Literary Worlds

      There is a tale, as yet untold, of to halves of the same...

   Lust for hedonism drives the Comms when they write,read and live. Lits, live to be held on high, through wisdom, though oft times feral, and metaphor. Lits have the bent of information, conveyed through passion or philosophy. Comms seek respite from storms outside and within. These two are unalike... Yet, neither exists without the other.

  Commercial Fiction is not just a genre générale. The name itself is unfortunate. It became a catagory, or genre, by default when the "Commercially Successful" novels gained more notice than their Literary Fiction bretheren.  I wonder if Cain and Abel were authors? 

  Lovers of Commercial Fiction (Comms) were dubbed as having less educated "tastes" by the literary fictionists (Lits). Commercial Fiction fired back that Literary Fiction was the haunt of elitest snobs who hate detectives, spys, treasure hunting, science fiction and puppies... Ok, maybe not puppies, but it would make an effective ad-campaign, "Read smart books and puppies die" 

  The Lits cry out that the Comms are guilty of cultural hegemony, lack artistic merit and deny that "Being and Nothingness" makes for a great party theme.

  At a recent summit meeting of the Comms and Lits, the only thing they could agree on is that neither really liked Cricket or Ice Dancing. They canceled a vote on Curling.

  These two Genres miss the point. They have the same DNA. They exist because of what one has taught the other, so that books sell in large enough number to maintain the others existance in our world. Literary Fiction has given rise to the growing lists of genres and sub-genres, by inspiring people to record their dreams and fantasies for the enjoyment of others. The likes of H.G.Wells, Jules Verne and Mary Shelly gave us science fiction, though they lived in a time where Literary works ruled the day. Mark Twain took us down river, in a time of a nation's growth, inspiring those that would look further. Modern mega-novels like James Clavell's "Shogun" gave us a story of Japanese history and a vivid picture of beyond a shore.

  Fiction is the great "what if", offering sustanance for our minds eye. Chose what you want, what you like, for whatever reason. Just know that both Commercial fiction and Literary Fiction are really one and the same thing... Though one of them does makes for better movies...