Hello all:
We have some exciting news to share with you! In early 2023, members from OLAC, SAC, and GNCRT wrote a joint white paper advocating for the inclusion of compound terms in the LCGFT vocabulary. "Compound terms" was the former Library of Congress phrase describing terms that use words also existing in other LCGFT terms; these are often subgenres, like "Urban fantasy" and "Historical romance." We're happy to report that a little over a year after submission, the Library of Congress has revised LCGFT manual instruction J 120, When to Establish a New Term.
The instruction that once read "Do not generally establish genre/form terms that combine two or more already-established terms. Instead, assign the already-established terms" has now been revised to state:
"If a resource seems to be a combination of two or more already-established terms and authority research does not provide sufficient evidence that a term is consistently used across literary, user, and communal sources, assign the already-established terms." (2a, p. 2, emphasis added)
This opens the door for catalogers to propose compound term headings, such as "Paranormal romance fiction" (currently on the LCGFT tentative list for December 2024). In light of this change, the Comics and Fiction Funnel has created a project group to propose compound genre headings and catch up the LCGFT vocabulary.
The Comics and Fiction Funnel's project proposes to map out hierarchies of missing terms and propose multiple headings, to bring the LCGFT more in line with contemporary subgenre understandings and usage. We have a dozen Funnel members eager to start working, but we also wanted to reach out to OLAC, SAC, and GNCRT to gauge broader project interest, and make sure catch-up vocabulary work is as coordinated and efficient as possible (mapping hierarchies at the outset, for instance, will hopefully minimize future change proposals altering broader terms for headings). We also plan on emailing the other white paper authors who have since dropped off various committees. Our goal is to begin the project in earnest in early December.
If you are interested in joining us, or have members interested in participating, please contact Deborah and Allison at Deborah.Tomaras@marist.edu and abailund@sdsu.edu! If you have any questions or suggestions, we'd be happy to explain the project in more detail, or accept community feedback and input.
Best,
Deborah & Allison (Co-Coordinators of the Comics and Fiction Funnel)
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Allison Bailund
Library Services Specialist
San Diego State University
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