Fluff is Good. We Need More Fluff.

Ever heard of a film called Sullivan’s Travels? It’s about a movie director who made his fame by making lighthearted comedies. He’s grown discontent with his reputation, and decides to strike out and make a serious picture, one that addresses the ills of society. The plan … goes wrong, to say the least (no spoilers!). In the end, though, he learns a moral: Lighthearted fiction has its place in the world and is more valuable than we give it credit for.

How many writers set out to craft the Great American Novel? Or to join the ranks of great authors of the world like F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ayn Rand, George Orwell, Jonathan Swift, Victor Hugo, Nikos Kazantzakis, James Joyce, and Leo Tolstoy? It’s a tall order. It’s a tremendous challenge. Some may succeed. You who are reading this very blog may someday have your name counted among the giants of literature. Or you may not. Some of us choose not to, some of us don’t have the time or inclination to put in the effort, and some of us simply don’t have the skill.

And that isn’t a bad thing.

I don’t know, maybe it’s the universities nowadays. There’s tremendous pressure on students to go out into the world and change it. To start something big, to borrow my alma mater’s motto. An expectation, maybe even a demand, to create, accomplish, or otherwise affect something socially significant. Why? I don’t know. It’s college, they have to justify that education somehow.

And so, you earn that Creative Writing degree, or Literary History, perhaps, or Communication (a very fine and sensible degree, don’t let anyone tell you different). You go out into the real world and find out that society is a lot more complicated than they told you about in school, and – shock and horror! – a lot of people aren’t as worried about the Profound Truths and Hard-hitting Social Commentary you want to write about as they are paying the bills, staying fit and healthy, keeping down a good job, and generally trying to get through life with their sanity intact.

Ever notice how a lot of great novels are rather grim? A lot of hard facts about life, a lot of stoic resolve to endure the unendurable, a lot of depressing defeats and protagonists being ground into the dirt. A glint of hope, perhaps, but mostly just acknowledging and analyzing how horrible the world can be. And it’s true. Life is a bully. But guess what? Everyone already knows that!

I do not demean the accomplishments of famous authors. They are famous because of their genuine skill and vision. But if I had to read works like 1984 and Crime and Punishment every time I settled down for the evening, I’d be a paranoid, depressed mess. We need fluff. We need lightness and joy and hope. The fluffy works, the pulp fiction, the genre pieces, and those weird novels you find tucked away in mysterious bookstores downtown. We need them. And we need authors to write them. They have value, because I firmly believe that all literature has value, regardless of its form or origin. John Carter of Mars and Conan the Barbarian are just as important as Zorba the Greek and The Grapes of Wrath

Am I biased? Well, I had to read Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby like three times in high school and watch the 1974 film adaptation starring Robert Redford. I was fed too much great literature and got queasy.

So, if you’re an author who feels frustrated that you can’t write “serious” work or don’t have the talent to create something “meaningful” and “socially significant,” consider that your talents may lie elsewhere. That your skills may not be suited to a deep analysis of the human condition, but might be perfect for a romping adventure or mystery thriller. Not everything has to have a deeper meaning. And who’s to say that a genre piece won’t touch someone in ways none of us can ever know? A little escapism is a good thing.

So, don’t worry about writing something great. Just focus on something good. Most of all, write what you enjoy.

Did you like what you just read? Are you a writer, or just looking for fun content? Do you want more, but are worried about missing new posts? Please subscribe! I post updates on my writing career, I muse over storytelling and fiction, and I reflect on the curious and wonderful things in life.

It hasn’t gone anywhere, and it won’t anytime soon! My first book, A God Walks Up to the Bar, is available on Amazon.com. Witness the modern day adventures of the Greek god Hermes in a world much like our own – plus with demigods, vampires, nymphs, ogres, and magic. The myths of old never went away, they just moved on with the times. It’s a tough job, being a god!

Image Source: “Dandelion” by Kim Siever; Public Domain Mark 1.0.