How Does One Write to Avoid the Types of Time and Culture Bound Problems?

[Guest]

I read, typically, novels written prior to 1940. For my own investigative purposes, I acquired and began reading Moody, Rick, The Ice Storm (1994). It earned acclaim as a novel and in 1997 as a movie. I have two problems with this book. The author was 28 when he wrote it and I feel an obtuse quality from his youth through the words and concepts. It is unapologetically situated as a 70s-80s novel as he reports on countless brand names and gadgets of the time. So, how does one write to avoid these types of time and culture bound problems?

[AJA]

If you're asking how to avoid dating your work through pop-culture references, the simple answer is to not make any. A fixed scene and date setting will make any absolutely necessary references contemporary - No one accuses Dickens of being dated because Scrooge burned a coal fire.