N AMING AND O RGANIZING C HICK L IT Kellie Meehlhause LI 804 Ann O’Neill

N O, NOT T HESE !!!

W HAT IS C HICK L IT ? 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.

J UDGING THE B OOK BY I TS C OVER Bright, pastel colors Curly, script-like fonts “Feminine” images (i.e., shoes, make-up, purses, female body)

S OUNDS S IMPLE E NOUGH ? Organizing a Chick Lit Collection Traditional Author-Title Index Plotline/Subgenre Location

T RADITIONAL A UTHOR -T ITLE I NDEX Alphabetized by author’s last name Most common method in libraries Usually mixed together with “general fiction” Can be further organized by title OR series

P LOTLINE /S UBGENRE Much like romance novels, chick lit has divided into sub-genres to deal with different female experiences... Hen LitTeen Chick LitMommy LitGuy/Lad Lit

P LOTLINE /S UBGENRE Or commonly used plotlines. Single City Girl Lit Wedding LitBigger Girl Lit Working Girl Lit

H ERE ’ S WHERE IT GETS COMPLICATED : C HICK L IT AS A S UBGENRE In some cases, Chick Lit may be used as a subgenre for another literary genre. MysteryFantasy/Sci-FiClassicsHistorical Fiction

L OCATION, LOCATION, L OCATION 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

H OW WILL YOU O RGANIZE Y OUR C HICK L IT C OLLECTION ?