OMC Exploring Genre Fiction
EXPLORING GENRE FICTION
I’ve been thinking about starting a book club. I like the idea of meeting with people in person, but I’m also aware that many of the people I’m trying to target for my book club are probably like me, with a long list of other things that they have to do at specific times, making it hard to add one more thing. So, I think I’ll launch the “Exploring Genre Fiction” book club online.
Here’s how it works: Each month has a genre/theme. Prior to the start of each month, I’ll announce the book/books that I’ll be reading that month. I will read 1-3 books each month in the genre of that month. Near the end of the month, I’ll post a video review of the book/books of the month. You will respond in the comments, or with video reviews of your own. I’ve included a sample list of genres and titles, but I’m always open to suggestions for titles, genres, or methods.
Tentative schedule:
January – Spies
February – Comedy/Satire
March – Fantasy
April – Dystopia/Utopia
May – SciFi
June – Romance
July – Westerns
August – Crime/Noir
September – Mystery
October – Horror
November – Alt. History
In part, this idea was inspired by a talk given by Neal Stephenson, ostensibly on the topic of “Science Fiction as a literary genre,” but which also seeks to deconstruct the concept of genres altogether, recreating genres into two categories – speculative fiction and mundane fiction. Speculative Fiction is the evolution of science fiction, but no longer requires the setting to be the future, or even to be about advanced technological innovations, but rather intelligent people reacting intelligently to the unknown. In mundane fiction, characters react predictably to familiar situations.
http://fora.tv/2008/05/08/Neal_Stephenson_Science_Fiction_as_a_Literary_Genre
The video is over 40 minutes long, but it’s broken up into chapters, and even though N.S. is a bit flat in his presentation, the content makes up for his lack of stage presence. This video will I think help set the stage for this book group.
