October 20, 1985

IN an era when economic and business affairs dominate the news and appear to shape the nation's character, it is odd how small a percentage of successful fiction deals with the executive suite and the board room. These are the arenas in which the power of money and the workings of ego and ambition connect and from which the consequences of that connection reverberate into millions of lives and trillions of dollars. Yet it would seem to be the view of serious literary personages - whether novelists, critics, editors or inveterate readers -that only in everyday life can suitably serious material be found. Henry James's ''figure in the carpet,'' as he characterized the object of the novelist's search, is now the figure in the linoleum. There are abundant reasons for this fixation with the ordinary, mostly having to do, I think, with the estrangement of the bookish community from the notion of business per se. Anyone wanting an earnest of this need simply look at the managerial and marketing efforts of most publishing companies. But the money part of the examined life has engaged novelists from Jane Austen on. The organized making of money - i.e., selling, finance and management - has been a central concern of the work of Balzac, Dickens, Trollope, Dreiser, Sinclair Lewis.

FINANCING through bond issues is usually considered a governmental or business fund-raising technique. In certain instances, however, a small, private bond issue offered only to residents can be a practical way for cooperatives, condominiums and homeowner associations to raise money for capital improvements. As an alternative to reserve-fund withdrawals, traditional bank financing or special assessments, the bond issue can be ''a brilliant idea,'' said Stuart Saft, a Manhattan lawyer who is vice president of the Council of New York Cooperatives. It should prove less expensive to the housing association than conventional financing, while resident bondholders would clearly regard receiving interest income far more favorably than having to lay out cash in a special assessment.

In a section of Jersey City that lies between the port city's booming commercial district on the waterfront and its brownstone neighborhoods to the west, a former chocolate plant is being converted to 27-unit condominium apartment building.

Notre Dame, suffering through a difficult and disappointing season, played better today than the best Army team in many years. The Irish scored two early touchdowns and went on to beat the Cadets, 24-10, handing Army its first loss of the season. It was an impressive triumph in a game that might have been the last between these two schools in many years. The Cadets had got off to a 5-0 start - their best since 1950 - and had won eight straight games over two seasons, their longest streak in 35 years. They had not beaten the Irish in 27 years and this was supposed to be their best chance in years. b But the Irish, behind the quarterback Steve Beurlein and the running back Allen Pinkett, spoiled the day for the Cadets. And Pinkett treated the 59,075 fans in Notre Dame Stadium with a touch of history. Pinkett, whose spectacular performances have often been overshadowed by the team's mediocre record in the last four seasons, gained 133 yards on 27 carries to set a Notre Dame career rushing record of 3,556 yards. He also scored the third Notre Dame touchdown and helped set up the second Irish score with good runs on a long drive.

THREE weeks after the Long Island Lighting Company suffered millions of dollars in damage from Hurricane Gloria, the utility is being buffeted by new public dissatisfaction over the time it took the utility to restore power. Anger at Lilco's performance has spurred the following actions: * A group of Long Island residents that includes some of Lilco's most determined opponents has proposed a public takeover of the utility. * State and county officials have united in opposing any attempt by Lilco to recover through higher electric rates any portion of the estimated $40 million in damage and expenses caused to the utility by the storm. * The Democratic candidate for Nassau County Executive, John Matthews, has called for the ouster of Lilco's board of directors, and has found enthusiastic audiences for his anti-Lilco message. * The decision of Lilco's chairman, William J. Catacosinos, to remain on a European vacation after the hurricane knocked out service to 750,000 customers on Sept. 27 - in some cases for as long as two weeks - has won him the enmity of many public officials and Long Island residents.