Reading the Poets and Writers article on today of all days has me thinking about retellings in literature, authorized and unauthorized sequels. The question of the viability and success of spin-offs in literature is one of particular concern to me, considering my novel-in-progress, WAIT., is a reimagining of the Odyssey that follows "Penny" through the Deep South after her husband "Odell" is drafted to the Vietnam War. At times, I feel insanely brave for writing my novel. Occasionally, I stare at my manuscript for an elongated moment, cowering at my desk, quaking ever so slightly, waiting for the gods of literature to strike me down.

Then I remind myself—as J. D. Salinger might—that parodies, retellings, parallel novels, and sequels, both authorized and unauthorized, have been around since the inception of the novel in English. Think Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded (Richardson, 1740) and Shamela (Fielding, 1741). Think Shakespeare, who scammed plenty of plots and retold Venus and Adonis when he had to leave London during plague years. Some of these retellings are literary masterpieces: think Jane Eyre and The Wide Sargasso Sea, or Beowulf and Grendel. Others don't add much more than a footnote to pre-existing literature: think Gone With the Wind  (which I didn't particularly care for in the first place) and its heavily litigated half-parody The Wind Done Gone. Yet even The Wind Done Gone was not a "rip-off"—it was an attempt at a parody in which the politically motivated author attempted to highlight the original book's prejudice, although Alice Randall's intent was so obvious the finished product fell short.

In other words, books like 60 Years Later: Coming Through The Rye—whether they be thought-provoking retellings destined for international library collections or poorly written parodies destined for obscurity—are published all the time, and are not necessarily "rip-offs."  According to the New York Times, the copyright page labels the 60 Years Later "An Unauthorized Fictional Examination of the Relationship Between J. D. Salinger and his Most Famous Character." And the legal brief states the book "explores the famously reclusive Salinger’s efforts to control both his own persona and the persona of the character he created. In order to regain control over his own life, which is drawing to a close, ‘Mr. Salinger’ tries repeatedly to kill off Mr. C by various means: a runaway truck; falling construction debris; a lunatic woman with a knife; suicide by drowning and suicide by pills." Which sounds more amusing than anything. My only problem with 60 Years Later is the fact that the author wants to use the pen name "J. D. California," which borders on conscious exploitation (as well as, obviously, irony). But of course, Salinger's lawyer refused to comment on the case, invoking her client's infamous appreciation for privacy. And Mr. Salinger himself will not be attending the hearing.

TAGS: books, Frederik Colting, Homer, J.D. California, J.D. Salinger, James Joyce, lawsuits, Mary McMyne, Odyssey, Publishing, retellings in literature

MARY MCMYNE was raised on the outskirts of Baton Rouge, Louisiana by ex-hippie parents who introduced her to Thoreau and Lewis Carroll and Frank Zappa at an impressionable age. At Louisiana State University, she earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in English and creative writing in 2000 and 2002. She went on to earn her MFA in fiction from New York University in 2007, the same year her novel-in-progress, WAIT, won the Faulkner-Wisdom Award. She has won the Robert Olen Butler Short Story Award (2001), the Tony Bill Screenwriting Award (2002), and had another project short-listed for the Faulkner-Wisdom Novel Award (2007). Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Country Roads, Web del Sol, Exquisite Corpse, and the Double Dealer. During the last five years, she has taught writing at New York University, New Jersey City University, and ASA CAP Columbia University. She currently teaches writing and literature in Lafayette, Louisiana, where she lives in a hundred-year-old cypress cottage with her husband, their border collie, and two black cats.

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