The Wiggles

We celebrated my niece's ninth birthday yesterday with the family. As we ate cake, somehow someone remarked something about the Wiggles and their unbelievable success. If you've missed seeing them on TV, this traveling group of 4 Australian guys has catered to crowds of pre-schoolers for the past 17 years. #2 son isn't old enough yet to be interested in them and #1 son is the dog, so I haven't been overly exposed to the Wiggles, but apparently they are immensely popular.

A writer can learn a great deal from considering the Wiggles. No, I'm not talking about starting a band called the Squirmers. The Wiggles rewrote 'the book' on how to entertain kids. As I think about that in regard to my writing, it reminds me not to limit myself to what others say a successful adult book has to look like. It's true that a good vampire or wizard story sells well for YA fantasy these days, but what's the next new thing? Some author may already be writing it. I might be writing it. Regardless, I'm not going to limit myself to what others are doing (although, I will keep apprised of current trends).

For me, ancient Greece already teems with scores of untold stories, tales just waiting to be retold in a new voice. You'll probably laugh at hearing me say this, but my overall personal writing goal is to make myself the 'grandfather of the Greek genre'. Establishing a new genre (similar to the way westerns are considered, only ... different) will take a prolific writing career and a little divine intervention, but a writer has to have a lofty goal if he wants to match the success of the Wiggles.

I feel very scholarly having blogged on Wiggles. Seriously, what other blog alternates between the merits of Greek mythology and Wiggles? Ah-hem, don't answer. I'm going now. Feel free to comment on the genius of a Wiggle.