Points to anyone who catches the titular reference.
Over drinks at a friend's birthday party recently, discussion turned, in the improbably-hard-to-describe way that these things do, to student loans and the Booker Prize. Whether it was the champagne, my general lack of humility, or the fact that I possess Canadian, Irish and UK citizenship (making me thrice-eligible for the prize), I declared my intention to write a Booker Prize-winning novel and share the proceeds with the others to enable them to assist them with their edu-financial emancipation. While I did not specify the year in which my novel will take the literary world by storm, I am very aware of the fact that I am already 26, and thus have, by even particularly optimistic guesses, at best another 74 chances to win it. So there's much work to be done.
Setting aside any Booker aspirations, writing a novel is something I've always wanted to do. I have many beginnings, but few worth continuing. I have some ideas in mind, but I thought it would be fun to throw it to you, my faithful readers. What kind of novel should I write?
Please make your opinion known by voting in the poll in the sidebar. I do not promise to obey the wishes of my readers; truth be told, I suspect I already know which of the options provided will be the most popular, but I will take all votes and comments into consideration.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
And you read your Emily Dickinson, and I my Robert Frost
Posted by jeff at 02:04
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5 comments:
I voted for option four - I have full confidence in your ability to pull off the "arching, ambitious, multi-generational" part, and I'm fascinated to see your take on farm life when New England was a colony. That said, if you really want to be ambitious, why not try combining options one and four? If you could pull it off, it might just be Booker-worthy.
I've given it some more thought. While I still like the idea of combining options one and four, I wonder if, given the Commonwealth-orientation of the prize, it would be wisest to set the story in New England. Mightn't there be a sexier location? How about the Falkland Islands - if they are a part of the Commonwealth, then I think they might provide a setting that resonates more with the voters.
I still can't belIEVE that you called me "competitive."
I'm going to write a better novel that will win a better award in a shorter time period with more pages and funnier words. Maybe you can interview me when you finally realize your destiny as a reporter for the Toronto Star.
From Erin your mortal enemy.
BRING IT ON COOPER. BRING ME YOUR BOOKER.
While I realize that these are the general categories into which contemporary English-language literature falls, and to which big-name prizes are mostly awarded, I really don't want to see your name on any of these projects. I reject these options out of hand, Jeff, but vote (b) as the least pernicious. If you ever do (a) or (c), you will be dead to me, and I'll go toast Erin at her Nobel Prize party.
i agree completely with emily. and i've already told you what kind of jeff-authored book i want to read. booker-wise, though, you can't go wrong with a journey of self-discovery (on elephant-back). Think about it - wide-eyed foreigner (and his goofy friend) take off through the jungle to learn about the world (and themselves). It practically writes itself. And judges love a bildungsroman.
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