Friday, January 22, 2010

Quick explanation of a Tortilla Story

In my last post, I mentioned Valleysong might be filled with tortilla stories and that felt like I was putting it down. And if that's how it felt to me, I can only imagine how it would make the writers feel like some of which I know for a fact are talented people.

A tortilla story gets its name from the cliche set up of a South Texas Chicano short story remembering abuelita making tortillas from scratch. It's a reminiscent story, recalling the good ol' days before things went south. A tortilla story doesn't always have to be about grandma making tortillas, though. As long as it follows the age of innocence format, it's pretty much a tortilla story, especially if it makes an attempt to cement our history in literature. They're not waste of time stories, except those that aren't imaginative enough - most of these can be found in creative writing classes.

So again, I wasn't making an attempt of insulting the brilliant writers of Valleysong or those who focus on our history. I was just saying how I, as a writer, don't fit into that world. 

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