Daytime soap operas have been around since at least the 1930s. Then they were on radio and sponsored by soap manufacturers. They were dramatic little shows, also known as 'operas'. So that is how they got their name.
I have never been one to get into them much. Some people become very involved with them. One of my grandmothers used to get so mad at a certain woman on some show she watched because the woman was so mean to someone else. To Grandma, watching the soap opera was a kind of voyeurism. I suppose she felt like she were the 'fly on the wall', watching real people live real lives. But you don't have to be a senior citizen to get like that. I have known plenty of twenty and thirty-somethings who are the same way.
When I was young it was assumed one hundred percent of soap opera viewers were women. Subsequent history has proven that to be a false assumption. Plenty of men are just as caught up in the lives of these fictional characters.
The truth is, prime time television series aren't much different. What is different is the time table. Prime time television series provide isolated events in the live of its characters. Soap operas follow their characters almost minute by minute.
I'm not sure how I need to ask this, but can short stories achieve the same thing as a soap opera?
What if I were to create a character, and just follow her daily life and write about it? Like the radio and television soap operas there would be no specific goal to be achieved, or obstacle to overcome. Just the daily things, like having to deal with losing one's job, falling in love, having children, getting divorced, having an affair, learning a new trade.
The key, of course, would be to make the character so interesting that readers would actually care about her, or maybe one of the regular characters around her. I suppose that would be something that might work in a magazine, which attracts readers for others reasons than just to read about the life of Priscilla. (I just opened my baby name book and randomly chose a name that sounded nice.)
Generally when we read a story we are looking for something out of the ordinary. We want something to take us away from the mundane daily life we are living for ourselves. But sometimes, it just might be nice to read about someone else's mundane daily life. Especially if they're kind of like us. So maybe Priscilla is a lesbian. Or bi. Or maybe Priscilla doesn't really know what she is regarding relationships. Maybe she struggles with those because she's still trying to live the life she thinks she's supposed to live. Maybe the life of Priscilla isn't a short story, but rather a long journey.
Is that something worth writing?
Oh. And on a different note, Sarah L has a fantastic post on her blog. Link to it here.
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4 comments:
It sounds a bit like a blog. I suppose you could try it and see.
Good idea. I could either create it as a separate blog or just reserve a day or two each week on this blog. I kind of prefer the idea of a dedicated blog. That would make it easier to catch up on any history a person missed.
I love slice of life movies. They still have conflict and tension, but there's no resolve other than life goes on and something happened to remove the conflict or tension. The Sunshine State is a good example.
A slice of life book? Good question and an interesting thought. I think some of what is categorized as literary fiction might be slice of life. I think when I'm reading though, I'm looking for the loose ends to get tied and there to be a happy ending.
I get caught up in the 'who's your baby's daddy' DNA testing shows. Don't know why and half the time I turn off the sound when they start just yelling at each other: 'yes he is' 'no he's not'. But maybe I'm looking for that happy ending. Maybe I'm looking for some parent to do an about face and become the good dad or the good mom. To step up to the plate and take responsibility for the life they created. That's the soap opera that I watch. Not very often thankfully.
And thanks for the linky love!
Books probably should have tie up endings, even when they acknowledge that life is going to continue. Questions are raised and then answered, for good or for bad.
That's why I think this idea might work better in a magazine. Readers are already reading it for other reasons, and having a slice of life series going on might be an added blessing for them. Fiaryhedgehog's idea of putting it into a blog sounds good. I'm letting my thoughts collect now. When I'm ready I'll try the new blog idea.
I like, and need, the happy ending right now, too.
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