What We Tell and Hear

Ripper Street: from my screen to yours

I fell asleep reading Pride and Prejudice last night.  Upon awakening I had to wonder what's wrong with me.  I mean, it's Jane Austen, after all.  Who doesn't like her?  Tonight I went to Blockbuster and looked through the movies about her or her novels thinking maybe a visual would help.   Imagine my surprise to find Becoming Jane starred James McAvoy as Jane's love interest and Mr. Darcy was none other than Matthew Macfadyen.  (how could I not know this?)  Surely I could stay awake for Professor X and Tom Quinn. 
An hour later I realized I'm just not a fan, no matter how much I like the leading men.  In researching I discovered I'm not alone.  I found this article:  The Author and the Austen plot... I know there's probably more to it, but even agents weren't so impressed by Ms. Austen. 
It goes back to the age old question:  what makes something good?  Popularity?  The author?  Critics?  Who gets to decide?  Does longevity make a difference?  A novel or story standing the test of time?
 I look at modern novels as compared to those like Austen, Hemingway, and Fitzgerald. The Great Gatsby is once again being reinvented. What is it about that story?   Technology has had a leading role in what we read, especially e-books and novels made into movies.  I can't help but wonder, would the 50 Shades trilogy had such a following if it hadn't been a Twilight fanfic and had a male author?  And, well, the Twilight series is a whole other matter all together. I'm still trying to understand that one and yet even women my age camped out the night before for the new releases and movie tickets.
As writers, we can't forget there are two people in the story telling relationship:  the teller and the hearer. It's all about telling stories in a way that resonates with the listener.  The experience is going to be different for different people.  I can have the best story in the world but if someone doesn't like it, they just don't like it.
I'm generally not impressed with the best sellers in movies or novels.   I'll probably never finish watching Titanic, or reading the Twilight and 50 Shades series.  If I haven't done so by now, I may not work through my Jane Austen induced narcolepsy. But, then I also don't expect others to be huge fans of the authors and series I love.  Stephen King, Cormac Mccarthy, Val Mcdermid, Michael Crichton--they aren't for the faint of heart.  How many people can say they know Eugene Tooms?


Eugene Victor Tooms

I'm watching Ripper Street now. To me, Edmund Reid and Tom Quinn are far more complex, interesting characters than Mr. Darcy, even though the same actor portrays them all.   I know someone is going to say I can't compare TV characters to novel characters. Why not? Some like ink and paper.  Some like e-ink.  Some prefer big or small screen.  But it's all about the tale.  What is being said and who's doing the telling?
That's the heart and soul, the beauty of story telling:  there's something for everyone.  If you love it, whether you're the teller or the hearer, who cares what other people think?