Blather: Storytelling, cultural ideals and media snobbery

Thanks to ironymaiden's post here, I'm now aware that there are some kerfluffles in book circles about traditionalism in fantasy. My basic comment on the subjects at hand is over there, but it got me to thinking about some other, semi-related stuff.

As one might imagine, the meta concepts here are near and dear to me at the moment, given that I'm writing a fantasy novel with a female protagonist. The overall setting is more or less traditional--dwarves, elves, orcs, yadda yadda--but the story itself, while a typical hero's journey, has quite a few more modern elements to it.

( Storytelling )

One other thing I realized with that discussion, though: I really have no idea what else is out there in book land. I read just a few authors consistently, and really don't know much about other stuff, but for what M (whose Kindle is permanently attached to his hand) tells me. Obviously, this is a Bad Thing in terms of being a writer who hopes people want to read her stuff, but outside of that issue, I kind of take offense at the idea that I'm hopelessly gauche because books are inherently better, somehow, than other forms of storytelling.

( Media snobbery )

There are just as many ways to tell a story visually as with text. The shots the director chooses are as much a part of the storytelling as the words the characters speak, and knowing how to actually tell a story in pictures is, IMHO, just as much of an art. Imagine, for instance, if Lost were a series of books instead of a TV show. A skilled writer could certainly tell that (very complex) story, but we'd also miss things like the subtle grace of Charlie's sacrifice, and the ecstatic joy when Desmond calls Penny. You could describe those things in words, but without the expressions, the tone of voice and (critically!) Michael Giacchino's amazing score, a hell of a lot would be... well... lost.

Just as it's unfair to consider SFF somehow cheaper or less artistic than reality-based drama, it's also unfair to consider visually told stories cheaper than text-told ones. Each has its own merits, and should be judged on an apples-to-apples basis. Even on a personal level, I tell stories differently with my vids than with my fics. I'm rather more skilled at the latter because I have more experience with it, but I don't think that means the vids are inherently worse aside from skill issues. As a writer who's bordering on pro, it's in my best interest that people keep reading, of course, but I don't feel any personal affront when people enjoy other types of storytelling. And really, writers/readers who DO feel that way need to get over themselves.