Saturday, February 12, 2011
In the beginning there were stories and one day they became books...
Every story has to start somewhere. I happen to like stories that start in medias res, so of course that's I'm choosing to start, in the middle. I've been reading more and more and more to generally escape from reality, and as an author to mimic styles of other authors I come to like and even pick up some plot bunnies of my own along the way. But by the beginning of 2011, I realized that I no longer had reading buddies to squee with over everything I was reading. It's like going to the movies by yourself and not having that person to turn to and mouth "OMG did you see that?!" and do a play by play with after the movie is over. In a college Creative Writing program I have realized that the people that I write with are fans of Cormac MacCarthy and Kurt Vonnegut, and here I am a fan of the weird, supernatual, vampiric, and geeky teen romance found in J.K. Rowling, Stephenie Meyer, and Richelle Mead to name a few. So yeah I'm missing that connection to someone who is as excited about the teenage first kiss as I am. I realized the best way to talk to someone about the books I'm reading is to just review them for myself, to make a mental note of the things I loved or hated about a book. But still, where is the fun in that? So here I am, putting myself out there as a reviewer of young adult fiction, coaxing others to read my library (or avoid titles that sold themselves short), and open up a book-club-like space to enjoy together. I'm here to review YA novels one book at a time as I stroll through the land of writer's block surrounded by a library of tattered spines...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Hi there!
ReplyDeleteJust a note to say that I love the name of your blog!
I also think that you found a great way to share your love of YA fiction, when the people around you appear to be a little too grown up! I am a YA fiction fan myself, but I read practically anything!
Looking forward to more posts!
I wouldn't necessarily say that the people around me are too grown up, though they are very well versed and read, it's more that they're afraid to read YA. :) This has been my argument for a long time, besides basic fear of being an adult caught reading a book supposedly for kids, people are turned off by books about vampires or such because of the way they are marketed. I am a huge Twilight fan, but the movies let me down majorly by only being marketed to 13 year olds with no hold on their emotions. Unlike Vampires Diaries, which I believe the show is better than the books because it draws in 18-35 demographic and is extremely sexually heated. True Blood can have the same thing said about it. My personal complaint is stores like B&N that label their YA section "Teen" and it really turns me off because it makes me embarrassed to shop there when I have no reason to be. If books and their media adaptations were better marketed, more people would flock to them, instead of believing that it can't be good literature if it's written for kids. Many of my classmates believe that YA books lack depth and only focus on the surface and fantasy appeal. These are the same people that have yet to give it a try. I'm hoping that they'll follow this blog and I might be able to convert a few. And thanks for stopping by! I'm looking forward to posting again, I'm so caught up in classwork I'm beginning to fear i'll never finish my current personal reading book, can't wait for spring break :)
ReplyDelete