Novelism

The Free Dictionary describes novelism in just a single word. It is simply innovation and a bad idea. I have approached the challenge of creativity and innovation my entire life. I've gone back to reading children's books.

(I’m a slow reader), but I've read my share of novels, finishing ‘Slaughterhouse-Five’ by Kurt Vonnegut. The other two books I read include ‘The Rum Diary’ and 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’ by Hunter S. Thompson. ‘Slaughterhouse Five’ fits into six typical genres: fiction, time travel, black comedy, war novel, philosophy, and science fiction.

The end of chapter nine included a radio station discussion on a program regarding novels. “The master of ceremonies asked people to say what they thought the function of a novel might be in modern society, and one critic said, ‘To provide touches of color in rooms with all-white walls.’ Another one said, ‘To describe blow-jobs artistically.’ Another one said, ‘To teach wives of junior executives what to buy next and how to act in a French restaurant.’”

Chapter ten is the last chapter in the novel and it finishes as it’s written at the end of chapter one. The Second World War is over. Billy Pilgrim survives the Dresden massacre as a prisoner of war in a slaughterhouse. He walks outside and sees ruins, no traffic, trees leafing out and hears a bird chirping. I found Kilgore Trout an interesting minor character. He’s a failed science fiction writer with crazy ideas that made the book more interesting.

‘The Rum Diary’ tells the tangled love story of jealousy, treachery, and violent alcoholic lust in Puerto Rico. The novel is not as great as ‘Fearing and Loathing in Las Vegas.’ I didn’t really care about failed drunken love affairs in ‘The Rum Diary.’ I was more interested in Paul Kemp’s freelance job working for a failing newspaper.

I finished reading ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’ last year. It’s wonderfully written. It’s probably the best chronicle of a drug-soaked strange journey down in the annals of American pop culture. I wondered how Raoul Duke could still be alive at the end.

'Fear and Loath' means to go out for a massively crazy night containing random adventures fuelled by plenty of body and substance abuse. It’s a direct reference to what the novel stands for.

I’m a past member of the Canadian Authors Association and I'm thinking about the pros and cons of literary agents. I’m looking forward to pitching my novel at CanWrite! 2015. The conference for writers is held by the CAA at Lakehead University. I’m planning to take a writing retreat and share the lackluster experience. 'Go fly a kite.'