Authored

Find something authored.... Well, as a literature student and creative writer, I place very high standards on literary works to determine if they are worthy pieces of publication. Though the ideas of high art are often mocked in contemporary society, I still subscribe to them. Such work, I believe, should follow particular rules of grammar and composition to assist the myriad of ideas, perspectives, and emotions the author attempts to blend into some useful purpose, whether escape, satire, or what have you, that reaches an intended audience. With great ease, I call such a sculptor "an author" and the work "authored" despite the understood tampering that occurs throughout publishing phases and the undeniable influences of society onto the writer during a moment of creation. But, even this concrete sample of authoring turns murky when various backstories are ascribed to it. For example, the story, setting, and characters already exist in a slightly varied form...this easily labeled "authored work" now has two authors because our author is a sequel writer. The original premise of the story may not be his/hers, but the path that those formed characters take are new, therefore changing the characters and plot along the way. How much of our writer is the author? To what extent is this well-defined literary work now worthy of publication? I think our writer is the author of those characters in that place, time, and existence, partly because I find it difficult to offer an entire world (fictional as it may be) to one author while simultaneously denying any other writer to coexist in that space. And, if the work offers a masterfully outlined route (devised by purposeful diction, syntax, imagery, etc.) on which a reader may engage with the setting, characters, or storyline, then it is worthy enough.