Yeah. So, when people find out I'm writing a novel, people all too often ask me what it's about.
Is anyone else having a problem ironing what the novel is all about out? I could write a pitch, but that would be tacky if my book isn't done yet. And I don't feel good enough about the novel to make any sweeping generalisations. And my genre doesn't Fit With Everything Else (romance, action, drama, suspense, scifi, fantasy) ... so I can't just say 'it's a none of the above book.'
What do you do when people ask you that?
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06 - critical mass, won.
07 - sin cera.
peppermints consumed: 86.
dr peppers inhaled: 5
pages: 102 (not double spaced between paragraphs! :O)
(All hail my NaNoNewbie, The Why Bird!)
50,117 / 50,000
Nov 21, 2007 - 21 07
I just kind of fudge over it and say, "Oh, it's sort of a romantic suspense." Hell, nobody knows what to say to an author, after, "Sooo...what's your novel about?", and they expect us to charm them with our wit and polish. When they say to me, "Tell me about your MC", then we can talk.
250,736 / 50,000
Nov 21, 2007 - 21 54
First book (of 2 for Nano 2007), named "My Little Pony" is about a teenage girl and her little pony -- Pony Stock, that is, four-cylinder stock car and short track racing.
----------Visit my web site at Spearfish Lake Tales -- FREE Mainstream Books and Serials Online
27,001 / 50,000
Nov 22, 2007 - 18 08
YES. And I try to explain. I say my main character is trying to find out the meaning of life and sound really incredibly pretentious. Which is sort of the point of the book, in that he is a laughably pretentious philosophy student who has to learn some life lessons.
And I'm sounding pretentious again already. Argh! ;-)
Mostly I've been saying stuff like "It's a coming-of-age story with religion, philosophy, and some pretty cool facial hair."
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Alison/snuffy
10,000 / 50,000
Nov 22, 2007 - 19 54
I never quite know what to say. I usually mumble something vaguely coherent and they leave me alone, like it's a family drama or it's an teen angst novel.
It's not so much that I don't know what the novel is about, it's just that I don't know how to explain it to other people without feeling like an idiot.
50,524 / 50,000
Nov 23, 2007 - 13 43
It's an easy question to answer...
Q: "Sooo...what's your novel about?"
A: About to drive me crazy...
Then you can tell them about the fun you have writing it, and the challenge, but you don't have to give the mojo away.
50,064 / 50,000
Nov 24, 2007 - 12 20
Um... mostly about three friends taking the mickey out of each as they blunder through their days? Mostly anyway.
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Reality is a hallucination caused by sleep deprivation.
50,129 / 50,000
Nov 25, 2007 - 13 53
>_> I give them my awesome awesome genre.
Sci-fi/war/crime/fantasy/dash of romance thriller.
They all go o.O and give up asking questions.
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NaNo '06 -- [Or Something Like That] -- fantasy (won)
NaNo '07 -- Between the Void -- mainstream (won)
50,032 / 50,000
Nov 29, 2007 - 18 38
Yeah. I tell them it's a romantic science fiction novel about what would happen if the world blew up. They have no response to that.
LOL
Trilli
----------Trilli
60,560 / 50,000
Jan 29, 2008 - 07 57
Depends on the person. If I can tell that they aren't into my genre, I just blow it off with "it's a speculative fiction" and I say it in such a way that they feel like an idiot for asking what speculative fiction is and so I have to go no further. But if I think that they would be into my genre, I tell them a little of what it's about. Then, if they are genuinely interested, I give them a more broad synapsis.
----------The real hero is always a hero by mistake; he dreams of being an honest coward like everyone else.
- Umberto Eco
200,010 / 50,000
Feb 1, 2008 - 23 36
"So, what's your novel about?"
"Nothing interesting."
"...so why are you writing it?"
"Because I find it interesting. Not that you would find it interesting."
They usually leave me alone after that. xD
----------"If everyone is thinking alike, then someone isn't thinking." - General George S. Patton, Jr.
22,645 / 50,000
Feb 3, 2008 - 19 36
Oh yeah... all the time.
I just tell them: "I don't know, the main character hasn't told me yet. Oh, hold on a minute, he wants to talk to me right now."
Then you start muttering to yourself and frequently shout "But that's absurd, it doesn't make sense!".
After a few minutes they've usually disappeared, and tend to go out of their way to avoid you the next time you meet.
25,000 / 50,000
Apr 4, 2008 - 20 07
"Some dude trying to save the world from an evil dictator..."
They all give me this look like, "It's been done before..."
Every time I see that look, I want to scream "Yes, it's been done before, but it hasn't been done MY WAY!"
----------I write what I know. In this case, I know band.
53,328 / 50,000
Jul 22, 2008 - 08 09
Your answer should match the nature of the question. If it's just a polite inquiry, you can give a simple overview: "Oh, it's a costume drama." or "It's a murder mystery set in Wyoming." or "It's a romance." or "It's a fantasy novel." etc.
If your questioner seems to want to know more (i.e., shows genuine interest) then you can summarize a basic plot thread: "My protagonist is a 15-year-old Peruvian dwarf who discovers she has magic powers but thinks she has been given religious powers and has to fight both religious and government enemies." or "My story is about a small town in Vermont in 1948 where the indigenous Italian-American population is so ingrown that my hero, Luigi, has a major fight on his hands just to go to college." or "It's a locked room mystery. And I still haven't figured out how I'm going to pull it off."etc.
My point is that some people mean no harm but are not interested in the details. Others would like more, but you don't want to overload them. Very few people ask to be annoying. Unless they are your siblings, I suppose.