Rob Nunn's Blog: Interesting Though Elementary, page 25

If You Would Kindly Go Over It All Again

Before I get to this week's topic, we are less than two months away from Holmes in the Heartland!  If you haven't registered yet,  you can do so HERE.  If you're interested, but can't commit yet, we have a Facebook event page where you can keep up to date on speakers and participants.


I'm on vacation this week, but I didn't want to miss a post.  So, I wanted to revisit some of my favorite blog posts from the past year.


Sherlockian Imprinting
A recollection of my early interest in Sherlockiana and wondering why some versions stick with me over others.


I Tried to Puzzle It Out
My very favorite post I've ever had.  I found a way to share my love of Sherlockiana with my daughter over the course of a couple of days.


Listen to This, Mister Holmes!
A rundown of some of my favorite Sherlockian things to listen to.


Light Houses, My Boy!  Beacons of the Future!
Each year, I get to spend two weeks teaching my fifth grade students about Sherlock Holmes, and it is the best part of the school year!


An Open Letter to Stephen Moffatt
With over 6,000 reads, this post really blew up!  By far my most popular post, I still stand by how much I don't want another season of Sherlock.


Interesting Interviews: Beth Gallego
I really love doing the Interesting Interviews each month.  There are so many great Sherlockians out there and I love giving them a platform to talk about their interests.  Beth was my very first interview and a great one.

I Am a Sherlockian
Who's a Sherlockian?  We all are.  And we should encourage everyone to join us.  Plus, Ashley Polasek reaffirms why she should be the queen of the Sherlockians.


See you next week!

Outside of a Show I Have Never Seen

Out of the blue last week, I received an email from a prominent Sherlockian complimenting me on this blog.  I was flying pretty high on that for a few days!

He asked me about one of my first posts where I proposed a Sherlockian reality show, The Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Game is Afoot.  Nothing more ever came from that post, but it was fun to speculate.


In fact, I find myself coming up with Sherlockian TV shows more often than I think the average person would.  Besides the reality show mentioned above, I also developed an animated Adventures of Sherlock Holmes on Nickelodeon one day while I was mowing the lawn.  Half of the episodes would be adapted from canonical stories, and half would be new stories. 

(I do a lot of book to TV adaptations in my head while I'm mowing.  And I don't even watch TV that much.  Unless there's a baseball game on or my wife and I are watching Parks and Rec reruns, I rarely even have the TV on.  I'm weird.)


But this email prompted me to think up a new Sherlockian TV show.  If you've ever walked by a TV when ESPN was on, you've probably seen something that looked like this:


One of ESPN's most famous shows is Around the Horn, a daily show where four panelists debate the day's sports news and are awarded points based on their insights.  Points are awarded and taken away at the host's discretion.  The winner of the show gets to have 30 seconds of Face Time, where they can talk freely about any topic they choose.

And, this show is all done in good fun.  There are obviously disagreements, but everyone is knows the rules and the debates are typically friendly.

See where I'm going with this?



We need a Sherlockian Around the Horn!



Think about all of the different types of Sherlockians out there.  There are thousands of possible panelists:

People who only go to their local scion society meetings and don't care about the wider Sherlockian worldSherlockian Twitter fiendsLudditesBrettheadsCumberbitches (does anyone still use this term?)Rathbone enthusiastsElementary fansShippersPastiche fansPastiche hatersScholarsFan fiction fansCosplayersChronologistsBaby boomersMillennials
This list could go on for a long time.  And I know we can fall into more than one category.  So do the panelists on Around the Horn.  They are all sports fans/reporters.  They just have different opinions on stuff.  We are all Sherlockians.  We just have different opinions on stuff.


People have been thinking and writing about Sherlock Holmes for over a hundred years.  I'm sure a Sherlockian Around the Horn could come up with lots of topics for debate.

Is Johnlock canonical?How many wives did Watson have?Who is the worst villain?Excited about a third RDJ film?Opinions on Elementary and SherlockWhich Watson has the best mustache?Does Holmes use deductive or inductive reasoning?How important is Doyle to being a Sherlockian?Thoughts on new pastiches or scholarly books
Can you tell I was mowing the lawn today?

Interesting Interviews: Vicki Delany

This month's Interesting Interview is with author Vicki Delany.  Vicki is a former president of The Crime Writers of Canada, a long time Sherlockian, and author of more books than I can count.  Her cozy mysteries include the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop mystery series, which currently has three titles out, and a fourth coming this fall.

How do you define the word “Sherlockian”?
My personal definition is someone who is not only just a fan of the Great Detective, but takes their enthusiasm a step further to examine the characters and the plots of the books or movies deeper than the average keen reader does.  I maintain that someone who might be a fan of the TV shows, movies, or pastiche novels, isn’t a true Sherlockian without having read the full Canon. A true Sherlockian is someone who capitalizes the Great Detective.
How did you become a Sherlockian?
I read the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle early on in my life and enjoyed them, but my real interest started with the Jeremy Brett TV series. I loved Brett’s portrait of the Great Detective and all the hidden emotions he brought to it. After that I re-read the stories with a better eye for nuance and detail.
What is your favorite canonical story?
The Speckled Band. Truly creepy, in more ways than one. I have an article on The Speckled Band coming later this year in an academic publication (Villains, Victims and Violets) in which I examine the characters of Helen and Julia Stoner and the choices (or lack thereof) facing them through a feminist lens.

What subset of Sherlockiana really interests you?
I love the short story collections offering various interpretations of Sherlock Holmes. Some very clever pastiche novels are being written today.  Some are not so clever.
What things do you like to research related to Sherlock Holmes?
In my Sherlock Holmes Bookshop mystery series, every book and item of merchandise offered for sale exists in the real world.  I love looking for books for my character Gemma to refer to her customers or to read herself.

Why do you think that so many Sherlockians enjoy cozy mysteries?
Cozy mysteries are true puzzle mysteries. The clues are laid down for the reader to follow. The astute reader should have a good chance of reaching the correct conclusion at the same time as the fictional detective. I think Sherlockians are almost by definition lovers of puzzles: written ones at any rate. The cozy mystery detective is not a professional.  Which means she or he doesn’t have access to forensic analysis, CCTV camera footage, phone records, bank and police records etc etc. Like the Great Detective, they have little more than their intelligence and observation of the people around them to help them solve the crime.
How did you come up with the idea for The Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mysteries?
I was casting about for an idea for an interesting bookstore for my character to own, and hit on the idea of a store dedicated to Sherlock Holmes.  There isn’t much more popular in the world of popular culture today than Sherlock Holmes, and it’s entirely feasible to have a store dedicated to nothing but Holmes. But then, almost without my planning it, Gemma Doyle, the main character, became Sherlock-like. She has a mind like Holmes – for good and not-so-good. It’s been enormous fun to try to recreate Sherlock as a modern young woman.
Can you give us any hints as to what book four, "A Scandal in Scarlet" might hold for your fans?
A Scandal in Scarlet, coming in November 2018, is the fourth book in the series.  Gemma Doyle and her business partner Jayne Wilson host an afternoon tea and silent auction at Mrs. Hudson’s Tea Room, next door to The Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium, as a fundraiser for Scarlet House, West London’s museum. But when the chair of the museum board is found strangled in the storage room, and the police seem to be focusing on the wrong (according to Gemma) suspect, the game is once again afoot and it’s up to the usually perceptive Gemma and the loyal, but ever-confused Jayne, to sort out the impossible and the improbable to arrive at the truth. 
One doesn’t have to be a Sherlockian to enjoy the books in this series, but I hope being so adds to the pleasure. I occasionally drop a few references that non-Sherlockians won’t pick up, but failure to do so doesn’t interfere with the story. For example, there are seventeen steps to the second floor of 222 Baker Street.

What Sherlockian things do you like to read other than the Canon?
As I said above, I particularly love some of the short story anthologies, such as Echoes ofSherlock Holmes and In the Company ofSherlock Holmes , edited by Leslie S. Klinger. My favourite anthology is Holmes for the Holidays . I love the MaryRussell books by Laurie R. King. And I like the collection of essays edited by Christopher Redmond beginning with AboutSixty . (Full confession, I have a piece in the next one Sherlock Holmes Is Like). I was lucky enough to get a signed cozy of FromHolmes to Sherlock from Mattias Bostrom at Malice Domestic, and I am planning on relaxing with that by the pool this summer.
Where do you see Sherlockiana in 5 or 10 years from now?
Stronger and stronger. The enthusiasm for all things Sherlock is not dying down any time soon.

For the First Time Our Eyes Rested Upon This Presentment

Book Riot recently celebrated celebrated Arthur Conan Doyle's birthday by dedicating the whole day's coverage to article relating to Holmes and his creator.  It's serendipious that they highlighted our interests this week, because one of their podcasts, All The Books, recently posed the question, If you could go back and reread one book for the first time, what would it be?
I've been wrestling with that question all week, because if I chose a Sherlock Holmes story, I don't know which one I'd pick.

I immediately thought of my favorite story, The Sign of Four.  I love this story!
Mary Morstan!
A locked room mystery!
The Baker Street Irregulars!
Tonga!
The great boat chase!
Toby!
...Oh, and then a long backstory.  I remember how uninterested I was (and still am) in Jonathan Small's backstory.  Although SIGN is my favorite, I don't think it's the one to go back and reread for the first time.
Of course, some of the more popular stories jump out: Speckled Band, Scandal in Bohemia, and The Red Headed League.  But, I'm lucky enough to teach these stories to my fifth graders each year, so I get to see the revelations in these stories on their faces over and over.  I can always count on hearing things like, "What?  It's a snake!" or "Irene Adler is awesome!" every November.  (Plus watching how creeped out they are by Jephro Rucastle in Copper Beeches is always a delight.)  Seeing kids come upon great turns in these stories is its own kind of special delight, so I think the big three get a pass on this one, as well.

What about the introduction of Holmes' arch rival in The Final Problem?  
No.  Moriarty is overrated.

So, I think that leaves us with the other big name in the Canon, The Hound of the Baskervilles.  My very first Sherlock Holmes book was "Revenge of the Hound" by Michael Hardwick when I was in sixth grade.  I'd never read a Sherlock Holmes story before, but this had a cool cover and was in a Scholastic book order.  Twenty some odd years later, I found the same book in my mom's basement after I'd become a Sherlockian, so it already has the nostalgia factor working for it.

But when I finally read The Hound of the Baskervilles years and years after Hardwick's book, I was caught completely off guard.  What a fantastic novel!  I don't think I have to sell anyone that reads this blog on the merits of HOUN, but I will make a claim that I think it should be part of a high school literary curriculum.  Doyle is a master at setting the scene in his stories, and HOUN shows him at the top of his game.
So, my choice for the one book I could go back and read again for the first time would be Hound of the Baskervilles.  I would probably go into it just like I had before, thinking it was going to be Sherlock Holmes investigating a murderous ghost dog.  I would expect to all over again appreciate Watson's leading man role, be intrigued at the escaped convict subplot, be skeeved out by Stapleton and his odd behavior, and be on the edge of my seat for the climactic end.
Yes, Hound of the Baskervilles it is!  I may even go back and reread it again just for the hell of it.

So, what about you?  If you could go back and reread one Holmes story again for the very first time, what would it be?

Arrange the Extracts in Their Order of Time

In a hobby like Sherlockiana, you can say you've been interested in it for more than a decade, and still be considered relatively new.  Because there's just so much out there! 


I swear, for every book I read, I add two more to my To Be Read list.  There are so many avenues to do deep dives into that can take months, if not years, before you could feel well-versed enough to offer an opinion on some topics. 

This probably isn't true for everyone, but I have an compulsion to know as much as I can about a topic that I am currently interested in.  And the most recent episode of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere made me come face-to-face with the mountain of Sherlockian research that I find interesting, but daunts me the most:

Chronology.


Episode 144 of IHOSE was a great interview with Vincent Wright, a deeply invested chronologist.  I got to meet Vincent all-to-briefly in Dayton earlier this year, and after listening to his interview this week just reinforced my feeling of "Hey, I need to get to know this guy better!" that I had after the Dayton Symposium. 

(Side note, Vincent graciously offered to be a speaker at Holmes in the Heartland, but we already had a full slate of speakers.  Talk about an embarrassment of riches!  Next year maybe....?)


Thinking about chronology is inescapable.  After reading the Canon over and over again for more than a decade, I've developed a few half-baked ideas of the chronological outline of theses stories, and as The Criminal Mastermind of Baker Street followed Holmes and Watson from St. Bart's to Von Bork, I had to hitch my wagon to a given chronology as the outline for my book. 

At last month's Parallel Case of St. Louis meeting, we debated the date that William Baring-Gould had assigned to The Cardboard Box.  There are plenty of chronologies out there, and my guess is that most of us are familiar with at least a few of them.  Some of them are better than others, but none of them are slam dunks.  So it's easy for folks like me to sit on the sidelines and pick at their weak spots. 


But, as Scott, Burt and Vincent talked about the ins and outs of chronology, It became very clear to me just how much I didn't know.  And to be a good chronologist, you've got to know A LOT.

Chronology has always been interesting to me, but once I go over that cliff, I know I'm never coming back. 


Do you trust Watson's dating implicitly?  If so, how do you account for Watson dating Wisteria Lodge at 1892?  If that date is suspect, what else can be called into question?

Do you take into account the publication history of Watson's stories as Holmes references them?  Or was Holmes privy to Watson's writings before they were published in The Strand?

What's more important in dating the stories, the weather reports from London or train schedules? 

Can we trust that Holmes was EXACTLY sixty years old during His Last Bow?

How many times was Watson married?

Do we think that there was only one page boy at Baker Street, or was it a position filled by numerous people whom might not all have been named Billy?


See, this is a VERY slippery slope.  And these are just the questions I came up with as I sat down to write this post.  Who knows how far down the rabbit hole I could go if I allowed myself to.  As mentioned above, I'm a compulsive.  That's why I purposely keep chronology at arm's length.  Because I don't know if I'm ready to delve into that much madness.

Yet.

It Would Be Time For Me To Announce

The day has finally arrived!  Registration for the first ever Holmes in the Heartland opened today and we want YOU to join us in St. Louis on August 10-12!


I've posted about the planning of the conference plenty, but let me just say, that the people putting this thing together are some of the most top notch Sherlockians out there.  Our goal is to create a conference that highlights the new St. Louis Sherlockian Research Collection at the St. Louis Public Library while also creating an event that can bring Sherlockians of all stripes together for some scholarship and socialization. 

Friday night will celebrate our city of St. Louis with The Blues Carbuncle tour of the National Blues Museum and have some 221BBQ at Sugarfire Smokehouse.


Saturday is a day full of Sherlockian scholarship with talks from:
Tim Johnson
Bill Cochran
Tassy Hayden
Don Hobbs
Brad Keefauver
Bill Mason
Mary Schroeder
The Black Knights Fighting Group
And a surprise guest
with dinner following at historic Favazza's Italian restaurant.

Sunday will find us touring the Becker Medical Library to learn about Victorian medicine and capping the weekend off with an afternoon tea at the London Tea Room.


We know that people's travel schedules or budgets allow for different levels of participation, so this weekend is an a la carte menu.  You can choose one, two, or all three days to register for.  The Parallel Case of St. Louis is an open and friendly group of Sherlockians, and we are hoping you'll join us in St. Louis this August for the first of what will hopefully be a long running conference.

Come at once if convenient—if inconvenient come all the same.

Interesting Interviews: Carlina De La Cova

The beginning of May is one of the busiest times for any educator.  So I want to take a moment to especially thank this month's interviewee, Dr. Carline de la Cova, for taking time to answer my questions.  Carlina is such an interesting and pleasant Sherlockian, that I just couldn't wait for more people to hear from her!  She is an associate professor of anthropology and Undergraduate Director at the University of South Carolina, where she also teaches a course on the forensics of Sherlock Holmes.  Carlina contributed to "About Sixty" and "About Being a Sherlockian" and spoke at last year's Nerve and Knowledge II symposium in Indiana.

And that's just Carlina's resume as a Sherlockian on paper!  I got to meet her in Indiana last year and was enamored by how gregarious and intelligent she was.  She was in high demand at the after party following her talk, and once you've met Carlina, it's easy to see why.  Carlina is active on Twitter and she is one of the friendliest Sherlockians on there.  And that's saying something!  Carlina is a true hidden gem of Sherlockiana, and hopefully some of you will get to know her a little better after this interview...


How do you define the word “Sherlockian”?

There’s been much debate about the word “Sherlockian”. Traditionally, it has been linked to individuals that actively engage in research or produce scholarship about the Canon. However, as times have changed and new interpretations of Sherlock Holmes have emerged, this term has become more inclusive to those that not only research the Canon, but enjoy all adaptations and stories tied to Sherlock Holmes.

I call myself a Sherlockian as I not only enjoy the different mediums Sherlock Holmes has been translated and re-created in (television, film, radio, comic books, pastiches), but I also actively engage in Sherlockian research. However, I do not believe the term “Sherlockian” should be a term of exclusion. Long story short, I have my own personal definition of the term, but I am pretty flexible about how others use the term. At the end of the day, all Sherlockians love Sherlock Holmes.

How did you become a Sherlockian?

Like many, I met Sherlock Holmes in grade school. I began seriously reading the stories in high school. I was fortunate that my introduction to Sherlock Holmes coincided with the then ongoing Granada series. However, as I indicated in Chris Redmond’s About Being a Sherlockian, Holmes’ keen observational skills, his belief system, and his definition of justice inspired me to become a Sherlockian. A day does not pass that I do not use Holmes’ methods in my work. The forensic anthropologist must have keen observational skills to identify a skeletonized decedent. Furthermore, they must be ever conscious of justice. Our work provides justice for the voiceless and allows us to unsilence those that have been intentionally, or historically, silenced.


What is your favorite canonical story?

My absolute favorite Sherlock Holmes story is the Hound of the Baskervilles, followed by the Sussex Vampire. HOUN is so rich in culture, early anthropological and forensic thought, and archaeology. Every time I read it, I always find something new. From Mortimer’s famous words, “I covet your skull,” to the rich archaeological landscapes of the tors on Dartmoor. HOUN even plays on traditional folklore, with the black dog embodying the hellhound that leaves death in its path. Furthermore, the story is rich with references to heritable criminality and criminal anthropology.


What subset of Sherlockiana really interests you?

All things! Seriously! I love podcasts, blogs, comics, literary criticism, historical deconstruction, and collecting. Anything that is Sherlock Holmes interests me! If I had to pick one though, it would be literary criticism and Sherlockian scholarship. I’m also quite keen on works that tie Sherlock Holmes to the historical period, events, and peoples that he was contemporary with.

What things do you like to research related to Sherlock Holmes?

As an anthropologist, I’m particularly interested in concepts of early anthropological theory, archaeology, criminal anthropology, and forensic anthropology in the Canon. I have no doubt Holmes was an anthropologist. To be a man of science during his time period, and to comprehend crime and criminal behavior, meant that one had to have knowledge of basic contemporaneous anthropological theory and methods (some of which have fallen out of favor today, but that’s another blog for another time).


Are you currently working on any Sherlockian projects?

I am currently balancing Sherlockian projects with my academic publications. At the moment I am working on translating my Nerve and Knowledge II presentation on anthropology into an article for the Baker Street Journal. I also hope to write a book in the future that will serve as a companion to my Sherlock Holmes class that I teach at the University of South Carolina.


What Sherlockian things do you like to read other than the Canon?

In the past I’ve enjoyed Nicholas Meyer, Laurie R. King, and other Holmes centered pastiches. I also enjoy a good Sherlockian comic book or graphic novel. Most importantly, however, I love reading Sherlockian scholarship, especially biographies and reference-related books that tie Sherlock Holmes to newspapers, important historical figures, and actual methodologies.

Where do you see Sherlockiana in 5 or 10 years from now?

Sherlock Holmes has walked amongst us for over 160 years. I do not see that changing anytime soon. He has had and will continue to have numerous resurgences in popularity. I think even after we have burnt out our mortal coils Sherlock Holmes will still remain, inspiring future generations. Due to this, I believe Sherlockiana will continue to thrive in the next five to ten years. Oh wouldn’t it be neat if it moved into the virtual world, like virtual reality? I could wrap my head around that….a VR landscape of the Hound of the Baskervilles!

I Would Call Your Attention Very Particularly to Two Points

Friday night found me in the movie theater, watching Avengers: Infinity War.  I grew up with Marvel comics and the Infinity Gauntlet story happened when I was 11, so this movie had my money as soon as it was announced.  After the movie was over, I could easily say that I loved it, although I had some questions. 

So, this being a Sherlockian blog, you're probably waiting for me to talk about Downey, Cumberbatch and the amount of screen time their goatees spent together. 


Yeah, that was fun.  But when I woke up the next morning, I didn't find myself wanting to jump right back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  I was ready for Baker Street.  Infinity War was such a massive movie that I wanted to retreat to where the world's biggest villain could be a mathematics professor or a dog with phosphorous on its snout.

So I read this week's entry for The Irregular Canonical Book Club: Abbey Grange.  This isn't one of the stories that most people would put on a Sherlockian Mount Rushmore, but I forgot how great of a story this is!  Getting to see Holmes wrestle with himself and ultimately trusting his gut over his intellect is fantastic.  And when he returns to the scene of the crime, Watson's description of Holmes' investigation is right up there with Boscombe Valley or Sign of Four. 

So, although it may feel like there are 60 super heroes in Infinity War, I prefer to stick with the 60 canonical tales.


And.... point number two:

I WAS INTERVIEWED ON I HEAR OF SHERLOCK EVERYWHERE!!!!!!

Sorry, I couldn't start off this week's post with fanboy raving.  But now you're in for it.

Oh man, I can't tell you how awesome it was!  I've posted before about how IHOSE is my favorite podcast, so I was more than a little nervous about this.  But there was no need for me to be.  Hosts Scott Monty and Burt Wolder navigated me through the interview like the true pros that they are. 


We covered my beginnings as a Sherlockian, scion societies in St. Louis, teaching Sherlock Holmes to my fifth graders, the upcoming Holmes in the Heartland conference, The Beacon Society, The Criminal Mastermind of Baker Street, and so much more.  I would go back and listen to it again, but hearing my own voice on a recording is like nails on a chalkboard.  I don't know how my students listen to that all day long!

But don't let my voice deter you.  Check out IHOSE episode 142 and all of the other 141 episodes.  I Hear of Sherlock is easily one of the most important Sherlockian products out there today, and it is perfect for anyone interested in our hobby.

All Good Comradeship and Friendship

In last week's post, I mentioned briefly that the planning committee for Holmes in the Heartland met to finalize our plans for the weekend. 


Well, those plans are now online!

It was coincidental that the finalized plans went up on the same weekend that 221B Con was happening in Atlanta.  But the excitement of putting our weekend out and getting to see so many Sherlockians having fun down south made me really appreciate this hobby. 


If you look at the schedule for Holmes in the Heartland in the link above, you might notice we left the nights pretty open.  There is a dinner on both Friday and Saturday, but they will end at a decent time so that you could either call it a night, or just be getting your night started.

Friday night's dinner will be a laid back affair at Sugarfire Smokehouse, after a tour next door at The National Blues Museum.  The Blues Museum will have a live band playing that night, so it's set up perfectly for a hang out spot for Friday's participants.

Saturday's dinner will be at Favazza's, a popular Italian restaurant in The Hill neighborhood.  We've booked a room for that night with bar service.  The plan for that night is a standard convention dinner with some great food, but we also wanted to allow for socialization time on Saturday as well.  So when dinner's over, the bar will stay open, and we will bust out some Sherlockian board games for anyone interested.  Solve a mystery, or just hang out!


One of the members of the Holmes in the Heartland planning committee is also a regular 221B Con-goer, and she swears that the socialization is an important part of a Sherlockian convention.  I've only been to two official Sherlockian events myself, Nerve and Knowledge in Indiana and Holmes, Doyle and Friends in Ohio.  While the programming at both of those were excellent, what I wholeheartedly agree with her, as I really enjoyed was hanging out with other Sherlockians at those two events.

And that's what we are hoping for in August.  I'm not promising the full on craziness of 221B Con in St. Louis on August 10-12, but I am promising some built in time for socializing.  So drag some old friends with you, and get ready to meet some new ones.  We're ready to meet you!

I Am A Sherlockian

Well, if you've been around Sherlockian social media over the past few days, I think you know what this week's blog will be about:

Who is and who isn't a Sherlockian.


The debate started when one Sherlockian said she didn't think people could call themselves fans of Sherlock Holmes if they hadn't read the Canon.  As you can imagine, many people social media handled the view of someone who disagrees with them in a mature and pleasant matter.

Just kidding.  Lots of people over-reacted.


But this opinion did open up a dialogue with some good points on both sides and led to the beautiful #IAmASherlockian hashtag on Twitter. 

One prominent Sherlockian has said a few times that the philatelic society is not going to be very tolerant of people who show up and insist on talking about milk bottle tops.  After I looked up what 'philatelic' meant (stamp collecting), the analogy made more sense if you are describing a typical Sherlockian society. 

(Quick side note: last time I waded into these waters about societies, all Sherlockian societies were lumped together, and the Baker Street Irregulars were seen as a governing body of local clubs.  That is not the case and I only speak for MY view on Sherlockian clubs.) 


Sherlockian societies are literary societies that typically talk about a different canonical story at each meeting.  If you are a member of such a group, I firmly believe that you should be familiar with the story being discussed at that group's meeting.  It may be the very first canonical story you've ever read, or you're reading it for the umpteenth time for the meeting, but to be part of a group carries certain expectations. 

I say, if you are willing to participate in what the group is doing, come on in!  For those of you just starting out, The John H. Watson Society shared a great sentiment from Joy Clarkson that I feel all Sherlockians should have: 


And if reading the stories isn't your thing, then a traditional Sherlockian society probably isn't for you.  My hobby is reading Sherlock Holmes stories written by Arthur Conan Doyle.  If your hobby is fan fiction, Granada tweetalongs, or pastiche, I'm happy we have tangential interests.  We are all interested in an imaginary character and his imaginary best friend solving imaginary crimes.  Let's all take a step back and stop taking things so seriously!

A rule of thumb I try to live by has always been, don't be a dick.  If you and I aren't interested in the same thing, that doesn't allow you to dismiss me or me to dismiss you.  You call yourself what you want, and I will call myself what I want.  Quite frankly, I don't really care what other people call themselves; it doesn't have a big impact on my life. 


Wow, I'm getting awfully preachy here.  In case you are wondering, other good rules to live by include:

Crying is acceptable at funerals and the Grand Canyon.
No home is complete without a proper toolbox.
There has never been a sadness that can't be cured by breakfast food.

This morning, I met with four other local Sherlockians today to finalize plans for Holmes in the Heartland.  All five of us came to the Canon from different entry points and have been there for varying amounts of time.  As I looked around the table, I was thankful to be spending time with such great folks.  I'm sure some of us disagree on plenty outside of the world of Sherlockiana, and probably some within it.  Does it matter if they prefer Cumberbatch to Paget or Brett to fan fiction?  Nope, they're good people and a true benefit to our Sherlockian hobby. 

Ashley Polasek summed things up perfectly yesterday, so I'm going to end this week's post with her very wise words:


I don’t usually wade into Sherlockian skirmishes. But the current furor relates to subjects at the heart of my many years of scholarship, so, for what it’s worth, here is why, when it comes to defining the label “Sherlockian”, I am, to coin a term, “Sherlockumenical”.

There is only one Sherlock Holmes: all of them. I emerged as a Sherlockian after fevered consumption of the complete Canon, moving hungrily into adaptations immediately after. I have a terminal degree in the study of... the adaptations. My research systematically builds the argument that iterations of the Holmes character are contextual reinterpretations of a source work, making them all part of a coherent, readable whole. Every part is a component of that ever-expanding, ever-more complex whole.

If you call yourself a Sherlockian—a word that is, itself, defined by the non-essentialist contextualization of a reader to a text—but deny the function of adaptive contextualization to the definition of that text, you are fundamentally misunderstanding literary studies, adaptation studies, and participatory culture studies.

In short, there is not a real Holmes and a series of other, lesser, secondary versions. There is only one Holmes. It encompasses and, indeed, supports broad, mutating, evolving, even mutually exclusive readings.

If you are a fan of one or more of those readings, you are a Sherlockian.

And if you understand this, you, too, are Sherlockumenical.

Congratulations.