OK, so here is my problem with the word "pastiche." If you look it up on Wikipedia, the first paragraph under "literature" (the top section) is this (emphasis mine):
"In literature usage, the term denotes a literary technique employing a generally light-hearted tongue-in-cheek imitation of another's style; although jocular, it is usually respectful. The word implies a lack of originality or coherence, an imitative jumble, but with the advent of postmodernism pastiche has become positively constructed as deliberate, witty homage or playful imitation."
That is what I have always taken the word "pastiche" to mean. I realize that it can refer to any imitation, but when I hear the word, I think of a deliberate, joking, possibly somewhat bad imitation of an author's style. I don't interpret the word to mean simply "writing in a style that resembles another writer."
When I type "pastiche" into Google, the third question that pops up in the "People also ask" section is "Is pastiche an insult?" (The answer Google gives: The term itself is not pejorative; however, Alain de Botton describes pastiche as "an unconvincing reproduction of the styles of the past".) So it appears that a good number of people feel that the word is pejorative, even if they're technically wrong.
Seeing "DNW pastiche" in a letter would confuse me for several reasons, but I think this is the main one. Which meaning of "pastiche" do you have in mind? Are you saying you don't want a flippant, tongue-in-cheek, unconvincing imitation of the literary canons you're requesting? Or are you saying that any story written in a style resembling the original would count as a "pastiche" and thus violate your DNW?
Re: DNW Workshop
"In literature usage, the term denotes a literary technique employing a generally light-hearted tongue-in-cheek imitation of another's style; although jocular, it is usually respectful. The word implies a lack of originality or coherence, an imitative jumble, but with the advent of postmodernism pastiche has become positively constructed as deliberate, witty homage or playful imitation."
That is what I have always taken the word "pastiche" to mean. I realize that it can refer to any imitation, but when I hear the word, I think of a deliberate, joking, possibly somewhat bad imitation of an author's style. I don't interpret the word to mean simply "writing in a style that resembles another writer."
When I type "pastiche" into Google, the third question that pops up in the "People also ask" section is "Is pastiche an insult?" (The answer Google gives: The term itself is not pejorative; however, Alain de Botton describes pastiche as "an unconvincing reproduction of the styles of the past".) So it appears that a good number of people feel that the word is pejorative, even if they're technically wrong.
Seeing "DNW pastiche" in a letter would confuse me for several reasons, but I think this is the main one. Which meaning of "pastiche" do you have in mind? Are you saying you don't want a flippant, tongue-in-cheek, unconvincing imitation of the literary canons you're requesting? Or are you saying that any story written in a style resembling the original would count as a "pastiche" and thus violate your DNW?