The idea of subtext clicked after reading Lolita by Nabokov. After that, I’ve been fascinated by Unreliable Narrators since it’s a stew of subtext–whatever they’re saying is either untrue or masked.
Subtext is something you see in great literature. Less so in genre fiction. I wish I was much better at than I am, but to convey it properly, you also need to ask the reader to do some work. To a certain degree, that’s a non-starter in “genre” fiction, although I’m not certain as to why. Many of the so-called literary devices are consider a big no-no for more commercial works.
The idea of subtext clicked after reading Lolita by Nabokov. After that, I’ve been fascinated by Unreliable Narrators since it’s a stew of subtext–whatever they’re saying is either untrue or masked.
Subtext is something you see in great literature. Less so in genre fiction. I wish I was much better at than I am, but to convey it properly, you also need to ask the reader to do some work. To a certain degree, that’s a non-starter in “genre” fiction, although I’m not certain as to why. Many of the so-called literary devices are consider a big no-no for more commercial works.