Sherri Cornelius

I love being free from deciding what to write about, so I’m going to continue with the “A”s to your “Q”s. I’ve been quite restless lately, and I think it’s partly because I haven’t been expressing myself enough through writing. You writers know sometimes it doesn’t matter what you write, as long as you write something. Sometimes blabbing is the best.

On that note, I shall now blab about what Darcsfalcon asked last week, and that is,

…if you could meet any historical figure, who would it be?

And of course that is the hardest question of all, because there are too many possibilities to narrow it down to only one. I’m going to take liberties with her phrasing and assume “meet” means that I will understand what it’s like to be that person. In that case it would be some unknown person in a civilization like ancient Sumer, or Hitler, or a slave in the years leading up to the Civil War. Maybe one of the Underground Railroad people or the folks who risked everything to hide Jews during the Holocaust, whose courage, vision, and love for their fellow human beings astound me.

However, that’s not what Falcon asked, she asked who I would like to meet, and that implies sitting down and talking with them. In that case I think I’d choose Eleanor Roosevelt, because she had so much wisdom to pass along about being a strong woman.

How about you?

Vincenzo came up with a philosophical question for me that ties in nicely with the book I’m reading right now, In the Courts of the Sun, about the going back in time and the Maya and 2012, remember? A rise and fall to rival the Roman Empire. (The review pretty much mirrors how I feel about it, in case you were wondering.)

Vince asked,

If you could choose to live in the ascent or descent of a civilization, which would you choose and why?

How about a plateau? I think that’s where the U.S. is right now. But if I have to choose ascent or descent, then it’s an easy choice: ascent. You’d likely have new technologies, conquest, discovery. You’d probably have plenty of resources to spread around. I like the fresh, the open, the adventurous.The feeling that anything’s possible.

It’s true that rapid advance can be reckless. And when a civilization ascends it’s on the backs of people, so that’s a downer. But there’s oppression in any culture, is there not? Always a pecking order, and somebody’s got to be on the bottom. And people tend to be more brutal when they have a lot to lose. An individual might not know they’re in the ascent or descent of anything, so you almost have to look at the broad overview. An individual might not feel that sense of adventure in a rising civilization, nor the chaos of a falling one, because they have nothing to compare it to. Yeah, a lot can happen in a person’s lifetime, but I’m assuming major changes taking place over hundreds of years.

I’ve really oversimplified here. What else should I consider? Discuss!

I opened the door to questions yesterday, expecting a flood and receiving a trickle (not really, expected the trickle, thanks for not letting me down :| ). Ian came through for me as usual, being the first querent and therefore the first answered. He asks,

I want to know if you had to write something in a different genre from your preferred genre, what would it be and why? (I’m a closet Westerns fan)

Well, that’s hard to answer. It’s been years since I tried writing anything besides fantasy, and my attempts at other things weren’t exactly successful. I won 1st Honorable Mention in a major OK contest a long time ago for a confession story, but it never sold. But I guess this is supposed about what I would write if I couldn’t write fantasy, right? My second choice?

It sure as hell wouldn’t be confession stories. Wasn’t for me. Ditto on westerns. Cozy mystery…blech. I used to like heaving-bosom lit but not anymore, so romance is out. Too squeamish for horror. Although I don’t read those genres, I don’t mind a story set in the Old West, or love scenes, or violence. I just like them with a crazy twist, and that usually means fantasy.

My interests have changed since I first started writing for real about ten years ago. (Yikes, has it been that long?) Now I read a whole lot more literary fiction, crossing over into what they call mainstream fiction. So that might be something I’d write. However, I also love spiritual books, inspirational books, books that help me empower myself and find my place in the world. I’m also interested in the environment and clean living. In fact, I think I have a lot to say about those subjects, and it’s not up to me to judge whether other people care what I have to say. In all genres of writing, you have to put yourself out there and see how you’re received. So I think I could really get into non-fiction, a self-help book or maybe inspirational memoir geared toward young girls, or maybe an environmental expose–something that empowers and informs people.

So the short answer after all that soul-searching is if I couldn’t write fantasy, I’d write non-fiction. What a surprise. I’ve never seriously considered it before, but now it seems like a really good idea. Thanks for the prod, Ian. We’ll see how that manifests in the future.

What about you guys? Have you ever considered changing genres? Or do you love writing everything?

Tomorrow’s question: If you could choose to live in the ascent or descent of a civilization? Which would you choose and why?