On Message Writing...

[A. E. Lowan]

Chuck Wendig had a pair of guest posts today that tie together quite nicely. Posted here for your reading and discussing pleasure.

Stina Leicht: Message Fiction Inside Sci-Fi & Fantasy « terribleminds: chuck wendig

S.L. Huang: A Defense Of Escapist Blow-Shit-Up-Hell-Yeah Popcorn Entertainment « terribleminds: chuck wendig

 

[Heliotrope]

Great read! Thanks for posting. Always a good reminder to think about 'what is your story actually about? What is the theme? The message. What fuzzy or uncomfortable feeling do you want the reader to walk away with?'

 

[Russ]

Agreed great read.

Personally I try not to read "escapist fiction" because when I am finished I feel like I have wasted my time. Sometimes I will read light fiction to try and learn some technique, but never for purely escapist reasons.

When talking to people about their books I often find they most struggle with the question of "what is the theme of your novel?". Many people start answering with a plot summary and I say "no, no...what is it really about?".

I very much agree with Heliotrope above, people should be able to answer that question. At the very least they should be honestly able to say "I have an idea of what it is about, but would you mind reading it without me telling you to see if you get the message I am trying to send."