I have nothing against convention. In the literary world, it's to be successful, stabilizing, and profitable. When someone goes outside the prevailing convention, he/she is branded as a heretic or a rebel. Some of the writers I admire were branded as such. Jack Kerouac (spontaneous prose) and Paul Laurence Dunbar (dialect verse) are examples.
The former was criticized for the non-linear way he wrote. The latter by his own peer of black writers because they believed it cast a negative light on black people as being dumb and unintelligent. Dunbar said that he didn't speak in dialect but heard many former slaves speak that way. He was telling the truth.
I view writers and poets as sages that share the inner parts of their lives. Writing is not limited to one particular way. It is many and varied. People's life experiences are different so it's not surprising to me that their writing reflected their experiences. Kerouac and Dunbar were gifted, smart, and astute writers. So was Herman Melville, a very underrated author who wrote about his sea adventures.
If your writing is different from the prevailing convention, that's okay. Some will read and love it. Jack Kerouac and Paul Laurence Dunbar influenced me as a writer. I'm sure that you have your influences.
No comments:
Post a Comment