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Fiction Corner

Alison Hawke

Shelf Life

What is it that keeps a work of fiction on the shelves for twenty years? Or fifty, or a hundred? I have a book on my shelves called "Sonnets of this Century." Inside the cover is written "J. Y. Wyatt 30th January 1886." I’m pretty sure the editor never thought the book would still be around one hundred and fourteen years later, and you can’t buy this collection anymore. But what is there on the shelves these days?

Probably the oldest English fiction is Geoffrey Chaucer’s "Canterbury Tales," written in the fourteenth century. Unless you have a yearning to read it in the original middle english language, let someone else do the hard work and pick up a translation. Chaucer’s original plan was to follow a motley group of pilgrims walking down to Canterbury. Each pilgrim would tell two stories on the way down, and two on the way back. The best storyteller would get a free lunch at the end of the journey. This grand scheme was reduced to one story each, then left incomplete. It’s worth a read, the stories range from the noble Knight’s Tale to the bawdy Carpenter’s Tale.

Moving a bit closer to this century, we have the novels of Jane Austen, written in the early 1800’s. The gentle humour and sharp observations about society life have contributed to their longevity. The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) television adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice" captivated the country several years ago, proving her appeal over a century after publication.

I think humour helps prolong the life of a novel. P G Wodehouse’s Jeeves and Wooster stories are hilarious. Jeeves is far more intelligent than his incompetent "master," much like Dilbert’s relationship with the Pointy-Haired Boss in Scott Adam’s Dilbert comic strip. Everyone wants to see their boss bested by the lowly employee at some point, and Wodehouse shows time and time again who is really in charge, whatever Wooster pretends.

The first book of its kind seems likely to linger on the book shelves. John Fowles’ "The Collector" has been described as the first modern psychological thriller. The story is told through the eyes of a man who becomes infatuated with a woman to the point of keeping her locked up in his basement. It is creepy, tense and well written, paving the way for a whole genre of literature in the same way Isaac Asimov created the forefather of all modern robots, androids and intelligent computers in his 1950 collection of stories, "I, Robot."

If a book is part of a series, especially one that is still being added to, the early books stay on the shelves. Sue Grafton’s "A is for Alibi" was first published in the 1980’s. The latest in the series is "O is for Outlaw," published in 1999. Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels began with "The Colour of Magic" in 1985. The twenty-fourth book in the series, "The Fifth Elephant," was published in November 1999. Over seventeen million copies of his books, all set in the same fantasy universe, have been sold world-wide. David Brin’s Uplift series has been going since the publication of "Sundiver" in 1980. The series is a treat for science fiction fans, especially the convincing science Brin uses.

If a book has lasted more than a few years on the shelves, there must be something good about it. Happy reading!

Drabble of the Month

A bumper crop of Drabbles this month! First, December's Millennium drabbles from Vic Crosby and Ryan Inwood.

Millennium by Vic Crosby In the Terminal Hotel, Wendy drains her eleventh glass of cheap red wine. Out panhandling today, she caught a citizen in a weak moment, who dropped her a twenty. Hasn't noticed that Steve, the bartender paid for the last two himself. As always, she dumped her money on the bar, and said "Red wine, keep it coming 'til it's gone." Behind her, the crowd is noisier than usual, "Four, three, two, one!" they yell, "Happy New Year!" Steve plonks a double whisky before Wendy, "Welcome to 2000, Wendy," he grins. She grabs the glass and takes a gulp. "2000 what?" End Of An Era by Ryan Inwood Paulo DeGalleazo stood atop a dark and rocky high hill overlooking the loud and bright city. He knew it would be full of parties and celebrants waiting to drunkenly usher in the new millennium. "They'll be so disappointed," he chuckled. Turning grandly, he raised his hands to the darkly cloaked and hooded acolytes around him. Fires were lit and the area was suffused with a hellish red glow. A sibilant chanting began and soon a shimmering green gateway slowly began to form in the air. Armageddon, he thought, wouldn't just come on its own; it had to be worked for.

January's star Drabbles are written by D. M. Grant (aka HarlieG) and Pam Kock.

A Fallen Star by D. M. Grant Deborah Jenkins touched her gold star as she unlocked her dressing room door. She smiled. Silly superstition! "Script changes, Miss Jenkins." The script boy handed her a thick stack of paper. "From Rico." She scrunched her nose. Rico the jerk, she thought remembering last night’s party. Wonder which bimbo took him home. She casually scanned the changes. "I'm shot?" "I'm sorry, Miss Jenkins." "Shot dead?" "I’m really sorry." The boy pulled out a screwdriver. Within seconds, her lucky star was gone; a shiny new one in it’s place. It read: Mary Wollcott. Slut! He held out her star. "Keep it." Amy's Star by Pam Kock "Mommy, how do you make a star?" Amy's hand hovered expectantly over the paper, holding a crayon. "Here," I said, taking the crayon. "Let me show you." I drew a star, the way my mother had taught me. "I can't do that," Amy wailed. "Sure you can! Try it." I gave the crayon back, and she carefully drew zigzag lines on the paper. "How's that?" "It's a good start," I answered. "Try again." This time I held her hand and guided it, inhaling her scent of baby shampoo. "I did it, mommy!" She shouted with glee, "I made a star!"

The Drabble theme for February is pyramid (due January 15th), courtesy of Heather Lowe. After that, I have to move the deadline up to the tenth of the month, to keep in step with my new deadline.

The theme for March is complications (due February 10th), courtesy of Peter Keane, and the theme for April is ignorance (due March 10th). If you have any ideas for Drabble themes, please email me.

Email your Drabbles to me at drabble@technologist.com.