After over 365 days in the blogsphere, I did today what I usually do not have time to do - go blog surfing! However, I confined my search to fiction blogs. Why fiction blogs you may ask. I say why not?
Actually this interest in fiction blogs developed after I started my own fiction blog Kaleidoscope. The site is about three months old and I frequently get guilt pangs about it being the proverbial neglected child. Writing fiction I realize is rather difficult. I mean, it is not like this blog where I can in a jiffy write out a couple of paragraphs on just anything that is on my mind. Fiction requires serious thinking and then etching out charchters. It also requires undisturbed writing time.. something that is a rarity in my life! So, I was curious to see what other fiction writers were writing on their blogs!
It was a very interesting journey to say the least. For example, I found people writing about murders, paranormal phenomenon and what not..! But the most common topic was - (you guessed right)- love stories. While reading these love stories I suddenly felt rather old. I found I could not relate at all to these college canteen romances and valentine's day stuff.. ! I am wondering why? Some of these have been written in as many as 7 parts- each part if judging by the number of comments have obviously been very popular. Yet, I miss the depth in these narrations.. Or is this what love has come to be these days? Meeting at Cafe coffe day, studying for the physics exam together. Guy keeps following girl or vice versa..?
However there are a few fiction blogs which are really good. I would like to mention two such blogs -both written by individuals with initials KP- one of them a male and another female. KP, the male writes on a variety of topics and his stories are short and racy! KP the female writes more intense stories and they hold you revetted! Then there is another fiction blog written by my friend Anindita " Ai Zindagi" - her stories are very unique and I am yet to find any other writer who compares to this style!
I sometimes struggle with my stories particularly the editing bit. It is very difficult to put stories down in a few paragraphs.. they require elaboration - or at least my style of writing depends heavily on that! I am now wondering if fiction writing is meant for blogs. Most bloggers I find are youngsters and I obviously do not write their kind of stories. (I guess their attention span is too short to run through the entire length of my story.) The older ones are more interested in issue based posts. So what is going to happen to the Jane Austen in me ?
I am sometimes amazed at the type of reactions I get to some of the stories I write. I mean I put my heart and soul into a story and I find it has not really attracted much attention and there are some which are not so great which generate a lot of interest. It is really curious the way people think. It is certainly not easy to predict. It is not like the Chronicles where I am sure that certain topics would generate a lot of interest while others may not.
I remember an anecdote that I read in a book about R D Burman ( R D Burman- the man , the music). Apparently R D Burman had composed what he considered a very mediocre tune for the film " Love Story". This tune " Yaad Aaa rahi hai" went on to become a super hit! He is supposed to have told Amit Kumar " There is no telling what the public will like. Look at this stupid bhajan style tune.. it is now a super hit!" -that pretty much summarizes what I have to say!
Actually this interest in fiction blogs developed after I started my own fiction blog Kaleidoscope. The site is about three months old and I frequently get guilt pangs about it being the proverbial neglected child. Writing fiction I realize is rather difficult. I mean, it is not like this blog where I can in a jiffy write out a couple of paragraphs on just anything that is on my mind. Fiction requires serious thinking and then etching out charchters. It also requires undisturbed writing time.. something that is a rarity in my life! So, I was curious to see what other fiction writers were writing on their blogs!
It was a very interesting journey to say the least. For example, I found people writing about murders, paranormal phenomenon and what not..! But the most common topic was - (you guessed right)- love stories. While reading these love stories I suddenly felt rather old. I found I could not relate at all to these college canteen romances and valentine's day stuff.. ! I am wondering why? Some of these have been written in as many as 7 parts- each part if judging by the number of comments have obviously been very popular. Yet, I miss the depth in these narrations.. Or is this what love has come to be these days? Meeting at Cafe coffe day, studying for the physics exam together. Guy keeps following girl or vice versa..?
However there are a few fiction blogs which are really good. I would like to mention two such blogs -both written by individuals with initials KP- one of them a male and another female. KP, the male writes on a variety of topics and his stories are short and racy! KP the female writes more intense stories and they hold you revetted! Then there is another fiction blog written by my friend Anindita " Ai Zindagi" - her stories are very unique and I am yet to find any other writer who compares to this style!
I sometimes struggle with my stories particularly the editing bit. It is very difficult to put stories down in a few paragraphs.. they require elaboration - or at least my style of writing depends heavily on that! I am now wondering if fiction writing is meant for blogs. Most bloggers I find are youngsters and I obviously do not write their kind of stories. (I guess their attention span is too short to run through the entire length of my story.) The older ones are more interested in issue based posts. So what is going to happen to the Jane Austen in me ?
I am sometimes amazed at the type of reactions I get to some of the stories I write. I mean I put my heart and soul into a story and I find it has not really attracted much attention and there are some which are not so great which generate a lot of interest. It is really curious the way people think. It is certainly not easy to predict. It is not like the Chronicles where I am sure that certain topics would generate a lot of interest while others may not.
I remember an anecdote that I read in a book about R D Burman ( R D Burman- the man , the music). Apparently R D Burman had composed what he considered a very mediocre tune for the film " Love Story". This tune " Yaad Aaa rahi hai" went on to become a super hit! He is supposed to have told Amit Kumar " There is no telling what the public will like. Look at this stupid bhajan style tune.. it is now a super hit!" -that pretty much summarizes what I have to say!
well, i personally have always been an avid follower of fact more than fiction. to me what matters more is what is there against what is imagined....still some of the blogs who have stories attract me bcoz most of them show the creative spirit of the person building them those stories, but of course the shorter version and not those who ends up in seven parts(as you mentioned) or sometimes even more than that....may be bcoz i am just not that creative in my thoughts......
ReplyDeleteI agree with your last sentence in full.
ReplyDeleteWell ironically and strangely that is the fact.
Else how can one explain the awesome fan following of the many pulp fictions that get published in various vernacular magazines. They are carp to me. But many need that.Like the various Bollywood masala nonsenses. May be I'm misfit.
Thought provoking...Certainly fiction needs more time and devotion, but we people- the elders(?) are more concerned about the issues pertaining to the society rather than romances;) It is simply that i myself have outgrown Jane Austen :P I read that seven part romance and you could see my comment on it where i say the romance part has no depth! And the way young bloggers picturize romance leaves a bitter taste. So i DO NOT read fiction. I was intrigued to follow kaleidoscope...but frankly, fiction is not my forte. I love chronicles where you take up much shunned topics and analyse it in depth, Meera. It would be better if you gave links to both KPs' blogs and Aninditya's blogs here.
ReplyDelete@ Cloud nine interesting that you do not read fiction- I thrive on it :-) both as a consumer and now as a producer :-) Thanks for the suggestion about giving the links. Have done it now.
ReplyDelete@ Anil,we obviously think alike.. probably because we are older and wiser :-)
@ Irfan, poetry and fiction are interesting part of literature.. I simply adore them... ! but there are more practical souls who are very fact oriented and we need people like them and what they write because they keep our feet firmly on the ground!
Interesting read !
ReplyDeleteFiction is difficult.It needs imagination and then should be interesting.There are some basic emotional cravings on which fiction writers survive.
One has to be lucky in life.Some of the greatest writers are those whom we havent even seen.
Do you think' the god of small things' is a great literary work?
One has to be at the right place at the right time.
Am not good at fiction,and do not have a blog dedicated to the same but am a tryer. I do appreciate fiction blog n fiction writers and that is the least I can do coz I know the painstaking process :)
ReplyDeleteI guess it all boils down to a person's taste. I love to read fiction. I do understand what you mean by some stories getting a whole lot of comments. Believe me, it has nothing to do with how good or bad the story is. Its all about the fan following the person has.
ReplyDeleteI have read two of the three writers you mentioned. I am off to read the third one. I didn't know about your fiction blog. I am going to read that too. I myself have tried my hand at short story writing, twice. It takes a whole lot of concentration. In fact I think I wrote the second one at around 1 am in the morning when the whole house was quiet and calm!
W Jusxtaposition good to hear that you love fiction. I guess I should get a fan following:) though how one does that without writing decent stuff I am yet to figure out!!
ReplyDelete@ Dr. Antony, I do not like " God of Small Things" -a person cannot make one's personal life public and pass it off as fiction!
@ Basil thank god for people like you!!
Hi Meera.. this is KP(female) and I can relate to what u have said here.. before that thank you for mentioning my name here! feels nice..
ReplyDeleteThere are some works that I write with soul and then the response makes me smile coz it would be very less (and mostly suggestions) but the satisfaction I get when i put it there and the happiness when it reaches at least one person in the same way intended is divine.. :)
Please continue writing.. I love Kaleidoscope and I am a regular there..!