Snobstoppers!

I love storytelling, in all its forms, but some people are quick to dismiss entire swathes of incredible writing and performing based solely on their genre, setting or medium. I am writing a series of articles just for you. I will make a case for a number of much maligned or often dismissed storytelling settings and methods, explain how they can defy the expectations and assumptions you have and point to shining examples.

There is no excuse for being a snob. If something isn’t to your taste then that’s fine but please stop and look at it before ruling it out completely.

You are in good company: I am a snob too. My bugbear is literature that wins awards: I assume it to be boring, pedestrian and unimaginative. As I post these articles you will spot me being snooty. So I lay down the gauntlet: just as I intend to change your view, change mine. There’s a comments section – use it!

We’ve all been missing out on great stories. Not anymore!

Read the first of the Snobstoppers - Anime - now!

Snobstoppers: Anime

It’s Saturday morning. Someone turns on the TV. Shrill voices pierce the air. Characters with bright pink and blue hair shout about friendship and throw cute monsters at one another. You groan. Who would ever want to watch something like that?

Anime (Japanese animation): Giant robots, large-eyed critters, exaggerated voices and facial expressions. Lurid colours and puerile humour; it’s designed to please little kids. That’s what you’re thinking? You may have seen the adult side of the coin: objectified women, glorified violence, completely crazy fan base. If you’re thinking anime is any of these things: you’re right.