Oh, excellent. I've been thinking something was wrong with ME because my DNF pile keeps getting bigger and bigger and I rarely finish a new book these days...just re-read the old ones. You are so right.
> Dr Strauss says I shoud rite down what I think and remembir and evrey thing that happins to me from now on
This is uncanny. Just yesterday my daughter was going through a "must-read" book list and asked me about Flowers for Algernon. My aswer was a more polite rendition of "hell, yes!!"
I don't know if you're right or if this is just a really brilliant rationalization for being thr attentionally-stunted, nostalgic curmudgeon that I am...but it sure made me feel better!
Also, I HATED The Big Lebowski. The way some others loved it so much just made it all the worse, and I relate to the clenching. 😂 But I can't even remember the ending, so now I'm wondering if I also didn't make it all the way through.
Good to know that it isn't just me having that problem. Even writers that I have been following for many years, and that I know how amazing they can be, have become preachy, unidimensional, lazy, and worst of all, are taking me for granted. I was thinking that they were infected with the woke virus (some of them certainly are, judging by their political beliefs), but reading this article I realize that the issue is much deeper.
Actually, this issue is affecting all arts, not just writing. I was a cinema lover until a few years ago, but now I just go for streaming old reruns. Pity.
On cinema, I have seen some interesting rumblings recently. The 2024 remake of Nosferatu is *astonishing.* Easily one of the best new films I've seen in half a decade or more. There are stirrings in the ashes--hopefully the fire catches light again.
And if you're looking for fiction that doesn't take you for granted, may I tempt you in the direction of my bibliography? http://www.jdsawyer.net/book-list/
I used to read a good deal of contemporary fiction, but I gave up about a decade ago. in fact, the last great one I read was McCarthy’s ‘The Road’ in 2007 (great opening line btw) and he was already a much older writer.
walking into a bookstore today, I am met with a glut of new fiction that seems to have the same art direction and with inane titles like ‘All Of the Rivers We Will Never See’ or some such.
I’ll flip through them but they all suffer from what you have already pointed out: they assume they already have the audience.
in other words, the authors are lazy and don’t work to grip the reader into the story. I don’t know if this is directly related to how politicized publishing has become, but I’m done.
Oh, excellent. I've been thinking something was wrong with ME because my DNF pile keeps getting bigger and bigger and I rarely finish a new book these days...just re-read the old ones. You are so right.
So glad you liked it!
> Dr Strauss says I shoud rite down what I think and remembir and evrey thing that happins to me from now on
This is uncanny. Just yesterday my daughter was going through a "must-read" book list and asked me about Flowers for Algernon. My aswer was a more polite rendition of "hell, yes!!"
I don't know if you're right or if this is just a really brilliant rationalization for being thr attentionally-stunted, nostalgic curmudgeon that I am...but it sure made me feel better!
Also, I HATED The Big Lebowski. The way some others loved it so much just made it all the worse, and I relate to the clenching. 😂 But I can't even remember the ending, so now I'm wondering if I also didn't make it all the way through.
Good to know that it isn't just me having that problem. Even writers that I have been following for many years, and that I know how amazing they can be, have become preachy, unidimensional, lazy, and worst of all, are taking me for granted. I was thinking that they were infected with the woke virus (some of them certainly are, judging by their political beliefs), but reading this article I realize that the issue is much deeper.
Actually, this issue is affecting all arts, not just writing. I was a cinema lover until a few years ago, but now I just go for streaming old reruns. Pity.
Agreed on all points.
On cinema, I have seen some interesting rumblings recently. The 2024 remake of Nosferatu is *astonishing.* Easily one of the best new films I've seen in half a decade or more. There are stirrings in the ashes--hopefully the fire catches light again.
And if you're looking for fiction that doesn't take you for granted, may I tempt you in the direction of my bibliography? http://www.jdsawyer.net/book-list/
I used to read a good deal of contemporary fiction, but I gave up about a decade ago. in fact, the last great one I read was McCarthy’s ‘The Road’ in 2007 (great opening line btw) and he was already a much older writer.
walking into a bookstore today, I am met with a glut of new fiction that seems to have the same art direction and with inane titles like ‘All Of the Rivers We Will Never See’ or some such.
I’ll flip through them but they all suffer from what you have already pointed out: they assume they already have the audience.
in other words, the authors are lazy and don’t work to grip the reader into the story. I don’t know if this is directly related to how politicized publishing has become, but I’m done.
I can't agree concerning American Beauty. It was predictable and two dimensional. Cardboard cutout characters.
But, hey, maybe it's just me.
It's just you ;-)