WELCOME

Everyone has a story. Whether it's written down, told around campfires or locked away deep down, we've all got a tale to tell.  And I, for one, want to hear them all. 

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Memoirs, Historical Fiction, Romance, Dystopian, Psychological Thriller…these are some of the genres that publishers have dictated stories must fall within, but the lines often blur.  Our memories are tricky goblins that change over time, creating angst for those writing memoirs.  Perhaps this is why #ownvoices surged.  It gives allowances for those who want to “tell their story” behind the face of Fiction and out of the line of fire. Fantasy vs. Dystopian, Psychological Thriller vs. Mystery, Chick Lit vs. Romance… such small distinctions between them but enough to warrant placement on different shelves. These categories exist to put our stories into tiny little boxes so that marketing them is easier. 

 

But stories, fiction or otherwise, are complex.  People, characters…the ones that envelope the page…are involved. This complexity gives us glimpses into minds that we might not have otherwise navigated.  Minds that have different perspectives than our own.  Whether we're telling the story of ourselves, or characters we've created, perspective is what drives the discussion.

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It allows us to debate the ideas behind the stories. It gives us a chance to see the story behind the eyes of different characters, or people, that don't align with our own thought processes.  Or maybe they do. In such cases, we fight for them, we love them, we invite them to live within us. 

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And we tell our friends and family about all of it.

 

​Right? How many times have you closed a book and agonized over the fact that it was finished?  I have.  Wanting characters to stay alive just a little while longer in my world is why I've created THE LITERARY LIST.  I want to talk about these books with all of you and understand the other worlds of thought. I want to understand things in ways I haven't before.  I want to give these characters the benefit of the doubt. (Honestly, though, I'll probably always hate the bad guy. But try changing my mind!)

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THE LITERARY LIST will be a collaboration of different genres to be discussed within our literary community.  We'll read, digest, discuss.  Let's take the stories of published authors and intersect them into our lives, into our community here.  Let us celebrate the stories that these authors were brave enough to write.  Their stories. The ones they dug deep down to feel and to create.

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​Are you in?