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  • Showing only topics with the tag "literature". Back to normal view
    1. Brazilians don't get dry, minimalist literature. A bit of a rant.

      I know! It seems obvious, right? We are a hot, humid, colorful, vibrant Latin American country. Of course, our literature is the same! But that wasn't always the case! In the 1990s, Rubem Fonseca...

      I know! It seems obvious, right? We are a hot, humid, colorful, vibrant Latin American country. Of course, our literature is the same! But that wasn't always the case! In the 1990s, Rubem Fonseca was a huge hit with his dry, ruthless Brazilian noir. Luís Fernando Veríssimo often mirrored Ernest Hemingway with long dialogues with little to no explanation.

      Well, for better or worse, this is how I write most of the time. Trying to get the most from a minimal amount of words and not many adjectives and adverbs.

      That seems to confuse paid Brazilian readers. There's never any consideration of style or why I choose to write the story that way. They stamp my writing for infringing on half a dozen rules and proceed to completely ignore the content.

      The idea is that writing must be riddled with metaphors, poetic language, and sensorial anchors through extensive descriptions. Something I only do when I feel that it is necessary.

      I sent a dry, minimalist story written in language that reflected the harshness of those people with an equally dry open ending. One reader essentially suggested turning it into an emotional journey with a Black Mirror ending.

      That is often what happens with Brazilian readers: they just don't get it.

      English speakers, on the other hand, get everything, including the style. They understand that the ideas are the important bit, speculate on them, and bring their own references. They seem to get everything I do easily.

      I am starting to think that I should make writing in English my priority.

      17 votes
    2. What works do you think should be added to the literary canon?

      (Inspired by some discussion over at the The New Lifetime Reading Plan topic) Which authors or texts do you feel deserve a place in the literary canon, but don't currently have one? There is, of...

      (Inspired by some discussion over at the The New Lifetime Reading Plan topic)

      Which authors or texts do you feel deserve a place in the literary canon, but don't currently have one?

      There is, of course, not one singular, well-defined "canon" -- so interpret "the canon" as "the classics" or "required reading" or "most important works of literature" or however else you care to define it.

      In particular, consider areas that the canon tends to overlook: female authors, eastern perspectives, plays (besides Shakespeare's works), etc.

      29 votes
    3. I need some help with the sciency bit of my short story

      I am writing this short story. It is part of the overall book that I am writing, but it is also a story that can be enjoyed completely on its own. In that story, a planet-sized ship approaches our...

      I am writing this short story. It is part of the overall book that I am writing, but it is also a story that can be enjoyed completely on its own. In that story, a planet-sized ship approaches our Solar System, and, ultimately maybe, Earth. For dimensions, let's say it is equal to 1.5 of Earth's diameter. According to Google, that's 25,512 19,134 kilometers. The Planet-Ship is probably less dense than Earth, as it is largely occupied by biomass and weird alien electronics. You may think of it as a round Borg cube, from Star Trek.

      My "Round Borg Cube" is completely black and spherical, with a smooth surface without any visible features.

      What I wanna know is...

      • Assuming that the object is on a very slow path towards Earth, at what proximity will its effects be known?
      • At which point will scientists observe its effects, view it, or detect it with instruments?
      • If that is at all possible, what would be a threshold in which the "Round Borgs" would have to interrupt their movement in order to remain undetected?
      • At which distance will it be visible to the naked eye (if at all)?
      • And if they chose to get dangerously close to Earth, what would be the impact on our environment?

      I understand that is a lot to ask, but I just can't trust GPT for that kind of stuff, even if their answers sound plausible. Perhaps someone with astronomical knowledge as well as an interest in science fiction will find my questions enticing. I don't expect precise answers because I am not providing precise information. So feel free to speculate on that scenario. In any case, I am grateful for any answer I can get.

      Thanks!

      22 votes