Bracketology

I am not sure that bracketology is even a word. I am pretty sure it isn't in Websters, but it is definitely part of your vocabulary every March, if you are like millions of people who fill out those brackets for the NCAA mens, or maybe womens, basketball tournaments. ESPN even employs a full time bracketologist, although I am not sure what he does the rest of the year. Now that the tournaments have reached the sweet sixteen, you may, like me, just want to throw the thing out before another of your final four teams loses.

The fascination with brackets, however, continues. Just think what we could do with brackets in the literary world. We could start with a field of 64 contemporary authors. The heavy hitters like James Patterson, Danielle Steel, Nora Roberts and John Grisham would get number 1 seeds, with competition from the likes of Mary Higgins Clark, Janet Evanovich, Stephen King and David Baldacci, while the mid-majors Steve Martini, Lisa Scottoline, Joy Fielding and Jeffrey Archer are probably 4th or 5th seeds. I hesitate to put anyone in the "just barely made it" sixteenth seeds, but they should be happy just to be included. I am sure there will be complaints from those who get left out. For them, we will have to invent an A.I.T. (Authors Invitational Tournament).

Who would be your final four picks? The heavy hitters prevail or an upstart winner like Sophie Kinsella?