Kim Wilkins

Writing resilience in the digital age

In publishing marketplaces all over the world, we are seeing a radical shift in how books are acquired, sold, circulated, discussed, and read. This shift responds to the possibilities and potential of digital distribution and promotion of books. A considerable amount of energy has been devoted to educating writers how to take advantage of new possibilities. What is talked about far less, however, is how writers write within this shifting model. A significant threat to productive writing habits is the publishing industrys increasing insistence that writers develop an ‘author platform’, that is, a digital authorial identity that can be leveraged to build markets and increase sales. In the 21st century, book sales are increasingly dependent upon a reciprocal flow of communication between writers and readers. While an author platform based on social media has benefits, a range of negatives are emerging as the practice is normalised. At particular risk is writing resilience: the ability to keep writing in the face of distraction and setback. This essay assesses the impact that the digital revolution is having on writers’ work habits in the 21st century.

Popular genres and the Australian literary community: the case of fantasy fiction

Abstract Australian fantasy fiction is a highly successful field of Australian writing both nationally and internationally, and yet it occupies uncertain territory in the Australian literary community. In many ways, it is the opposite of that communitys default notion of Australian writing: it is popular, not literary; international, not local; fantastic, not realism. These incongruities make it an excellent case study for examining how the Australian literary community interacts with popular fiction.

The publishing ecosystems of contemporary australian genre fiction

Abstract The cultural and commercial operations of the publishing industry have been dramatically reshaped by digital technologies, yet little is known about how these effects are differentiated across sectors of the industry. This article analyses data about the production of Australian-authored fantasy, romance and crime fiction titles to explore the specific publishing ecosystems of different genres and the roles played by multinational, small press and self-publishing in each. First, we show that there has been across-the-board growth in each genre and for each type of publisher. Second, we argue that multinational publishing activity in these genres has been characterized by broad stability, punctuated by experimentation with genre-specific imprints for romance and fantasy titles. Third, we find that small presses make diverse contributions to genre ecosystems, able to both activate prestige and experiment with formats. Finally, we note the immense growth in self-publishing, particularly in romance, and argue that self-publishing now operates in tandem with traditional publishing to create hybridized publishing ecosystems - with greater potential to transform the traditional publishing model than e-books.

'A crowd at your back': fantasy fandom and small press

This article presents a study of a model of textual production that situates genre fiction, specifically fantasy fiction, within its community and industry contexts. I argue that Australian fantasy ‘fandom’ operates in some ways like a research and development space for the literature it consumes, through allowing, enabling and enthusiastically supporting – both ethically and materially – a thriving small press culture. Fandom is known for its passionate investments in texts, and those investments are rarely passive. The fantasy genre community is already oriented towards prosumption, and small presses afford specific opportunities for writers to work in specific ways, enriching and developing their individual craft and the genre as a whole.

Pagan Places: Contemporary Paganism, British Fantasy Fiction, and the Case of Ryhope Wood

This chapter opens with a brief account of the author’s visit to Wayland’s Smithy in Oxfordshire, England, one of many ancient sites in England that have become important to contemporary pagans. This introduction is the launch pad for consideration of the pleasures available in the repeated trope of pagan settings, especially as they are represented in fantasy fiction set in Britain of the late twentieth century. Through a close reading of Robert Holdstock’s Mythago Wood (1984), Wilkins argues that the pleasures of pagan settings in fantasy fiction mirror and reinforce the pleasures that real-world pagan places afford.

From Middle Earth to Westeros: Medievalism, Proliferation and Paratextuality

This chapter argues that setting is a privileged aspect of the popular fantasy genre, and it analyses setting in terms of both how texts are created and how they are circulated and enjoyed. ‘Plot driven’ and ‘character driven’ are commonplace descriptions of modern fiction, and often mark a distinction between genres of differing value. While these phrases are most usually deployed in non-academic writing such as reviews and other opinion-based works, they have appeared in recent research around reading and empathy. According to Frank Lachmann, readers of so-called literary works scored higher in empathy tests than readers of popular fiction; he suggests that this is because empathy is more readily aroused by ‘character-driven’ fiction where ‘the emotional repertoire of the reader is enlarged’ than by ‘plot-driven’ fiction (2015, p. 144). I note that Lachmann makes no attempt to elaborate on what these phrases might specifically mean, nor is there any consideration of the ‘emotional repertoire’ of, say, romance fiction, which fits his definition of character driven and yet remains the most reviled of the popular genres. While, to my mind, good fiction needs to attend to both plot and character equally well, neither of these necessary aspects of storytelling comes readily to mind as a ‘driver’ when thinking about fantasy fiction. In fact, the big engine of the genre appears to be the exposition and elaboration of the setting, from which characterisation and plots specific to the setting are then generated. Fantasy novels are, in many ways, setting driven, a feature that marks them out as unique among popular genres. Other genres where setting is an acknowledged pleasure are historical fiction (for example the work of Philippa Gregory or Diana Gabaldon) and the exotic travel memoir (for example texts set in aspirational destinations such as Provence and Tuscany); but these at least rely on settings that are real. Fantasy fiction, on the other hand, invites readers to immerse themselves in and admire an incredibly detailed world that is an invention of the author’s imagination.