Literary Journals in the Age of Weblogs

TPB's blog unbillable hours is unique for a number of reasons, most notably TPB's frequent fiction postings. TPB's willingness to put his fiction on his blog brings to mind a recent post at Fool of the Forest about literary journals in the age of weblogs.

Will blogs be to the 21st century what "little magazines" were to the 20th century? This was the question posed by George Wallace at Fool by way of Terry Teachout's About Last Night. As it now stands, I think that many fiction writers--if they desire publication in literary journals--would be reluctant to post on blogs, since that counts as a "publication" and most journals demand at least first-time rights. This means if a story has been published on the Internet, even on a blog, a journal won't consider it.

How unique is TPB's unbillable hours? Are others posting their fiction? Why or why not? (And would it make any difference if their success could inspire a happy hour drink?)

Evan Schaeffer

As noted above, Evan Schaeffer questions whether fiction writers would or should post their stories on their blogs, due to the refusal of literary journals to publish works that have been published elsewhere, even on blogs (yes, I know he talks about me, but that's not the point; the real issue is that of writing). I think that writing on a blog in lieu of submitting stories to a website offers real advantages to authors. First of all, we have complete control of our stories. I don't need to make mine fit within a certain word count, nor do I need to avoid certain language in order to avoid offending readers, and I don't need to limit a narrative plot to just one story (I can arc an idea across story lines, much like Dickens did with his serials; e.g., Joey DeVilla's "new girl story" ). Yes, there is the lost vanity in not being able to say that I am a "published" author. Isn't that a problem, though? If I'm writing just for fame, what's the point of doing anything more substantial than American Idol?

There are a number of good blogs doing stories out there. I'm not unique (in fact, since I was inspired to do this after reading other blogs, specifically, the Bleat, Sua Sponte and Sarah Hatter's site, currently on hiatus, I'm not original, either). If you check out the sidebar section labeled "Carver," you can read a great deal of good writers out there.

I think each writer has the opportunity to help turn the blog into its own literary form, much like past writers did with journalism, essays, and memoirs. To some extent, there is a real need for someone, or a number of "someones," to sit down and write, critically, about this form and how it should develop. I don't want to do that (certainly not exclusively; I'll write about it, as here, from time to time). I do see the value in it, though.

I would hope that others post fiction on the internet. I don't like the limited focus of literary journals or the limiting rules of how short stories currently need to be published. Since, really, the short stories that actually matter end up being read not in their original publications but in later anthologies and novels, the focus on the paper-publication in journals seems misplaced. The real focus should be on making accessible as many stories as possible to as many people as possible. If one's willing to forego royalties for doing that, the blog format is ideal.

That being said, I'm still working on the "Great American Novel."

Update

Armand, at Moleskinerie, also liked Evan's post. I appreciate Armand's kind words.

Comments

[Courtney]

My sig other, as a professional writer, defines being a professional writer as writing and getting paid for it. Not getting paid for it, not professional. ;)

[yasmín]

My biggest fear about putting my writings on my blog is that someone might take them and claim them as their own. Not that this has happened yet, or for the matter, that it will. I've seen it happen, so I've hidden myself in my livejournal, which completely defeats the purpose of my domain and me.

I think for us 'would be writers' its very important that we use the median of the weblog, especially since they're so accessible. We do have pure control of our content, and don't have to worry about editors' suggestions.

Good luck on the Great American Novel. Persistance is a virtue, not a curse. At least that's what I heard before I choked the guy.

[TPB, Esq.]

Yeah. Jackie Collins is a professional writer as well. So, she's got that going for her. ;-)

To me it's not the title "professional" or "Author" (note the 'a') that really counts, largely because a lot of great writers never realized their works would be looked at as great writing (Pascal and Montaigne come to mind). To me, the idea that blogging could create a new literary medium, or revitalize the storytelling medium, is a really neat idea.

Yamsin, a story's not a story unless you let others hear/read/see it. Let us at it! :-)

[TL Hines]

Interesting, TPB. My feeling is: if you write, you're a writer. Pay is merely the cliched icing on the cake. And yes, within fiction circles, most people are encouraged to refrain from posting their stories on their blogs But perhaps there's a way to bridge the gap between the tradition of literary magazines and the immediacy of blogs. Do you know of anyone who runs a true literary magazine/blog hybrid? I think it could be interesting. I can almost envision a group blog, wherein writers submit fiction based on a chosen subject each month. Subject matter and contributors could change with each blog issue.