Headlines

btt button

The news has been horrifying and addictive this week, with catastrophe piled on catastrophe, to a degree that–if I had read this in a book or seen it in a movie–I’d be protesting that it was just too unlikely, too farfetched.

But, topics for novels get ripped from the headlines all the time. Or real-life events remind you of fiction (whether “believable” or not) that you’ve read but never expected to see. Or real life comes up with an event so unbelievable that it stretches you sense of reality.

Hmm … I can’t quite come up with an outright question to ask, but thinking about the theory of fiction and how it can affect and be affected by real world events can act as a buffer between the horrific events on the news and having to actually face that horror. So … what happens when the line between fiction and reality becomes all-too slim? Discuss!


Don’t forget to leave a link to your actual response (so people don’t have to go searching for it) in the comments—or if you prefer, leave your answers in the comments themselves!

 

26 responses

  1. Sometimes…I just tune out. Oops!

    BTT: Headlines

  2. Oh this was difficult and at the same time a very interesting question.
    I got a bit carried away, so besides my initial answer on my main blog, I also posted an extended version of it on my Harry Potter blog…

    Beyond the Lone Islands:
    http://dawntreader-island2.blogspot.com/2011/03/booking-through-thursday-headlines.html

    Through My Spectrespecs: (extended version)
    http://throughmyspectrespecs.blogspot.com/2011/03/btt-headlines.html

  3. My post’s up. A bit disjointed this week, but the topic is so broad I think it could actually make an interesting premise for an entire academic course…

    http://comicreviewsbywalt.wordpress.com/2011/03/17/booking-through-thursday-headlines/

  4. This was so hard to write!!!!!! Booking Through Thursday (2) Headlines. http://bit.ly/fs0KU5

  5. My novels have had bits and pieces that mimic the headlines in our lives…Here’s MY BTT2 POST

  6. Dang, this was tough lol. Not sure I actually answered it, but I sure did ramble! haha

    Here’s my link. Comments and follows are always returned =)

    http://violethourbr.blogspot.com/2011/03/booking-through-thursday_16.html

  7. This was an interesting topic, my response can be found here:

    Booking Through Thursday

  8. I have a good Wendell Berry quote on the current disaster up at my site. Also West Wing fans will recall an episode that puts a human face on a very similar nuclear disaster.

  9. Here’s mine, in portuguese.
    I took the liberty to modify your button a little for this one, used a different title: Be strong Japan.

  10. Oh my, I’m sure there could be whole books written about this! But, it made me think: http://mostraum.wordpress.com/2011/03/17/booking-through-thursday-headlines/

  11. Such sad events but thank you for opening the discussion about them. my response:
    http://sheeryhall.blogspot.com/2011/03/booking-through-thursday-headlines.html

  12. It’s with a heavy heart that I write my answer. Pray for Japan.
    My answer is posted.