And here we are once again, at the tail end of another week. Time flies when you're having fun. I'm just chomping at the bit to get the weekend started. I hate being a wet blanket, but weekdays move at a snail's pace. They bore me to tears. To death, even. When that happens, my mind goes blank and my stomach knots in fear. But really, I'm gentle as a lamb, and consider myself an eager beaver when it comes to writing my next story.
And do you hate clichés as much as I do?
So I've got to mention why I'm off on this tangent, and then maybe I'll feel better.
Some time ago, somebody -- I don't remember who, I don't remember why -- gave me a hardback copy of The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara -- Ilse Witch by Terry Brooks. It sat on my bookshelf until I ran out of other things to read, which happened yesterday.
And by the time I got to page 22, I was annoyed. Because there I found the following sentence:
She slipped through the door of the Healer's home on cat's paws...
Cat's paws??
How do bestselling authors get away with this stuff?
I'm not dissing Terry Brooks. Tolkien knock-off notwithstanding, Mr. Brooks is fairly adept at head-jumping (otherwise known as point-of-view shift, otherwise known as something we're not "supposed to" do) and storytelling. He' s a prolific writer who has built a strong world and who obviously holds his readers' interest over the long haul.
But....cat's paws?
In all seriousness, the very hackneyedness of the phrase almost caused me to slam the book shut. My stomach dropped (the way stomachs do when something is just that bad) and I wondered if the 432 pages were worth the potential pain.
Fortunately, I got over myself and continued reading. I'll let you know how everything turns out.
So is it me? Have I been utterly brainwashed to beware anything remotely clichéd no matter the cost? Or is "cat's paws" something that should have been annihilated a long time ago?
(Flash: I was unable to spell "annihilated" without the aid of my spell checker. Does that put me in the same league as "cat's paws"?)
Commiserate with me, if you will -- or else slap me back to my senses. I wouldn't want to come off as a bitter wannabe (I'm not) or an incessantly nitpicky woman (I can be) or too lofty for my own good (no comment).
And when all is said and done, have a great weekend.
Miss Snark's First Victim
Wording cliches bug me too. I don't care who the author is, how big their name is, etc etc. Honestly, if they can't come up with something a bit more original I get annoyed and rant or stop reading. :P
ReplyDeleteElement cliches (like chosen ones %-)) tend to bug me more than wording cliches, but at the same time, I can sometimes get over element cliches. Wording ones I just want to smack the author with a 2x4 and demand a little more effort.
(Humor is a different matter.)
I can understand someone using a cliche if they honestly didn't realize what it was, but I would think authors who have been writing for awhile would be aware of them and try a little harder.
Best selling authors... ugh, let's just say I give up on them faster than most. Jim Butcher is so far keeping my loyalty with his Dresden Files (for various reasons--despite my misgivings at the "epic" feel I've started to get at the last three books), and I'll still read just about anything...
But honestly? I think a lot of them start getting to the point where they don't think they need edits or criticism. Or else if they DO, no one will freaking GIVE it to them. :@ Dunno. It's just a sort of gut reaction I have sometimes.
In the end, I can forgive a few wording cliches (and element cliches) if the story engages me, and despite the wish that the author would try a LITTLE harder... if it can keep my interest, I'll keep reading.
Still. "Cat's paws"? Jeez. That only works for me if the character is feline. %-)
~Merc
Ah, there is my Merckie in all her glory!
ReplyDeleteI'm late as usual.
Cliches bug me, but historical inconsistencies bug me more.
The 7th Harry Potter needed editing BADLY!!! but yes maybe her editor was too scared to give her much needed advice.
Ever since I joined CC, I can't just read a book. I'm like hey, I get my hand slapped when I do that or that is just wrong. I crit as I read anything, from websites to classics. Oh and don't get me started on classics. If we made these mistakes it wouldn't even be published let alone remembered 100 years later.
Okay rant over.
CC is a special case, imo. Authors basically get paid (in points) to find flaws in your work. It's almost obligatory.
ReplyDeleteI've been working hard to only point out problems that actually degrade the story, and not just point out how up I am on the industry. It takes every bit of willpower I have to tell the difference between "someone says you shouldn't do that" and "that doesn't work here"...
One of the things great writers have that I don't is economy. They know what to perfect and what to let go. A classic example of this for me is Terry Goodkind. I loved his "Wizards First Rule"--read the whole story in a day.
Recently I picked it up and just wondered at it, realizing that it had every flaw in the manual I've been working so hard to remove from my writing.
Yet, I can remember how hard it hooked me and how vivid the story was when I read it.
Eeesh.
LOL, Wulfie.
ReplyDeleteSee, I absolutely hated "Wizard's First Rule" and still can't remember why I bothered to finish it. :P
I think it's something to do with my masochistic compulsions... (because yes, every now and then I do like reading horrible high fantasy for some reason...)
I thought it was waaaaaay too long, too wordy, cliched, and I wanted every frickin' character in there to die horribly. (Well, okay, the talking wolf dude was all right.) Pity they all didn't...
So then one day I was at the library and picked up the second book. I stopped after two chapters because I just couldn't take it any more. :P
If people like it, that's fine. I just couldn't figure out where the hell his editor was...
*TWITCH*
~Merc, the opinionated
LOL
ReplyDeleteI am loving the banter here!
I'm also feeling a bit, ur, vindicated.
Heh.
:)
I'll tolerate cliches more than Merc. But I draw the line when I read the first chapter and can guess the ending. I hate it when authors whore out their characters just to stretch the plot... I mean, yes, sometimes it has to be done but couldn't you at least try to make your MC smarter than a 5th grader and the plot slightly more original the last 5 million epic fantasies on the shelf?
ReplyDeleteGood guy. Bad guy. Fight. Good wins.
Dull.