Comments on: This Difficulty-Phobic Culture http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/this-difficulty-phobic-culture/ Reflections of a working writer and reader Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:23:07 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: writing a romance novel http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/this-difficulty-phobic-culture/comment-page-1/#comment-110081 writing a romance novel Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:50:21 +0000 http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/?p=1258#comment-110081 HA! You can say anything all you want! for me, the best books are those romance novels! I always enjoyed being twitterpated by books like these! I enjoy them so much that I also wanted to do a little writing a romance novel myself! Ah...it's great to be always in love and inspired.... HA! You can say anything all you want! for me, the best books are those romance novels! I always enjoyed being twitterpated by books like these! I enjoy them so much that I also wanted to do a little writing a romance novel myself! Ah…it’s great to be always in love and inspired….

]]> By: Daniel Black http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/this-difficulty-phobic-culture/comment-page-1/#comment-109748 Daniel Black Fri, 04 Jul 2008 23:51:37 +0000 http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/?p=1258#comment-109748 From a slightly different vector, this is quite good news for today's writing force. This teeming mediocrity makes it much easier to be seen as transcendent of genre than the days of yore, when men were men and publishers were...well, okay, I can't really do anything with that. I'm just sayin'. From a slightly different vector, this is quite good news for today’s writing force. This teeming mediocrity makes it much easier to be seen as transcendent of genre than the days of yore, when men were men and publishers were…well, okay, I can’t really do anything with that. I’m just sayin’.

]]> By: Paul http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/this-difficulty-phobic-culture/comment-page-1/#comment-109745 Paul Fri, 04 Jul 2008 19:28:56 +0000 http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/?p=1258#comment-109745 "The Illusion of Choice" - Says it all really. “The Illusion of Choice” – Says it all really.

]]> By: Paul http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/this-difficulty-phobic-culture/comment-page-1/#comment-109738 Paul Fri, 04 Jul 2008 16:23:04 +0000 http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/?p=1258#comment-109738 In the age of the individual the market requires new types of conformity, new consumer profiles. In an age of choice, with too much to choose from, the marketeers rush forward to choose for us; supplying to the lowest common denominator at every possible opportunity, hypeing the very ordinary, promising a new lifestyle or mindset with each new buy, packaging the bland in robes of celebrity. And we consume what they feed us as fast as we can, and left still hungry, demand more of the same, because that's all that's on offer. And the media winges about the sickness in society and doles out more and more mindlessness, because that's what sells. There's no harm in a bit of distraction, but when it's all distraction what might we be missing? In the age of the individual the market requires new types of conformity, new consumer profiles.
In an age of choice, with too much to choose from, the marketeers rush forward to choose for us; supplying to the lowest common denominator at every possible opportunity, hypeing the very ordinary, promising a new lifestyle or mindset with each new buy, packaging the bland in robes of celebrity.
And we consume what they feed us as fast as we can, and left still hungry, demand more of the same, because that’s all that’s on offer.
And the media winges about the sickness in society and doles out more and more mindlessness, because that’s what sells.
There’s no harm in a bit of distraction, but when it’s all distraction what might we be missing?

]]> By: Jim Murdoch http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/this-difficulty-phobic-culture/comment-page-1/#comment-109736 Jim Murdoch Fri, 04 Jul 2008 09:09:47 +0000 http://johnbakersblog.co.uk/?p=1258#comment-109736 Let's see, my first book is a darkly-comic, philosophical, quasi-religious, fantasy novel with science fiction, military, fly-fishing and romantic elements added just to make sure I cover all the bases. Oh, and it's set in a north of England seaside resort and contains the words 'loxodromic' and 'jactitating'. So what shelf would that go on then? <strong>jb says</strong>: Jim, this may be licking out the custard pan after it's been through the dish-washer, but would a couple of vegan recipes on the cover have given it an identifiable market? Let’s see, my first book is a darkly-comic, philosophical, quasi-religious, fantasy novel with science fiction, military, fly-fishing and romantic elements added just to make sure I cover all the bases. Oh, and it’s set in a north of England seaside resort and contains the words ‘loxodromic’ and ‘jactitating’. So what shelf would that go on then?

jb says: Jim, this may be licking out the custard pan after it’s been through the dish-washer, but would a couple of vegan recipes on the cover have given it an identifiable market?

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