TGIF, WG2E-Land!
This past week, I’ve been finishing up my next Cozy Cash Mystery – The Royal Digs, which will be book four in this series. That process got me to thinking a lot about the social commentary elements that make up a big part of this series and my writing in general.
For example, The Royal Digs asks several story questions that have huge social impacts such as:
1. What if a Drag Queen determined the United States Presidential Election?
(discussing alternative lifestyles and the issues faced by people living those lifestyles)
2. Does it matter that we’ve got a Republican nominee who keeps a majority of his money offshore to avoid paying taxes on it?
3. Does it matter that the Republican nominee has earned his massive wealth, thanks to the money of cartel kings – whether coffee, cocoa, casinos, or cocaine (and other drugs too) – who make their living via the death squads they employ and the people whose rights they corrupt or snuff out?
Tough questions, right? With answers that have huge effects on our lives.
I love to write these kinds of “ripped from the headlines” stories because they engage readers and instantly feed on topics that are easily recognizable and emotion-packed. In other words, readers relate to them.
And in our unique Epublishing World, in which we can publish our books at a much faster rate than via Traditional Publishing, we’ve got our products on cyber shelves when these story themes and questions are still “hot” and very much a part of our social collective minds.
I’ve found that even those critics who don’t like my writing style, like the peeps at Red Adept Review who have made me their 1-Star poster kid, they still appreciate and are moved by the social commentary in my stories. Here’s what they said:
Characters waltzed trippingly from one exotic location to another like they were on the Travel Channel, which kept the pace fast, but once they arrived at most locations, food and physical appearances and snarky, amusing comments filled the pages rather than details that furthered the plot. A notable exception was the sweatshop in Secondigliano, in Naples, where I was sobered by a few paragraphs that dealt with the plight of the poor pressed into service by the Mob.
Red Adept Reviews didn’t get me as a writer for my style, but they sure related to my topics and how I presented them.
For my Cozy Cash Mysteries, I’ve explored the following topics:
1. Ponzi schemes (Madoff-style)
2. Fashion sweatshops in Naples (controlled by the local mobs and making many a pages in today’s best fashion magazines and red carpets)
3. The gem trade (as in blood diamonds and stones)
4. The money trail of our current Republican nominee for U. S. President
5. The real owners of Wall Street – coffee, cocoa, casino and cocaine (and other drugs too) cartels
6. Banking, hedge funds and derivative trading
I use these topics to write Ebooks that are along the lines of what Bob Mayer calls “factual fiction” in which many of the plot elements I use are factually based, but I then give ‘em my own quirky-crazy fictional twists and cast of characters.
It’s Your Turn, WG2E-Land: How many of you include social commentary in your Ebook fiction? How many of you enjoy reading these kinds of Ebooks?
The Best of Epublishing Social Commentary Fiction — D. D. Scott
The idea for my most recent original eBook, Isn’t She Lovely?, came after learning about the tragedy that befell Joe Biden’s family (a politician who lost his wife in a car accident but eventually found happiness with someone else). My current WIP, Something Real, addresses the mistreatment of Afrcan-Americans by the police, a subplot inspired by the Henry “Skip” Gates incident on Martha’s Vineyard that led to the White House Beer Summit. These incidents do influence us as writers, even though we generally make changes so that little of the actual news stories remain. Ideas have to come from *someplace*, right?
Ideas do indeed come from “someplace,” Bettye, and the information you used above will certainly resonate with a ton of people. Well done!!!
My husband is always telling me that no matter what we write, we must teach or share something about our world. In my books I tackle issues such as acceptance, the plight of the underprivileged, the fine line between good and evil, the fact that things are rarely black or white, the impact of abuse or dysfunction on the future life of a person, the fact that the world is a big place and we should celebrate our differences… and as I go along I want to explore so much more, get bolder with these issues. I think it is possible to do so even while writing fantasy. Great post and kudos to you for tackling those hot topics.
I luuuvvv what you’re saying here, Natalie, and I sooo agree that fiction does allow us to tackle hot topics in unique ways.
The story themes you’ve mentioned above are all very powerful and have an immediate emotional center, if you will, with readers. These are topics people can relate too, but at the same time, cloaking them in fiction, takes some of the personal heat out of it and helps readers relax into the topic. (I know, that sounded like I had my psychologist hat on…which, I guess I do a bit.
)
In my romance novel I’m set to release, I deal with biosolids used on our fields that grow our food or food for dairy cows or animals we consume. Many places in Europe have banned it because it kills the soil, but farmers still use it in North America. The use of biosolids (sludge/treated city sewer waste) has been blamed for several deaths.
I’ve also used events, such as Hurricane Juan striking Atlantic Canada, to eliminate a few characters. I think using real events grounds the story and anyone who experienced it will make a connetion.
Exactly what you said here, Diane:
“I think using real events grounds the story and anyone who experienced it will make a connection.”
It’s all about making those kind of connections with readers. Well said!
I’m beginning to explore what I call “green” issues too, Diane, like you’ve done with your focus on biosolids, and I’m sooo compelled to write them because people need to know about this stuff and the horrible impacts they have on our health and environment. Do you know that most countries won’t accept food imported from the United States…because of all these kinds of horrible chemicals we use to produce it?
DD, I didn’t know that many countries won’t accept food from the US. Wow. I did know that some US farmers (gosh knows how many) use biosolids. One of the educational videos for biosolids told a story of a US farmer using biosolids and at leasat one death linked to it.
To be honest, the food industry scares me. I believe many of us are in a state of ill health because of it. It is as if they want us to get sick just so the drug companies benefit. I haven’t been able to drink regular cow’s milk since the biosolids were spread on local fields. Instead, I buy organic milk. It cost more, but I can swallow it. In about eight months, I’ll be able to ‘pump’ my own milk and make cheese and yoghurt with what I don’t drink. We bought Toggenburg goats last year and these year, we breed. Their milk is delicious and all natural.
I’m slowly weaning myself off commerical food and I know this ‘free freedom’ will appear in my stories more than once. Like you, I believe people need to know what is going in their food…in all their products (such as lead paint). It’s the only way they can make an educated decision whether to use them or not.
I love reading novels that provide insight to the real world in this manner.
Cheers to going all-natural, Diane! That’s what my DH and I do too! Gosh, do we ever feel better than when we ate mostly grocery store food…
And yes, I do believe the products we consume are what makes us the “sickest” population on earth.
Love it ““factual fiction” in which many of the plot elements I use are factually based, but I then give ‘em my own quirky-crazy fictional twists and cast of characters.” Great job DD:) I look forward to reading more of your books:)
Thanks sooo much, Lois! I think Bob has a fabulous term in “factual fiction.” He uses it in more of a historical and sci-fi way, while I used it in more of a current events stream of conscious.
My Sergeant Mike’s Miracle Tour series is about a retired US Marine fighting his demons of PTSD. And like yours, even readers that don’t get my emotional style still love Sergeant Mike. I took it one step further making all of the books in this series free but asking for donations to be made to a charity run by military wives/husbands who are living with the realities of PTSD. Check out Battling Bare at http://www.battlingbare.com
Tara
Fabulous example, Tara, and thanks sooo much for sharing this and for all you’re doing for PTSD. I know several war veterans now suffering from this, and it’s a topic that needs all the support we can give it.
U Go, Girl!!!
I’m re-reading ‘Tale of Two Cities’ this week (which ITSELF used the French Revolution as a commentary for the social stratification still present in London six decades later) and am continually amazed at how talented Charles Dickens was at doing exactly what you described … using that most personal of written appeals … the novel … to arouse sympathy and awareness for social issues.
My own 5-book fantasy series (not all are yet released) is ostensibly about the wars in heaven at the dawn of time, but the division which erupts in heaven is VERY democrat vs. republican. There are serious problems not getting addressed, the two old gods care more about one-upping each other than with finding solutions for the realm they share, and its ordinary people (and soldiers) who get caught in the middle. Lucifer’s rebellion upsets the status quo because he rejects both ideologies.
Dickens was the master for sure, Anna!
What you said here is the heart of it:
“…using that most personal of written appeals … the novel … to arouse sympathy and awareness for social issues.”
I hear ya on the politics angle too…this presidential election in particular, I’ve heard more and more people say that their parties have become creatures they don’t even recognize anymore. I’ve never been one for party politics at all, but now, it’s just totally one messed up system. And the electoral system…that elephant has long outlived it’s purpose.
Earlier this week the NT had a major, front-page story about poaching & the slaughter of African elephants & rhinos. ZURI is about the merciless poaching & (false) belief that rhino horn has magical powers to cure cancer/sexual dysfunction. The illicit trade in wild animals & their parts is the third largest in the world (behind only drugs & weapons) and is decimating African elephant herds & the African rhino.
ZURI—the word means “beautiful” in Swahili—is the heroine of the story, a sad little rhino who witnesses her mother’s murder, is saved by the dedicated workers at a nearby animal orphanage & lives to triumph in the end. Readers fall in love with Zuri just as I fell in love with her while writing & researching the novel.
Here’s the link where you can see the extraordinary cover & meet Zuri & her animal friends (Doris the elephant, Boozie the mischievous goat) + her human friends.
http://www.amazon.com/ZURI-Africa-orphan-story-ebook/dp/B007YUZYMS/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1335781176&sr=1-1
Oooops! Typo alert! NT should be New York Times.
Fabulous, Ruth! This is exactly what I’m talking about! It’s the emotional strength of a story theme that people are already connected to and emotionally vested in. Taking those themes and giving ‘em a new life from a unique fictional perspective is doing terrific service to each and every cause we choose.
U Go, Girl!!!
I haven’t written anything like you others do, but my YA Angel series does have comments to them. I write about reckless things that young adults can get up to that can risk their lives for eg fooling around by and on railway tracks. The angels get the chance to go back to Earth to prevent other teens from doing what they did, and show them there is another way to live and a happier one. There is hope not boredom out there.
I luuuvvv the public service style message you’re including in your YA Novels, Julie!
Excellent approach!!!
My second book releasing in March deals with religion and black market adoptions. So yes, there is definitely some social commentary. Into The Dark features the homeless living in the Las Vegas tunnels, so I guess it’s safe to say I’m drawn to serious topics. That’s part of the reason one of my blog tours for the release focus on homeless charities.
Great topic, D.D.!
I was hoping you’d jump in here, Stacy! I thought of your homeless initiatives when I was writing this post! Well done, my friend!!!
It’s sooo interesting to see what topics and issues move each of us to take a stand in our written pages.
Thanks, D.D. There are only a few scenes in the book that highlight the homeless problem, but it’s certainly a subplot. I’m not sure the charity effort will sell books, but the Las Vegas storm drains were such a driving force behind the plot I didn’t feel right NOT doing something for the homeless living there. If that makes any sense at all. I’m tired this morning, lol!
It makes perfect sense, Stacy!
I write pretty traditional romances but 2 upcoming stories will deal with topics that resonate in our social consciousness. I will be doing my first M/M love story and it will take place in a socially conservative town. I like exploring the disconnect people feel when they say things like ‘gays shouldn’t marry/adopt/ whatever offends you the most, but if you delve deeper and ask about a specific couple, people are much less ambivalent and more excepting of them.
The other story will deal with a PTSD survivor and a date rape survivor, speaks to that F’d up notion of ‘legitimate’ rape. Ironically, that story was planned over 6 months ago so I wasn’t planning on ripping it out of the headlines. The idiots just made it too easy.
My series started off with 2 books that featured wheelchair bound heroes so the topics above are just par for the course.
U Go, Girl!
These are terrific topics to explore via fiction!
I’m just luuuvvving hearing about what current events and issues are inspiring all of you!!!
Well done, WG2E-Land!
Just wanted to jump in and say love that you are touching on same sex relationships and the ridiculous idea that they aren’t as nurturing as the rest of us. That’s tough – good for you for braving the topic.
DD, Thanks for the post on such an important topic. I love that there is always something of value on this site! I am a non-fiction writer who writes about the importance of using story as a vehicle for delivering more than just entertainment. So, thank you to all you fiction writers who take the time to include social commentary in your stories. You keep writing the stories and I’ll continue to write about how valuable the storyteller is! (I knew we would cross common purposes somewhere!)
Very cool, Monica, and I sooo agree with what you said right here:
“…the importance of using story as a vehicle for delivering more than just entertainment.”
We’ve got a powerful platform in Indie Epublishing because we can publish stories that add timely debate and perspectives on today’s issues.
Thanks for all you’re doing to spread the word!!!
Thanks for bringing up this subject (the underlying message of the story). It’s not often discussed. I would caution writers not to make it too preachy, keeping it in the background with respect to the external plot and internal character arc.
My WIP is a alternative history novel whose action hopefully masks an anti-colonial message.
Excellent point, Walt, and thanks sooo much for bringing it up!
Indeed, the issues you’re writing about must be consistent in the POV of your characters and also, I would limit the exposition. In other words, I express the issues and many of the facts in dialogue between my characters and in the action that’s happening in the book. You don’t see me carrying on in long, detailed paragraphs about the issue. I show the topic in my story and plot development versus telling about it.
That said, I do use a bit of internal thoughts to express my characters’ takes on the topics at hand.
So, readers know from my characters’ thoughts, words and actions where they stand on the issues used.
My current romance does comment on a few social issues, but I can’t say because they would be plot spoilers! But, I did want to share that when I decided to jump into epubbing I created an e-press that donates 10% of royalties to a designated charity–my way of commenting on and/or supporting a cause with each ebook. Having the freedom to do that was a major motivator for me. My first is out now on Kindle only right now, published via Grantitude Press (Grant + Gratitude = Where Every Book Includes a Gift). HOMECOMING’s designated charity is Halo Pet Foundation, the sponsor of http://www.FreeKibbleKat.com. What’s FreeKibbleKat? Go to the site, answer a trivia question and right or wrong, you win! Click on an answer, and every day you do they’ll provide 10 pieces of kibble to lots of animal shelters all over the U.S. to help feed their hungry cats. Play Meow Trivia every day. The more you play, the more kibble for the cats! For me, giving back is important and I think this will be a great way to continue paying it forward.
What a totally cool concept, Janet! Awesome!
You nailed it right here:
“For me, giving back is important and I think this will be a great way to continue paying it forward.”
Just really, really a cool idea!!!
DD: thanks so much! I believe that with a positive intent behind my books (kind of like YOU all, who share so much with authors…sooo glad I found you!), that somehow the universe might just notice and even more good will follow. I know writing that check to the charity is going to feel GOOD GOOD GOOD! And it provides me a chance to focus on organizations I care about and play a small part in supporting them. Thanks for all you and the WG2E team do–it’s appreciated and has played a significant part in my ebook education, trust me.
I find this to be a very interesting post. So far I’ve been reluctant to use contemporary issues in my books because I’ve feared alienating my readers. They come from all corners of the political spectrum and angering a segment could be a death blow to a book’s prospects.
Having said that, I’ll have to admit I’ve been working on a novel (mostly as a catharsis) that does hit hard on current trends (what ifs). My major books contain a lot of content about Iran, but since almost everyone in the U.S. has a negative view of that country (deserved or undeserved) it’s a fairly safe topic.
Now I’m beginning to wonder if I shouldn’t continue with the controversial book. I’ll admit it catches my interest more than some other projects I’ve been working on.
One note of caution. One author whose extensive works I admire wrote a politically loaded novel that turned out to be insufferably boring. He lost sight of the fact that fiction is about people, not topics. Beware of being trapped by the message and neglecting the characters. They’re the ones who live in your fictional world.
Great point, Doug!
“Beware of being trapped by the message and neglecting the characters. They’re the ones who live in your fictional world.”
I always let my characters tell the story, my friend! And when that includes my quirky crazy cast, there’s never a dull moment! LOL!
One of my majors is political science, foreign policy and international relations specifically, so I would luuuvvv to read your take on Iran.
I feel it’s not polite to advertise my work on your blog. To me, it seems somewhat self-serving. Since your site captures my email, drop me a line and I’ll send you a free coupon for use on Smashwords. Then you can get an idea of how Iran fits in. The book is the second in a four part series and the third novel will be out before the end of the year.
Hi, D.D.!
Thanks for another great post. There’s plenty of happenings in the real world that make great fodder for fiction. The current nominee has so many things that would be great too explore with fiction. Everything from his “magic underwear” to the fact that his father was born in a polygamist compound in Mexico. Talk about great material to work with.
Whoops. I meant “great to explore.”
The real world has always been my greatest fodder for fiction! And the funny thing is no one would believe it’s actually based on truth.
“Characters waltzed trippingly from one exotic location to another like they were on the Travel Channel, which kept the pace fast, but once they arrived at most locations, food and physical appearances and snarky, amusing comments filled the pages rather than details that furthered the plot. A notable exception was the sweatshop in Secondigliano, in Naples, where I was sobered by a few paragraphs that dealt with the plight of the poor pressed into service by the Mob.” –
hmmm, fast pace, wit, amusement, “and” sobering commentary fictionalized in scenes
hmmm….
i’m lost, where is the bad part?
You’re the sweetest, Adan!
Thanks sooo much!
The Red Adept Reviewer had a ton of paragraphs like this (and wow…I mean this review was just overkill in length…and began to sound the same after a while) with lots of nice things to say along with the catty criticism…and then she gave me a 1-Star. LOL!
I actually use quotes from the positive things she said quite a bit. So yep, I quote a 1-Star Review!