Street Fiction vs. Urban Fiction–What’s in a Name?
By APOOO • Aug 6th, 2008 • Category: APOOO Features, Hot Fun in the Summertime •
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A girlfriend and I were having a conversation yesterday about the differences between street fiction and urban fiction. Mind you, I’m still a little fuzzy on the difference, primarily because I don’t see any. LOL. And then we started talking about street/urban fiction authors, she didn’t think Kenji Jasper or Solomon Jones fit the bill. Hmmm…we agreed to disagree…lol.
Back to street vs. urban fiction…I needed further clarification so I decided to do a little online research. I landed at Wikipedia, now mind you, it’s not the gospel, but hmmm they seem to share my sentiments. There isn’t any difference and I believe that most consumers/readers see the same way. My girlfriend…she’s a bookseller…so she will probably still beg to differ with us…lol.
Here’s what Wikipedia said about urban fiction:
Urban fiction is a literary genre set, as the name implies, in a city landscape; however, the genre is as much defined by the race and culture of its characters as the urban setting. The tone for urban fiction is usually dark, focusing on the underside. Profanity (all of George Carlin’s seven dirty words and urban variations thereof), sex and violence are usually explicit, with the writer not shying away from or watering-down the material. In this respect, urban fiction shares some common threads with dystopian or survivalist fiction. Often statements derogatory to white people (or at least what is perceived as the dominant white culture and power structure) are made, usually by the characters. However, in the second wave of urban fiction, some variations of this model have been seen.
Hmmm okay so what’s the second wave? Well, according to Wikipedia, the new wave occured in the late 90s.
Toward the end of the 1990s, urban fiction experienced a revival, as demand for novels authentically conveying the urban experience increased, and new business models enabled fledgling writers to more easily bring a manuscript to market. One of the first writers in this new cycle of urban fiction was the controversial Sister Souljah, who wrote Coldest Winter Ever. (1999) Teri Woods’ True to the Game and Omar Tyree’s Flyy Girl, were also published in 1999. Along with Souljah’s Coldest Winter, the three novels are considered classics in this renaissance genre.
And there’s more…
In less than a decade, urban fiction has experienced a renaissance that boasts hundreds of titles. The newest wave of street fiction is urban Latino fiction novels such as Devil’s Mambo by Jerry Rodriguez and Jeff Rivera’s Forever My Lady.
There is also an unexpected literary wave to hip hop fiction and street lit.
Now I understand that Wikipedia is not the be-all, end-all but I manage to learn what my girlfriend was trying to tell me (I think…lol.) So, urban fiction came first, and street lit is a sub-segment of urban fiction? But hmmm when I went back and read the Wikipedia article, it still appears they can be used interchangably to me…especially since I didn’t find a separate article for street fiction and the distinction (if there is one) isn’t different enough to make the average consumer take notice or heed.
Regarding the authors…hmmm girlfriend according to Wikipedia Solomon Jones is considered an urban fiction writer.
Other writers of urban fictioninclude Jeff Rivera, Vikki Stringer, Shannon Holmes, Miasha, TN Baker, Solomon Jones, Nikki Turner,
And I stand accused, it appears (according to Wikipedia) that Omar Tyree was one of the first new Renaissance urban fiction writers…and to my APOOO family and friends who said that Omar and Sister Souljah didn’t resonate with urban fiction…I say shame on you for not being more verse about this genre…lol and just kidding.
Isn’t it wonderful when we can learn something new about a genre, even if it’s not our genre of choice?
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Do you make a distinction between urban and street fiction? If so, please explain.
Have you read books by Solomon Jones and Kenji Jasper? If so, would you classify their books as urban fiction?
What was the last urban/street fiction book you read? Tell us about it.
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I don’t read a lot of street/urban fiction; I can’t even tell you the last one I read.
It’s funny – the so-called distinctions amongst urban-street-hip/hop fiction.
I can see how hip hop has formed from urban because hip hop lit refers, for the most part, to that literature that is generated about and/or by those with connections to the hip hop industry, like 50, Karrine Steffans, and Wendy Williams. And we can’t forget our boy Tupac (though it was poetry).
The distinction between urban and street is a bit more fuzzy to me. They even have the term “Ghetto Lit” out there, too, to further confuse you.
If there is a distinction, personally, I think the reemergence of the genre with Souljah, Tyree, and Woods is more aptly called STREET than urban. In fact, the predecessors, the Iceberg Slims and the Donald Goines seemed to write street, too, so to me, calling it STREET FIC makes sense.
I always felt like “urban” was just another name for “African American” – writings about the Black experience but not necessarily that same drug-infested, dark existence that’s attached with being black, but once you get names like Woods and Souljah attached to the “urban” term, that no longer applies.
In the end, for me, I’m not even sure there is a clear distinction in the industry…or for the reader.
Shon’s last blog post..ChickLitGurrl Interviews Strebor Books Author Shelley Halima
When I think of street lit, I think of Sistah Souljah vs. Omar Tyree. I agree with Shon, urban is more of a name for black writing, although that label gets tricky. Most times, I use the terms interchangeably. There are certain authors I read; Kenji Jasper. Solomon Jones and of course I will be reading Sistah Souljah’s latest. I was one of the last hold outs in reading TCWE. I just refused; I thought it was a bunch of mess. My daughter talked about me so bad. She said she couldn’t believe someone as well read and up to date on literary matters had not read it, so I caved in about five years ago.
My laptop is so senstive, I didn’t finish. I cannot believe I waited to long to read TCWE and was mad at myself for being so bourgie, LOL. I guess the last street novel I read was “The Last Street Novel” by Omar Tyree. Ha ha. I actually enjoyed it because I had stopped reading his books years ago but a sister in APOOO recommended it. I will be reading two books for review by Kenji Jasper written under his psuedonym, D.
Do you make a distinction between urban and street fiction? If so, please explain.
I make a distinction and it’s based on what Shon already explained. Street (ghetto) lit is grimey and displays the AA experience from the hood (drugs, sex, murder, mayhem) level while urban fiction is about ‘other’ experiences in urban settings (and it doesn’t have to be the hood). People get it twisted when they thing Urban means ghetto, when it doesn’t. In fact, I’d go even farther to say that MOST AA writers are urban writers. I know some would fight me on that, but as AA’s who live in urban areas and experience urban things, I find it hard to believe that these elements don’t find their way into their stories (if their stories portray AA characters that is).
Have you read books by Solomon Jones and Kenji Jasper? If so, would you classify their books as urban fiction?
I read a Solomon Jones book (the name escapes me) and he is DEFINITELY urban.
What was the last urban/street fiction book you read? Tell us about it.
The last street lit book I read was Teri Wood’s True to the Game III. It was good but I think it will either be loved or hated. The characters aren’t true to the personalities they created in the first installment, but overall people who pick this up without having read the first two books will find a fast paced, drama filled story.
We have a girl (Gena) who is being hunted for the money her death fiance (Quadir) had stashed only…he’s not dead and he wants his money back. But he isn’t the only one who wants the millions. There are quite a few people after the funds and are willing to kill her, and anyone else, to get it. The flipside is they love each other. Or is it loved? I don’t know, you gotta get your own copy…lol
Darnetta’s last blog post..Saturday morning freestyle
Shon–I’m with you; sorry the industry has splintered things down so much to niches that the niches are now just tripping over themselves–lol. Street-Urban-Hip Hop-Ghetto it’s all too similar to matter to me. I don’t care what you call it…just make sure if you’re an author that you have a good handle on the English language (ebonics is fine in dialogue…but when using narrative…ebonics be damned)…and can tell a dayum good story no matter what genre it is. I don’t think the genre should be dumbed down just because everybody and their momma think they can tell a good ’street’ story because too often APOOO reviewers are seeing some stuff that is nothing more than a hot ghetto mess.
Dera–kudos to finally reading TCWE…I remember that momentous occasion.
Darnetta–I would say many authors today are urban writers…but prior to the last 5-8 years I wouldn’t say that was the case…and just like I remind non-colored folks that not ALL of us come from urban settings…I need to remind black folks the same thang…stop lumping all of us together…because honestly my life and upbringing has been more like the average American than the black folks we see on the evening news…and that’s keeping it real…shoot I wish I would have done some of the stuff kids living in urban settings do today–my grandmother would have kicked my behind and the rest of the family also! Some of us did make it ova…and we need to acknowledge and not forget that class structures also exist in the AfAm community and it’s alive and well…while I know folks from all walks of life…I don’t necessarily classify myself as being apart of all those walks of life…cause honestly my family worked too hard for us not to be. Hence, I think it’s non-colored publishers who have been falsely mislead that ALL of us are urban and therefore that’s the only type of books we want to read. NOT. Give me Terri, Lolita, Connie, Walter, Toni, Alice, Bernice, Virginia and Donna, Donna, Gwyneth, Gwynne, Gloria, JD, Reshonda, Erika, Elizabeth, Alex, et al…I TOO READ–but I ain’t trying to read nor do I want a daily dose of drugs, sex, murder, mayhem–but I don’t think ill of those who do just like I don’t want them to think I’m bougie because I don’t. I don’t care what you write–there’s a market for every genre–but if you want my benjamins, you dayum sure better know how to write your way out of a paperbag before you ask me to read it…lol).
True to the Game–I can’t believe that book is on storyline #3–shows what I know. I took it on vacation with me 7 years ago and I remember thinking WTF…lol. But, I can’t knock Teri’s business hustle; she has a model all unto herself.
I SO agree with you, Yas, about the MANY experiences of AAs. That’s the MAIN issue I have with the plethora of street fiction today is people get in their minds that THAT’S all we are, and that’s so far from the truth. Though I did grow up in an urban neighborhood, my mother worked like a beast to make sure we didn’t “live” the urban lifestyle. And I didn’t grow up ONLY around blacks, either. That’s another thing that always kills me about many AA books; am I missing something or do we live in a technicolor world? LOL@self – okay, moving on – mainly because my best friend and I fight about this ALL THE TIME, and she swears to me that most blacks hang out with only blacks and have black doctors and go to black grocery stores, and buy black….and on and on.
Shon’s last blog post..Spotlight on ME Today @ APOOO Bookclub!
Let’s take it back to the basics…what is the definition of urban?
Darnetta’s last blog post..Saturday morning freestyle
Urban “pertains to, or designating a city or town.” Deals with living in a city and is “a characteristic of or accustomed to cities; citified.”
Some cities do have the “street” life….some cities don’t.
Makes me think about my family. I grew up in Baltimore County, and to me, I thought it was pretty “citified”; however, when I went to Chicago and came back, family members called me “Citified” because they thought I was more cosmopolitan, fast-paced, action-oriented as opposed to the slower pace of my hometown of Catonsville (in Baltimore County).
So, for me citified reflects an urban society – it doesn’t necessarily reflect street life.
Shon’s last blog post..Spotlight on ME Today @ APOOO Bookclub!
Urban is anyone who lives in the city in a black community…and therein lies the problem…whole bunch of us live in cities but our communities are not ALL black. And let’s take NYC…is everyone who lives in Manhattan considered Black…NO…but it’s a city right…and the largest city in the country but it’s also filled with lots of white folks and such referenced as Manhattan vs. Harlem (which folks would call urban). Just because it’s a major city doesn’t make it an urban community…or a black community…I believe when it comes to books Urban is usually defined as black community…would we all agree on that.
PS–and Harlem is part of Manhattan but the media and others would make you think otherwise…I’m with Shon…some cities have the street life and some don’t…
See, and I was gonna mention Manhattan, too. Actually, I was going to say that Sex and the City is URBAN….they live in the jungle of New York CITY.
But when you think about how marketers have molested (yes, I wrote it – lol) the term URBAN to reflect Black in everything – fashion, entertainment, etc., after awhile, people come to believe that’s ALL that urban is.
Shon’s last blog post..Spotlight on ME Today @ APOOO Bookclub!
I read urban/street fiction and I really don’t know the difference between the two. However,in my opinion street fiction is referenced to the streets. Or as I like to call it money, sex, and drugs. It’s more things that would happen in the streets and revolves around the street life. I talk about urban fiction as things that happen in the black community but does not get as involved as in the streets as street fiction
I have not read any books by Solomon or Kenji.
The last urban/street fiction book I read was Gangsta by K’wan. I would classify this book as street fiction because it was mostly about the street life of the main characters.
BINGO and that’s what I’m talking about…urban is only associated with folks on the ‘black side’ of town…
Hey Ms. Mary…so if it happens on the streets it’s street-fiction…if it’s centered in a black community…it’s urban…okay so Flyy Girl would be urban and CWE would be street?
Urban or street fiction is all the same to me, I don’t draw a distinction. I don’t think I’ve read anything by Kenji Jasper yet but I have read Solomon Jones and I really enjoyed it. It was our book of the month, which is the only reason why I read it.
C.R.E.A.M. by K. Jasper, I think is the last one I’ve read that I would classify as street/urban fiction and that one didn’t even scratch the surface for me, in other words, it was a good read for me whereas most urban/street fiction is not. I have a few in my library that I will read eventually like Teri Woods, True to the Game. But I’m trying to open myself up to reading a little bit more, I can take it in small doses : )
Having lived in the city my entire life, I would be considered “urban”. However, I by no means have ever lived or associated with folk who lived lives remotely similar to that which is often depicted in street/urban lit books. Therein lies an issue. Urban life, even Black urban life isn’t always represented fairly. I am of the same generation that many of the street/urban lit wrtiers are, their characters and their targeted audience. So, its not like I have fond memories of a bygone era where people could still leave their doors unlocked and the neighborhood acted like a big family. No, I’m a child of the 80s and a young adult of the 90s, and no, I didn’t grow up middle calss. My parents were the working folk who struggled everyday. They didn’t have college degrees but they made sure that all three of their children obtained one. I wasn’t sheltered by any means.I knew what was happening in the streets, yet I was given the values and morals to rise above all of that. Its probably why street/urban lit irks me. Its almost like reading about a foreign land. A place you would never want to visit.The underbelly of Black life. I suppose thats why its popular because of its grittiness but as a teacher and a life long Chicago resident I see first hand what a “hustler’s life” can get you. It doesn’t appeal to me to read about it when the local news broadcast it to me everyday.Of course I have read one or two, and have no objections to folk reading it. Heck books are a way to escape reality. Who am I to judge how people do that. However, I did teach high school for five years and street/urban lit was/is all the rage. The books are passed along from one kid to the next and it has nothing to do with a love of reading. They like it for the explicit sex, violence and affirmation regarding that type of life-style. And for so many of them its so easy for fantasy to become reality. I wished that reading those books were a gateway to other books, but generally they only read the hardcore stuff and don’t branch out. Its just that with so many negative images regarding the Black community(by our own hands as well as others) I don’t want to support any more. We never seem to have a balance of any kind. I don’t know if street or urban are two distinct terms to use for this genre, I use both to describe it all.
Oh and isn’t it interesting how the Latinos are getting in on the whole street/urban thingy. We certainly are trendsetters even if the trend leaves much to be desired.
Exactly Shon! Urban ‘realistically’ doesn’t have very much to do with black, white, yellow, blue, but moreso city living. We’ve been taught to associate ‘urban’ with black thus ‘the black experience’ in fiction. I believe street lit is urban fiction’s baby (that’s pretty much why I make a distinction). Street lit, as Ms Mary wrote, has ALL to do with drugs, murder, etc. It’s grimey, it’s ghetto, it is what it is…on the street level. Urban fiction isn’t confined to the streets.
Street lit is to urban fiction what erotica is to romance, IMO
Ya feel me?
Darnetta’s last blog post..Saturday morning freestyle
Hey Ms. Mary…so if it happens on the streets it’s street-fiction…if it’s centered in a black community…it’s urban…okay so Flyy Girl would be urban and CWE would be street?
YES Yas!! (Though I’m not Ms. Mary…lol)
Darnetta’s last blog post..Saturday morning freestyle
TOTALLY, TOTALLY feel you, Darnetta. Excellent analogy – and as a person who’s been studying analogies for the GREs, I can attest to this, LOL
Shon’s last blog post..Spotlight on ME Today @ APOOO Bookclub!
I’m not quite sure if I would consider Omar Tyree street fiction.
Hey Raven and thanks so much for stopping by and sharing your input…what was esp. hard heading was what urban youth are reading and why…we do unfortunately have so many dismal situations in our AfAm communities but no one wants to be accountable for what’s wrong or even realizing that they’re apart of the problem because of what they’re putting out there…WOW…I applaud your parents for a job well-done, not one, not two but three college educated children from a lower-working class family…to those who say it ain’t so…your family just proved that it can be done!
xoxo
I’ve never read Omar Tyree but from what I’ve heard he’s an urban writer. Now if he’s gutta, which I haven’t heard…lol, then he’d be street.
Do y’all notice how lines seemed to be blurred with the ‘unwanteds’? This is like the rap vs hip-hop debate. And yes, there’s a difference there too…lol
Darnetta’s last blog post..Saturday morning freestyle
I was tripped out when I learned that my godchildren could go to their school library and get all the “urban” literature they wanted…also erotic stuff, too, depending on HOW erotic the works were.
I was like, “Okay, is this REALLY teaching young people the right things?”
Shon’s last blog post..Spotlight on ME Today @ APOOO Bookclub!
I also agree with your analogy Darnetta. I think of street lit as more raw, and more grimey. Urban fiction to me is a little more relaxed than street lit. Just my opinion.
Ok, here is my four cents worth on urban and street. Both urban and street lit uses the same harsh language. Street uses more Ebonics than anything else, sometimes hard for me to understand because I truly don’t use it.
Urban to me is the life that takes place in the inner city. Does it have to revolve around drugs, jails and drive-bys no, why because if you think about it not all jails are in the inner cities; some are located out in no man’s land, and not all drive-bys happen in the inner cities. But people do lose their jobs and fires do occur things like that could fit in an urban book.
Street is all about drugs, brothels, guns and things of that nature. The last street novel I read must have been last year or even longer because I don’t remember. But the last urban novel I read was Lucky Me by Eric Branch. He wrote about what goes on in a neighborhood in Texas. Although it had drugs, and prostitutes, that wasn’t all there was. You had the main character who was struggling to keep up a certain appearance in school. He was going after the popular girl, and those sorts of things. But the family life was addressed as was friendships, and the other things listed above.
I tend to stay away from Street-lit; I do read it from time to time, but I won’t run out just to pick up that particular genre of book. Some urban books I would run out to get, not as quickly as my favorite genres but I would.
@ SHON
GURLL!!! I was trippin when a girl no older than 15 approached me in the library’s black world section, pulled a book out and said to me, “You NEED to read this.” And do you know what it was? Addicted by Zane. I had already read it before and was like why do I wanna kick her little fast tail? LOL But then, over time, I’ve become more accepting. Sure, there are loads of things out here that kids, hell even some adults, shouldn’t be reading, but would you rather discourage them from reading if that is all that will catch their attention? I wouldn’t. But I’d definitely recommend more appropriate reading for later and hope they pick it up…one day.
Darnetta’s last blog post..Saturday morning freestyle
I’ve been reading all types of books since 8th grade. I read addicted in 9th grade. My mom knew what I was reading but also trusted that I wouldn’t take any of that stuff that I read seriously. I think at the same time she was just happy that I was reading, At 22 my older sister still asks me why do I read the books that I read.
Darnetta–I see you…hehe…and thanks for schooling me…hmmm street lit is to urban what erotica is to romance…all right now…I hear ya!
I’m still torn on what’s appropriate for kids to read…part of me thinks well at least they’re reading but the other part says but they’re still kids and somebody’s dependents for a reason…because they’re not probably equipped to make decisions on their own. Now mind you I was reading Donald Goines/IceBerg Slim, the Happy Hooker and everything in between when I was 10…yep…didn’t understand half the ish I was reading but I read it anyway…along with my Nancy Drew mysteries…hehe. So, I was reading EVERYTHING and then some…if you can get today’s kids to do the same then I don’t have a problem with them reading Zane or Terri Woods…although my kids have been reading Harry Potter since they were 9 and a lot of Christians take issue with that…so I guess it’s all relative…huh?
Ms. Mary I still trip when I see Omar Tyree listed under urban fiction…oh wait…urban…okay Flyy Girl was urban so I guess I need to stop tripping huh…lol.
Darnetta good analogy
The first book I read in 8th grade was Cheaters by Eric Jerome Dickey
See – if I thought kids were reading a variety of story genres and UNDERSTOOD them, too, that would be different, LOL
Growing up, everything I read was pretty tame – formulaic Harlequins, Sweet Valley High – my big passion as a teen was VC Andrews…
When I look at society as a whole, and how it seems to be slowly dismantling and coming apart at the seams, I can help but want to run around and rip every crazy book out of kids’ hands, LOL
Be interesting to know WHY kids feel that those books are something they HAVE to read….see what ELSE they read.
Shon’s last blog post..Spotlight on ME Today @ APOOO Bookclub!
I would say the genre took off after Sister Soulijah’s book stayed on the Essence list so long I would some of the writers in this genre are trying to emulate Iceberg Slim and Donald Goings. Some are using their life experiences as a basis for their books with the hope of helping others to avoid their mistakes or take on a new hustle… a legal one.
In my opinion , the street genre really took wings with the following titles
Bmore Careful ….Shannon Holmes
True to the Game ….Teri Woods who knew 6 years that True to the Game would become a NYT bestseller
Blinded by Kashamba Williams
Gangsta by Kwan
A Hustlers’s Wife by Nikki Turner
All of these books spent months on the Essence list especially A Hustler’s Wife. So people said to themself … Hey I can write my story and thus the market is filled with street books. Some of the pioneers of this genre have gotten major $$ from mainstream publishing houses to write and or have their street labels for the respective houses.
Now it is time for the next big thing …
I hear that and what’s the next big thang and what about Wahida Clark didn’t she take off before Kashamba.
Yeah, Wahida Clark Thug series should be up there along with Vickie Stringer’s Let That Be The Reason
Stringer was one of the authors who spun her life in LTBTR and has since made crazy money and created Triple Crown Pub (OHIO baby!!)
@Yas Glad you get it sis! Now you got it, what are you gonna do with it? LOL
Darnetta’s last blog post..Saturday morning freestyle
Darnetta–I’m just going to chew and then digest…hehe.
Hey folks tomorrow I’m participating in Thursday Thirteen and this week’s theme is going to be thirteen things related to Hot Fun in the Summertime and no it’s not going to be books this week…but I think you will enjoy it anyway so make sure you stop on by to check out what I’m doing this week and if you’re interested in doing Thursday Thirteen CLICK BELOW for details.
http://www.apooobooks.com/2008/07/30/thursday-thirteen-between-the-sheets/
Ok, so, after writing my book, and attending too many writers conferences, I knew I had to pick a genre for my baby. My book is set in North Philly with black characters, so I thought bingo, It’s urban fiction. I went over to my sister’s house to borrow a few of her titles… B-More Careful, True to the Game, and Heat Seekers… I couldn’t look to my own shelves because they were poluted with SciFi-fantasy
My baby didn’t fit in with my sister’s books. Strawberry Mansion was a different kind of book! I classified it as womens fiction with urban grit!
Flash forward to a book signing in Philadelphia. A woman comes up to me in the midst of me talking to potential readers, and tells me that Strawberry Mansion was trash. She said it was boring. “It aint even have no killing in it!”
I was shocked, and speechless, because it was the first time that I heard something negative about my book. It took me a minute to respond. I smiled at the sistah, sat back in my chair, and proceeded to ask her what, besides the fact that no one dies, did she dislike about it.
She shrugged her shoulders, pulled her copy from her bag, thumbed through it, and said, “It wasn’t hood enough.”
go figure
I can’t even say I’m surprised, Julia. *shaking head*
And you KNOW I loved the book – and it’s most definitely not HOOD-hood. It’s urban for sure, but not hood or street.
Shon’s last blog post..Spotlight on ME Today @ APOOO Bookclub!
Okay I’M GOING to be reading my sister’s book and I’m sorry that sista didn’t think your book was hood enough…actually time someone approaches you like that tell them it’s not hood…it’s URBAN.
Yasmin’s last blog post..Street Fiction vs. Urban Fiction–What’s in a Name?
great discussion
There is not much I can add to this conversation because the fact is, they are the same.
And there you have it..lol
I personally have never made a distinction between urban and street fiction. I was under the impression that they were one and the same, and the Wikipedia article didn’t really clear this up for me.
So far I haven’t read any books by Solomon Jones and Kenji Jasper but I will definitely be adding them to my TBR list.
The last urban/street fiction book I read was Baby Girl by Jihad. I thought that as far as Street Fiction goes it was exceptionally well written. Given the wealth of characters Jihad managed to imbue each one with his/her own personal voice. Maybe it got a little over the top at the end, but I totally respect was Jihad was trying to convey.
And I might possibly be in love…