary Fiction. It's too close to reality. There's not much room for something wondrous and otherworldly. I'm okay with historical fiction, because people's lives and circumstances are very, very different through the various periods of history. The Roaring Twenties. The Regency. The Roman Empire. Pre-Revolutionary China. Because these places are very different from the life I've grown up in, they make lovely escapist settings. But contemporary settings? I'm sorry. They are a little too close to home.
• Political Thrillers. Politics are a rich ground for thrillers because politics are a lose-lose situation. Politics have no shared moral values. It's essentially every one out for themselves, and doing their best to enforce their views on others. There is no such thing as HEA in political thrillers. (Sorry, Janet. I know how much you love them.)
• Westerns. Westerns seem to be all about the cowboys. I don't like cowboys. I've known enough of them to be turned off by the double-standarded macho attitude. There's too much untrained testosterone going about for my taste. Too rough-and-tumble. Cowboys are very set in their ways. There's no wiggle room.
• Christian Fiction. My real life is very much a Christ-centered life. But even the most devout of Christians needs a regular break from all the religiosity. It can be hard work being Christian. I have no desire to write Christian fiction because it's not escapist enough.

What genres would you not want to write?

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Her Grace is happiest where she is. Now go buy her books. 

Read Widely

What do you like to read?  Fantasy?  Romance?  Chick Lit?

A book is a book is a book.
Love them all.

How often do you read another genre? 

What?!  You Don’t?  (Oh, my bleeding heart.) 

Be brave this week, go to the library and get a book in a genre you don’t usually read.  Yes, it may be a bit harder to read, but it will give you some spiritual nutrition you didn’t realise you were missing.

Read for enjoyment.  If not, read for analysis.  If you put the book down and don't finish it, ask yourself why.  If you find yourself saying, "Oh, I just didn't like it," what were the qualities you didn't like about it?

Read a book that you'd be embarrassed to be caught reading.  (It's okay. You can borrow a dust jacket from a book with your kind of street-cred.  Use said dust jacket to hide the book.)

My TBR pile this week contains:

• Where Are You Now by Mary Higgins Clark.   This is a thriller.  I'm trying to learn the difference between mystery, thriller and suspense, as part of my MFA.
• Manuscript found in Accra -and- Like the Flowing River, both by Paulo Coelho.  Both are literary novels.  However, they sport positive messages of the greatness of Humanity.  Not many literary novels do that.  If you dislike literary because of it's dark dismalness, give Paulo Coelho a try.
• Timeless by Gail Carriger.  Yep, finishing off this delightful Steampunk series.
• Beta-reading a few mates' novels.

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Her Grace loves a good book. She is due to raid the New Aquisitions Shelf at work. 

Do Not Fear Genre Fiction.

If you are a literary reader, do not fear genre fiction. 

Lit and Life will read genre fiction.

At first, it may seem shallow and trite to read if you’re not used to it.   Genre novels are meant to be readily accessible.  Doesn’t mean they lack substance. 

Genre fiction tends to be plot-driven.  It’s about stuff happening.  This will be the primary motivational force.  This plot will often function within a worldbuilding frame, thus giving rise to a “genre” category (ie, Western, or Romance or Science Fiction, etc).  Certain elements and supertext will be present, thus “uncluttering” the text and allowing the plot to unfold at a certain pace.

Plot-driven fiction will have a certain rhythm in the plot beats or “events”.  Slow plots tend to bore genre readers, as they’re more interested in “what happens next”, and not necessarily “here we are”.

Consider genre fiction a kind of “mystery”.  You’re given a few very important clues as to your characters and their dilemma. Then let the plot unfold, noting the character’s impact on how this unfolding takes place.  Characters will have motivations and goals.  Plot tension comes when the characters are thwarted in achieving these goals.  Select elements of their character will be revealed along the way as they encounter the plot and how they react to it.  Does the character receive satisfaction at the end of the plot, or did they have to compromise?

More on genre fiction categories.  Meanwhile...

Oh, Tom Gauld.  You understand.

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Her Grace is fond of genre fiction of all kinds (not just Romance). Yes, it's all about the jet packs. They're awesome.