[stylist] Fantasy and the conservative reader?

[Judith Bron]

Helene, I rather like fantasy.  I enjoyed Harry Potter as an entertainment 
form.  Conservatives aren't straight laced folks who don't know how to 
laugh.  One might think we never find anything to laugh about.  Not true. 
However, we stand for things that aren't laughing matters.
Now for your novel.
You are trying to do a lot with your plot, your characterization and the 
message  you are sending to your reader.  The message that deaf blind people 
are really people with the same needs and wants as those without these 
impairments is getting lost in your gray skinned characters who have loving 
dinasours as pets.  Helene, this is going to sound harsh, and perhaps it is. 
Either your characters are handicapped and their message has to get out or 
they represent fantasy characters with all kinds of make believe features. 
Helene, think long and hard about your book.  I'm afraid your choice right 
now is either or.   Judith
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "helene ryles" <dreamavdb at googlemail.com>
To: "Writer's Division Mailing List" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, October 04, 2009 11:31 PM
Subject: [stylist] Fantasy and the conservative reader?


>I am getting contradictory advice again regarding my novel.
> Particularly wether on not to remove that last nude bit from chapter
> 14.
> Someone else told me to keep them in because only conservative readers
> would object and they wouldn't be interested in my book anyway.
> So I'm interested, particularly from Judith and Barbara who were the
> ones who objected to these scenes, wether they would be interested in
> fantasy based novels in the first place? Judith did seem interested in
> the beggining.
>
> It helps to know your reader but this is my first novel intended for
> outside views so I'm still finding my feet where my readership is
> concerned.
> I've removed the nude bit as it is not really central to the plot.
>
> What do other people think so far?
>
> Helene
>
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