Sunday, April 10, 2011

I Finally Think I Know

the genre where my writing resides.  I was agent hunting again today and came across a blog that I thought was intelligent and thoughtful by a Michael Bourret, an agent with Dystel & Goderich.  In reading about what he was looking for on his agency's web site he mentioned that he really was passionate about non-fiction, even though he was interested in YA (young adult fiction) so I read about what the other agents at the same company were looking for, hoping for a better match for my books.

All of this prodding and poking, revising and researching, is how I spend my days lately.  My agent is out there; he or she just doesn't know I'm here.  One of the difficulties, at least for me, has been to describe where my writing fits.  If I can't describe the genre, how can I identify who is looking for me.  When I came to the bio for a pretty young girl who lives in Brooklyn no less (I wonder if she ever shopped in any of my stores? That would be an interesting coincident, yes?) she mentioned she was really interested in 'magical realism'.  Huh?  What is that I asked Wikipedia?  Bingo, I ran around the house like a crazy person.  The glove fit!

This is a quote from the long entry describing magical realism.  "Magic realism or magical realism is an aesthetic style or genre of fiction in which magical elements blend to create a realistic atmosphere that accesses a deeper understanding of reality.  The story explains these magical elements as normal occurrences, presented in a straightforward manner that places the 'real' and the 'fantastic' in the same stream of thought."

At least I think I know,

Sharon

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