Happy New Year fellow writers and other insecure folk. I'm hoping that 2021 ushers in a year of good fortune for all of you. It has been a refreshing break from blogging, and I'm eager to share my observations with the world once more. However, as I wrote waaayyy back in November of 2020, the ice breaker is going to be an Insecure Writer's Support Group post.
This blog and a few hundred others participate in a monthly blogfest that was started by science-fiction expert and author, Alex Cavanaugh. It's purpose is to share and encourage. Each month brings a selection of new co-hosts that help with the housekeeping of an ongoing writer project like the IWSG. You can find all of the details (and the sign-up) by clicking HERE and going to their web page.
The awesome co-hosts for the January 6 posting of the IWSG are Ronel Janse van Vuuren , J Lenni Dorner, Gwen Gardner Sandra Cox, and Louise - Fundy Blue!This month, I am going to answer the optional question, which is:
Being a writer, when you're reading someone else's work, what stops you from finishing a book/throws you out of the story/frustrates you the most about other people's books?
Wait a minute, is it Festivus? Are we here to air our reading grievances? I guess so. :)
I love this question, and I have a list. Here it is:
The first thing that makes me put down a book is too much description and not enough dialogue. I like a story that is based in fiction to convey information to me through characters and not through paragraphs of info-dumping. However, dialogue needs to be a back and forth thing, so one character carrying on and on in a quote that goes on for multiple paragraphs can also make me put down a book.
I need to be able to relate to characters, and I find that when characters are diverse and queer, I like them more. This isn't a game breaker, but I appreciate the stories in which diversity crops up a lot more than I appreciate homogeneity.
I prefer third person stories to first person ones. This also isn't a game breaker, but given that there is a world of choice out there and no pressure, I tend to gravitate towards ones that have this kind of style as opposed to the "let's slide into this skin suit and see the world through their eyes." I know this works well for people, and it's also extremely popular in video games. But it isn't really my cup of tea.
I don't like breathtaking action all the time. I call these kinds of stories, "kids books." In film, you can see it with the Harry Potter movies and Star Wars, etc. In fiction that I read, I like and savor the quiet moments where the protagonist discovers something, thinks about something, or engages in a kind of personal growth.
Not every character in a story needs to have a name. It's okay to say something like, "Ralph and Fred along with twelve others started on the journey. A few days later, four had died of various diseases and starvation, and this made Ralph and Fred realize how fragile and dangerous this journey was." I mean...that's okay. I don't need to know who the "twelve others" were. And I also don't need to know who died of what and when. Summarizing can be a powerful tool!
Yes it is!
ReplyDeleteCharacters I don't care about and too much description also rate high on my list.
I took a break for most of December and it was refreshing. Kicking off the new year with an IWSG post is the best way to go.
Well at least you're still alive. I do hate when you need a scorecard to keep track of characters. One of the reasons I've never read Game of Thrones.
ReplyDelete@PT: Yup, still alive. But our ICU's here in Utah are at 100% or more, because anti-maskers and "don't tread on me" right wing terrorists like Proud Boys and whatnot are holding maskless rallies in defiance of orders. Lots of New Years parties etc with a middle finger held up to medical professionals. Well...then those folks get sick and they land in the hospital. People who get any other kind of ailment including heart attacks may be out of luck. There's also anti-vaxing going on (it's a gubmint conspiracy!), the windows to the Department of Health have been shot out, our State epidimiologist has received death threats and protests outside her home by armed protestors, etc. This is MAGA country.
ReplyDeleteYour list is much like mine. Too much description and boring characters are a no-go for me.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny how some prefer third-person while others like first. I'm a first-person preferer, but that was more of a deal breaker when I was a teen. Nowadays I can do both. But I understand how one can have a preference of one or the other.
ReplyDeleteI also prefer third person.
ReplyDeleteToo often, first person strikes me as lazy.
Interesting analysis of what makes you put a book down. Definitely geared to helping writers understand 1) diversity as a plus in building characters (never thought of this as something that would push readers away . . . and, at the same time, how do I write a character outside of me? I've barely mastered male/female!) 2) dialogue as a way to bring characters closer to the reader (especially useful when characters talk to the writer nonstop!). Let's persevere into the New Year. Nice post.
ReplyDelete