tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post8630663295329653046..comments2024-03-28T08:14:28.881-04:00Comments on Authoress: Friday FricasseeAuthoresshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-24975688685682405292016-08-09T17:07:18.651-04:002016-08-09T17:07:18.651-04:00I think the main problem you seem to find with Row...I think the main problem you seem to find with Rowling's writing stems from the fact that British and US writing standards differ widely. We love our adverbs here... and our commas. We're not so adverse to head hopping either. <br />My books are all written in 3rd person omniscient. My US editors are very good and make wide allowances for my style because it works for a British audience. <br />This doesn't mean you aren't allowed to dislike the way she/we write... it just explains why we do. It's not poor writing, it's just different. :)Silby Granthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13994116170098637900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-82660130267326591862016-08-09T17:05:12.623-04:002016-08-09T17:05:12.623-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Silby Granthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13994116170098637900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-41389677106074283412016-08-08T08:44:58.846-04:002016-08-08T08:44:58.846-04:00I was sorted into Ravenclaw, also. Now you've ...I was sorted into Ravenclaw, also. Now you've made me want to re-read the books. It's been years since I've read them and I'm hankering for some magic and some SOMETHING. Spot on about why we keep coming back to writing. S.P. Bowershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09746614009206426805noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-45017340461928328112016-08-08T08:38:23.351-04:002016-08-08T08:38:23.351-04:00You're Slytherin? LOL!You're Slytherin? LOL!Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-80169662674152695992016-08-08T08:37:57.575-04:002016-08-08T08:37:57.575-04:00Wow -- you're so right! It totally took Harry...Wow -- you're so right! It totally took Harry's desire not to be in Slytherin into consideration. I FEEL BETTER NOW. :)Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-83050170284519754692016-08-08T08:36:59.208-04:002016-08-08T08:36:59.208-04:00I have not! I read the first couple pages in a st...I have not! I read the first couple pages in a store, and I realized it would be a stretch for me, because I really (REALLY) don't enjoy reading screenplays. I wish I could see the play!<br /><br />And YES, the adverbs! Ugh!! And how the characters are alway snarling and hissing dialogue. Fortunately the world is so strong that it's easy to ignore!Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-52576983329195291682016-08-06T10:47:11.698-04:002016-08-06T10:47:11.698-04:00I just finished a re-read of the HP series, but I ...I just finished a re-read of the HP series, but I listened to it on audio, which means I'm not paying attention to grammar and can't see those comma splices ;)<br /><br />I'd always been sorted into Ravenclaw and was pretty fiercely loyal to that house, but recently started getting Hufflepuff. I was not. happy. But then, during my re-read, I realized that yeah, actually I am a Hufflepuff. Probably a Huffleclaw to be specific.<br /><br />I agree with Shari above that the fact that people get so passionate about the houses definitely speaks to the magic of the world Rowling created. The other day I saw a VERY heated debate on Twitter about which house the characters of Hamilton belonged in. It was delightfully geeky.Rebecca T.https://www.blogger.com/profile/11994380364321336824noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-73231470494480731652016-08-06T09:06:41.801-04:002016-08-06T09:06:41.801-04:00Your post and the comments capture what is so allu...Your post and the comments capture what is so alluring and challenging about writing. Good books require so much, on the microscopic and macroscopic level: plot, character, voice, grammar, dialogue, etc. It's extremely difficult to master them all, and very fun to try. ;) Julia Tomiakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17999070457191845503noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-58670600699623313642016-08-06T02:43:55.974-04:002016-08-06T02:43:55.974-04:00Careful. Your Ravenclaw is showing. ;)Careful. Your Ravenclaw is showing. ;)meagainnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-20719775749049655702016-08-05T23:08:18.983-04:002016-08-05T23:08:18.983-04:00I'm reading Harry Potter aloud to my kids -- t...I'm reading Harry Potter aloud to my kids -- the first time I've reread them since I originally read them like 15 years ago or something. And I TOTALLY agree with your statement. The writing physically hurts me sometimes (it's even harder to read aloud: scene breaks are in strange places, chapter endings are just kinda... there, etc), but OH MY GOSH this is such a fun world and story.<br /><br />(Also Ravenclaw forever. I never joined Pottermore, but that's my house. I just KNOW.)Adam Heinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02225813532455467868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-73267760929100152382016-08-05T21:44:09.783-04:002016-08-05T21:44:09.783-04:00HELLO Authoress...
I LOVE your post. I am a HUGE ...HELLO Authoress...<br /><br />I LOVE your post. I am a HUGE HP fan. I was also sorted into Ravenclaw and was happy to stay there. I'm not obsessed with being a Gryffindor.<br /> <br />You are spot on about the writing. Ms. Rowling is the QUEEN of the Adverb! She has hundreds on every page. But yet.... I LOVE the books! Read them all at leas ten times. What I love is the CHEMISTRY with her characters. Genius....<br /><br />Have you read HP and the Cursed Child. I finished it in one day. Was it great? No... and she didn't do the writing, but the story did hold my attention. The sad thing... the chemistry was not there. It saddened me...Michael Di Gesuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17047267262428143113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-77296698214885696382016-08-05T20:32:55.578-04:002016-08-05T20:32:55.578-04:00You realize, of course, that now the word "sc...You realize, of course, that now the word "scathingly" will jump out and scratch my eyes as I continue to read. ;)<br /><br />She does all SORTS of annoying -ly adverbs and pretentious dialogue tags, for sure. It will be interesting to watch her writing change as I plow through (I'm only on Chamber of Secrets right now).<br />Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-37840192094022066942016-08-05T20:30:52.107-04:002016-08-05T20:30:52.107-04:00Funnily, I posted a similar picture on my "re...Funnily, I posted a similar picture on my "real me" FB page the other day, and one of my gay friends commented, "Gayfinndor?" It was a funny moment. :)Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-16922397992048315832016-08-05T20:28:45.623-04:002016-08-05T20:28:45.623-04:00LOL, I kept waiting for this post to be about dive...LOL, I kept waiting for this post to be about diversity in fiction, because I've looked at that shirt several times now and it still reads "Gayffindor" to me -- a shirt I totally would have bought, by the way. Top down processing, I guess, because of all the interesting talk about LGBT characters in fiction.mercinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-67188399150405307922016-08-05T17:01:44.071-04:002016-08-05T17:01:44.071-04:00Hi, Bonnie!
The modern novel is a fluid art form,...Hi, Bonnie!<br /><br />The modern novel is a fluid art form, as are all art forms. A clean POV is something that has evolved from the older style. Dickens, after all, wrote over 2 centuries ago. Austen, my favorite author of all time, constantly shifts POV. In her novels, it doesn't bother me, either.<br /><br />But today's novel isn't the novel of the 19th century, and it shouldn't be. I believe that writers need to read a lot of NEW works to learn what the 21st-century novel looks like. A story can certainly be told from separate points of view (I have done it myself), but that's not the same as the head-hopping that is a hallmark of older works.<br /><br />As for comma rules? They are rules, period. Now, the Oxford comma is up for heated debate, for sure (I'm a strong supporter of it). But a run-on error is always a run-on error, and I believe that, as writers, we really need to understand the basics of sentence structure. And as editors? Equally so. <br /><br />A clear POV is not so much a hang-up as it is simply where the novel has evolved. Have you ever looked at Medieval art? It is 2-dimensional, completely lacking depth and perspective. People don't paint that way anymore, though in the time period, that's what art WAS. Art changes, and we have to be willing to change with it.<br /><br />I also want to point out that the adept use of the omniscient POV is what I consider an advanced skill, one that some authors can pull off beautifully. But that isn't the same as randomly head-hopping.<br /><br />Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-36470404054685667772016-08-05T16:49:11.183-04:002016-08-05T16:49:11.183-04:00I disagree totally about points of view. Many exce...I disagree totally about points of view. Many excellent writers use omniscient and numerous. Rowling is but one. How about Colum McCann?<br />Charles Dickens? Jane Smiley? Changing POVs bothers me not at all. I think the insistence on one is a modern hang-up and most frequently enforced with genre fiction. The same is true of some grammatical "rules" that you've mentioned. The final judgment should rest on if the author has achieved an acceptable work. Bonnie McCunehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02797165753986376810noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-8560282092969051552016-08-05T16:25:06.796-04:002016-08-05T16:25:06.796-04:00I felt the same way after reading the Harry Potter...I felt the same way after reading the Harry Potter series. It wasn't the writing that drew me in. I fell in love with her world! Oh, and I have to take my Pottermore test again. I'm Slytherin for gosh sakes, and snakes just creep me out, lol! Love the t-shirt...Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03709765480911390955noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-20316358291454080622016-08-05T15:33:48.463-04:002016-08-05T15:33:48.463-04:00I don't know why anyone thinks of it as cheati...I don't know why anyone thinks of it as cheating or fudging. The Sorting Hat totally takes your own preferences into consideration. That's canon. Choosing your answers is just a way of "asking" it to put you in the house you most value, I would think.hlbrixeynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-58585258236654048752016-08-05T15:03:23.741-04:002016-08-05T15:03:23.741-04:00I was a big HP fan too, and kept reading the books...I was a big HP fan too, and kept reading the books over and over again (the earlier ones) -- I just loved escaping to Hogwarts and being immersed in that wonderful, vivid world. (I haven't tried the sorting quiz, but I've always thought of myself as a Ravenclaw -- that house seems the best fit for creative, artistic types!) But I agree that Rowling is definitely in the category of writers that I would describe as 'a good storyteller but not a good writer'.<br /><br />But the sad thing is that I was so disappointed in the final book that it pretty much ended my infatuation with the whole series, and I haven't been able to enjoy them in the same way since. I know a few other people who feel the same way, but I'm honestly very surprised that I haven't encountered more readers who also feel that <i>Deathly Hallows</i> has serious flaws (far beyond punctuation issues) that cause it to simply not fit with the rest of the books. <br /><br />For me, two-thirds of that book was awful -- the pages were a chore to read and sounded as if they'd been written by a different author; they completely lacked the warmth and charm that pulled us all into that world in the other volumes, and the voice came across as cold and flat. My guess is that all the pressure put on Rowling (and the editors as well) to get the book out quickly led to it being released when it still needed extensive editing.<br /><br />Whenever I think about it, I just wish I had been in her editor's shoes and could have given her a thorough R & R request, detailing all the things that needed to be changed to bring that book in line with the rest of the series. I know it'll never happen, but I still think it would be great if there were some way to get her to rewrite that book the way it should have been, so the series would be truly complete.L.C. McGeheehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09841984739098231057noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-54463499139179865522016-08-05T14:16:25.417-04:002016-08-05T14:16:25.417-04:00And see, I always thought of myself as a Ravenclaw...And see, I always thought of myself as a Ravenclaw, but have twice been sorted into Gryffindor on Pottermore. Trade you? :)Tara Dairmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02553180762608936696noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-20932612073243401942016-08-05T14:09:01.614-04:002016-08-05T14:09:01.614-04:00Cheater! Haha. I wanted to be in Gryffindor as wel...Cheater! Haha. I wanted to be in Gryffindor as well but I have embraced my destiny as a Hufflepuff.<br /><br />Yes, the writing is not the most refined prose ever--the one thing that sticks out to me is the number of times Hermione says something "scathingly" to Ron (seriously go count.) But if you'll read them all in order, you'll notice it gets better as the books go on, and by Deathly Hallows she's really honed her craft, in my opinion.Mary Katehttp://www.wanderlustywriter.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-8204097388226111012016-08-05T14:01:11.844-04:002016-08-05T14:01:11.844-04:00Yep! It's one of those you-just-have-to-read-t...Yep! It's one of those you-just-have-to-read-them things.:)Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-72592878506791731282016-08-05T13:47:50.084-04:002016-08-05T13:47:50.084-04:00I read HP for the first time this year, and I coul...I read HP for the first time this year, and I couldn't agree with you more! There was something incredibly compelling that made me keep reading, but the writing itself left me....not very impressed. <br /><br />Regardless, I'm glad I've read them now!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02349252845586846594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-20682045868223947832016-08-05T13:04:13.562-04:002016-08-05T13:04:13.562-04:00You nailed it exactly!! It says a GREAT deal abou...You nailed it exactly!! It says a GREAT deal about her talent!Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3615675676021392217.post-30722585924470000542016-08-05T13:03:53.124-04:002016-08-05T13:03:53.124-04:00Do you do voices for all the characters? ;)Do you do voices for all the characters? ;)Authoresshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09223228949688667517noreply@blogger.com