NAMING AND ORGANIZINGCHICK LIT

Kellie Meehlhause

LI 804

Ann O’Neill

NO, NOT THESE!!!

WHAT IS CHICK LIT?

Contemporary women’s fiction

Chick Lit explores the personal, professional, and romantic lives of young, single, working women.“Coming-Of-Age” story

Usually written by women for women.

CHICK LIT CRITERIA Main Character: female, 20-30s, an “every

woman”

Supporting Characters: gay best friend, evil boss, cheating boyfriend, caring female posse, Mr. Right

Setting: Contemporary, urban (NYC, London, L.A.)

Humorous, satirical tone

Embedded in pop culture

NOTE: These qualities may not be present in all genre literature, but they are stereotypical nonetheless.

JUDGING THE BOOK BY ITS COVER

Bright, pastel colorsCurly, script-like fonts“Feminine” images

(i.e., shoes, make-up, purses, female body)

SOUNDS SIMPLE ENOUGH?

Organizing a Chick Lit Collection

Traditional Author-Title Index

Plotline/Subgenre

Location

TRADITIONAL AUTHOR-TITLE INDEX

Alphabetized by author’s last nameMost common method in librariesUsually mixed together with “general

fiction”

Can be further organized by title OR series

PLOTLINE/SUBGENRE

Much like romance novels, chick lit has divided into sub-genres to deal with different female experiences . . .

Hen Lit Teen Chick Lit

Mommy Lit

Guy/Lad Lit

PLOTLINE/SUBGENRE

Or commonly used plotlines.

Single City Girl

Lit

Wedding LitBigger Girl Lit

Working Girl Lit

HERE’S WHERE IT GETS COMPLICATED:CHICK LIT AS A SUBGENRE

In some cases, Chick Lit may be used as a subgenre for another literary genre.

Mystery Fantasy/Sci-FiClassics Historical Fiction

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION

Organizing Chick Lit by its location (either where it was published or its setting) Different regions have different writing styles and

themes

American Chick Lit

International Chick Lit

British Chick Lit

HOW WILL YOU ORGANIZE YOURCHICK LIT COLLECTION?