Just to set the record straight—most of you probably know what romance is, and if you don’t know anything about finance, you’re in trouble— but pissants sounds so terrible, that even my voice recognition software wants to call it, “puissance.” But it has nothing to do with ants, usually, unless you are at a picnic where they are attending.
The word, “pissants” is actually considered vulgar (but when did that ever stop anyone?). Pissants means a person place or thing that is insignificant or of no consequence or a despicable person, place or thing.
So what is the real topic today?
I just finished reading a romance novel. Some of you may be smiling and some of you may be running for another website. However, “good” romance, as I have just written about (last blog) can be fantastic. Just like “bad” murder mysteries, thrillers, even (heaven forbid!) historicals, are awful in the late 20th-21st century meaning of the word, meaning terrible rather than “full of awe.”
I teach poetry to senior citizens. I teach poetry to prose writers, because crossing genres, especially poetry with any other writing genre, if done well, will increase its impact on the reader. I believe it was Walter Mosley who first introduced me to this concept when I was reading an interview with him. He talked about reading poetry because he wanted to hear the rhythms.
Why mention this at all?
Because romancing the language as we write… will lead to a probable increase in our finances.
Good writing sells.
And bad writing, without prejudice to genre, should be considered pissant.
When I can predict that the couple will definitely get together, who the murderer is, what the big secret is, or that I simply don’t care about the main character, that is pissant.