Is the Great American Novel Dead?
There was a college professor that said something to this effect.
He said something like, “As a college professor I make 60,000 a year before taxes. The first half of this year I made 45,000 writing stable boy romances. The great American novel might be dead, but the great American dream isn’t.”
That same professor apparently quit two years later and bought a vacation home in Portugal.
His writing advice that stuck with his pupil? “Write competent trash.”
Is that really where we are at as a reading culture? Is the American novel dead? Do the majority of readers just want a quick cheap thrill, and nothing too deep?
Are millions reading Moby Dick?
This is not a knock on Moby Dick.
But the truth is most readers are somewhat avoiding reads like this and opting for things like Twilight and Harry Potter.
That’s not an attack on Twilight or Harry Potter either. It is just a fact.
Every once in a while a dedicated reader will go out of their way to make sure they get in the classics, but for most readers, they in fact are looking for a cheap, quick, fun getaway in a book.
Write competent trash.
This line is hilarious, but how the words sting true.
Most of the world is ready to drop a couple of bucks on the next Patterson thriller, but tempt them with Charles Dickens and You’re likely to hear crickets.
What kind of writer do you want to be?
Do you want to be the kind that makes a living? Or the kind that writes an epic that gets taught about in colleges?
Either would be neat, but personally, I’d rather be paid to be a writer.
In today’s writing career culture the horizons have really widened for writers.
You can be paid to write blogs, emails, sales pages, cheap fun novellas.
There are a lot more options for writers. And while writing any one of these things and getting paid for it, you can work on your dream project on the side.
Is it really “competent trash?”
It doesn’t have to be. I mean, it’s not high brow literature like the classics, but it does bring enjoyment to a large group of people.
At the end of the day, isn’t that what writing is sort of about? Bringing entertainment to the people that want to have a “good read?”
Think of the last time you read or watched a great story. You probably are very thankful to have found it and you were excited to share it with others.
Some people might think, “it’s competent trash,” but for the majority of readers it’s enjoyment and fun.
Final thoughts
The Great American Novel may be dead, but writing is not, getting paid to write is not, and fiction certainly is not.
There are many ways to get paid as a writer in this century. You can blog, freelance, or be a copywriter.
Don’t think that because you decide to make money writing that means that you’re challenging the art form. Not everything written has to be high-brow literature or it’s just “competent trash.”
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Is the Great American Novel Dead?
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That’s all for now.
Hope this helps!
Happy writing!
Resources:
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Is the Great American Novel Dead?
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