World, Writing, Wealth discussion
Wealth & Economics
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Doesn't matter bad or good, positioning is more important
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Like the popularity of the Monster High dolls for tweens. No more princess dolls lol.
I remember reading that Eiffel Tower too, now a symbol of Paris, before erected had to withstand a lot of criticism, protest and objection...As taste varies maybe seeking for beautiful is fruitless, while unusual, grandiose or extravagant are more promising? What do you think?
"Don't wanna touch literature"If I may, I seem to be increasingly shunning books that look "professional" or those with a lot of positive reviews. Personally, those with the ugly covers, or those everybody seems to hate are those that break away from what everyone is doing. People who aren't writing for the mainstream are the ones taking chances with their stories. They're the ones doing something other than the same old zombie story or the space opera trope of the evil empire conquering the universe with the lone hero standing up and organizing the resistance.
Then again, maybe I'm one of the last few people who likes indie books because they're not like traditionally published books, in a world where indies are increasingly trying to come across as traditionally published in order to make sales.
Well, "bad" and "good" are subjective, and those labels change according to the times. Some artists, Picasso for example, were appreciated during their lifetimes; whereas artists like Van Gogh were not. Shakespeare was appreciated during his lifetime, whereas Poe was more appreciated after his death. Positioning may have made the difference.
I think the Leaning Tower is of interest simply because (for a very good reason) there is nothing like it elsewhere, and it has prominent publicity. "The wonky building of . . ." is not a tourist attraction because nobody has ever heard of it. Literature is slightly worse-placed because not only have people got to hear about it, but it also has to have something going for it, although as fifty shades showed, it doesn't have to be writing quality
So you read Fifty Shades :-) My neighbor kept telling me how great it was, and she loaned me her copy. I got through maybe 20 pages and gave it back to her.
Hi Scout, my step son and his fiance tried watching the movie and DNF'ed at 30 minutes....
Actually, Scout, no I didn't. I looked at a preliminary view and decided "No".
Just kidding you, Ian. You wouldn't have gotten past page 5. A really crappily written book. But positioning was important :-)
Apparently (i read it somewhere....) Fifty Shades got its first exposure here on GR.I could be wrong - just pulled that out of the old memory banks...
Unique in literature is much harder now, as in writing or building, because so many people are trying for it.I tried writing several genres, including an attempt at what was probably (from what has been said) a less explicit sex novel than Fifty Shades. If I'd realised positioning was so important?
The betas liked it, but I just couldn't publish. It's a bit of a joke now, about my sister publishing the book if she ever needs money more than her reputation. :-)
I've still have books in several genres part-finished on my computer. It will be interesting to see if any of them are 'positioned' far enough out of the norm to grab some attention.
The best sort of positioning for books or art seems to be fame-related. One word from a celebrity, including politicians, or an author's fame in another field, have launched books that might have otherwise been overlooked.
Vance
A clear construction failure, actually became a landmark and a magnet for millions of tourists.
Bad, quirky, strange may be perceived as differently cool.
Create a 'cool' image for whatever ugly, tasteless, trivial or mediocre stuff and it may become 'fashion'. Don't wanna touch literature, although I suspect this may work in it too.
What do you think?