Are Contemporary Fiction books set now, as in present day, or recent past? How recent? Yesterday? Last year? Two years ago? Can something that was written twenty years ago still be Contemporary Fiction? What IS Contemporary Fiction? Let's find out together.
What is Contemporary Fiction?
When you Google 'What is Contemporary Fiction?', you don't even need to scroll down to see three different answers:
Huh??
So, is it set in the present day, recent past, or after World War Two (which ended in 1945) and "coincident with contemporary history"???
Let's explore.
Where did I start my research? At the library, of course! I bombarded our sweet librarian, Francis, with questions like:
"A book set in the 90's would have been classified as Contemporary Fiction (CF) in the 90's, right? But is it still CF or has it dated out of the CF genre? Do all books date out of CF unless set in an ambiguous time that could always be interpreted as 'now'?"
She told me that she didn't know, and then helped me research the answer.
Francis explained that the library's book suppliers categorise the books, not the library itself. The library had no information on genres in their collection policies. So, she suggested that I head to publishers and suppliers to find my answers. The other thing she said, is that she thought that CF books were ones that didn't fit into any other categories and were just a "regular story" with no unusual or fantastical elements, like, it could happen to you or me.
Ooops! That would rule my books, The Silver Sheep and The Silver Shepherd, out of the CF genre that I have categoriesed them in. Okay, so does the story itself need to meet expectations to fit into the CF genre? So many questions!
The next question that I decided to tackle is: Who decides on a book's genre? Then I would find out who to ask my questions about CF.
Here is what I found out: Most people say that the publisher has the final say, but this also does not seem to be a definitive answer. Authors need to define a genre in order to pitch their book idea to a publisher in the first place. One answer referred to OCLC which helped me remember that the librarian had mentioned them too. A Google search tells me that they are a "global library cooperative". Hrmm, okay, interesting, but off track now. WHAT THE HECK IS CONTEMPORARY FICTION??? And who decides?
The National Library of Australia refers to a 'Modern & Contemporary fiction' category and classifies it as: 'Works of literary and non-genre fiction first published after 1960'.
'Literary and non-genre fiction' fits in with the librarian's idea that CF encompasses books that don't fit into any other genre, but then it goes on to specify that the book be PUBLISHED after 1960. Not SET after, but published after.
An AustLit paper titled 'Contemporary Historical Fiction, Exceptionalism and Community: After the Wreck' supports the idea of a book being contemporary due to date of publishing and NOT when the book is set, otherwise how could a book be both contemporary and historical fiction?
So, is the CF genre about when a book is set, when it is published, or what the book is about? Or a mix of all three? Oh golly, my head is spinning!
Market Project UK explained that CF is 'sometimes referred to as metamodernism' which Wikipedia tells me is 'contemporary art that has emerged after postmodernism', which emerged in the 1960s. So, this supports the National Library of Australia's definition that the works need to be published after 1960 to be considered CF.
Then, I discovered the book, Contemporary Fiction: A Very Short Introduction, by Robert Eaglestone. I didn't read it, but it seems to dive into the themes and elements in a story that makes it contemporary.
Oh boy, the research hole keeps getting deeper and I really don't want my next book to be 60,000 words titled, What is Contemporary Fiction. I need to wrap this up.
So, what next?
I emailed some Australian book publishers directly and asked them what criteria they used to determine whether a book falls into the CF genre. Then, I waited.
I didn't hear back. I'm wondering if it is because there is no criteria. It seems to be a very subjective sort of thing. I haven't waited too long for a response, but I figure that if it was a quick answer, then I would have heard back fairly quickly, right?
So, I don't have a nice, neat little answer for you. Instead, I will give you some other people's ideas of what CF is:
Zuille Writes says that CF is set in the present and is a "contantly evolving genre that reflects the changes in our world. As 'contemporary' changes, so too does the genre." They explain that SETTING is key, and not themes or subject matter. They also list some excellent points:
It's relevant
It's relatable
It's diverse
It expands your worldview
RT Book Reviews say that CF is set in the present day and categorised by its "relevance to the current societal, cultural, and political climate." They go on to say that it can include fantasy and, like Zuille Writes, lists diversity as a key characteristic "voices and perspectives... from different cultures, races, genders, and sexual orientations."
The Write Practice explains that "what is considered CF today will change a decade from now." So, yes, books will 'age out' of the CF genre, but perhaps only when what the book contains is no longer relevant or reflective of life in the present day, rather than after a certain number of years have passed since publication?
Market Project UK list relevance and diversity as key elements of CF, explaining that it focuses on "real-life issues." Interestingly, they suggest that authors who write CF consider using Sensitivity Readers to make sure that "portrayal of different cultures and experiences are accurate and respectful".
Okay, so in summary it seems as though there are no hard and fast rules.
Sort of.
There is no list of criteria that a book must meet to fall in the Contemporary Fiction genre. HOWEVER, if a book is:
Published after 1960
Set in the present day
Relevant
Relatable, and
Contains diversity
Then it is probably CF. If it's fantasy or contains any unrealistic elements, then it's debatable. And, what is considered CF now will likely not remain CF. But, I can't tell you exactly when books will age out of the genre. It would seem that it is when they are no longer relevant. A book would need to 'age well', which makes me think more of house decorating than fiction books.
Right, so is that as clear as... murky water?
I hope that you have found this blog helpful. References that I used are hyperlinked throughout this post, so please feel welcome to go and do some of your own reserach. If you do, please let me know what you find out (and I'll let you know if any of those book publishers end up replying to my email).
Much love,
Marley x
P.S. Check out my Contemporary Fiction books. They are set in the present day and explore current (and timeless) social and political themes, like:
Poverty and inequality
Holistic/new age healing and natural health remedies + the healing power of nature
Corporate greed & corruption + money making from illness
Social vs independent thought and the importance of questioning things for yourself
All from the perspective of a young woman in a modern-day dysfunctional family.
Book One, The Silver Sheep, is available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.
Comments