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Authors you can't stand! Rant thread

Oh, seems that our reading taste differs here. I actually LOVE Brooks, I have read all of his books and have collected 80% of his work. You can tell that he idolized Tolkein and I can defnitely see how if you read the first series, you would automatically compare it to LOTR. I was not put off with the writing style and I enjoyed the plot and character development. If you read the other Shanara series, then the feeling of LOTR fades. Though as SlowRain mentioned, the writing style does get 'simpler' lol.
Loved his work in the Star Wars universe. Also enjoyed (to an extent) the first couple Shanara books, by the 3rd (maybe 4th) i just got... ... bored i guess you could say. And you could SO tell he idolized Tolkien, and i was just coming off of TRYING to finish ROTK, might of been scared of Shanara continuing down the same path (long winded and unable to let go)
Clerks 2 summed up rotk pretty well i think, lol. (still one of the funniest movie moments of all time)
 
Just an observation, we seem to be a short group here. Oh Well. I am probably one of the few people that has most of the reader apps, and reads books while queuing in line.
 
Just an observation, we seem to be a short group here. Oh Well. I am probably one of the few people that has most of the reader apps, and reads books while queuing in line.

I wished I had more time to just go read. While I was on vacation in the summer I finished off 8 novels in 2 Weeks. Only 1 since then. :(
 
When I lived in Japan and didn't watch TV I read books constantly. Now it's so hard to resist just plopping down on the couch and getting on the computer or turning on the TV instead of picking up a book.
 
Wait...you were in Japan and you only READ in your leisure time? :P lol I'd have thought you'd explore the town/city/culture.

Well, I lived there for 3 years, so there was plenty of time to explore and read in my spare time. Just like you living wherever you live, you don't spend ALL your free time exploring, geez :rolleyes:
 
Just an observation, we seem to be a short group here. Oh Well. I am probably one of the few people that has most of the reader apps, and reads books while queuing in line.

Short group??? Hey I'm 6'2" LOL.
For reals though our little lit section is still in it's infancy but every now and again you see some new faces. Plus i rather like our little 'corner' of the forums... were the elite!!:D
 
Short group??? Hey I'm 6'2" LOL.
For reals though our little lit section is still in it's infancy but every now and again you see some new faces. Plus i rather like our little 'corner' of the forums... were the elite!!:D



Indeed.

Not like the Politics forums where I become hated, nobody reads what is posted, many are angry, and I am there, daily, stirring the pot rather than writing.

I would like to see a subforum for writers, however. Perhaps I'll suggest it to the powers that be.

Bob Maxey
 
Indeed.

Not like the Politics forums where I become hated, nobody reads what is posted, many are angry, and I am there, daily, stirring the pot rather than writing.

I would like to see a subforum for writers, however. Perhaps I'll suggest it to the powers that be.

Bob Maxey

Go for it... never know i guess.

And i hate politics... and religion.... every time i stumble in one of those threads i wanna get sick.... I couldn't do it, your a braver person than I;)
 
Indeed. Not like the Politics forums where I become hated, nobody reads what is posted, many are angry, and I am there, daily, stirring the pot rather than writing. Bob Maxey
Don't stir up the pot TOO much there ;)I stay away from there. The treads get too long for me to be able to keep up. My head hurts after reading a few (long ass) posts.
 
Short group??? Hey I'm 6'2" LOL.
For reals though our little lit section is still in it's infancy but every now and again you see some new faces. Plus i rather like our little 'corner' of the forums... were the elite!!:D

:D Yeah I'm only 6'3" myself. meanwhile what do you mean "were"


Indeed.

Not like the Politics forums where I become hated, nobody reads what is posted, many are angry, and I am there, daily, stirring the pot rather than writing.

I would like to see a subforum for writers, however. Perhaps I'll suggest it to the powers that be.

Bob Maxey

My other favorite Forum, we have a debate room like that too, and I get in there just to smurf with people. OH and we also run an autocensor, I tend to type that way just because. Hence the occasionally word out of place. Just so you know.
 
I wished I had more time to just go read.

Now it's so hard to resist just plopping down on the couch and getting on the computer or turning on the TV instead of picking up a book.

I agree on both counts. Too much stuff to do, not enough free time. I wish I was a kid again and had masses of free time.

Not like the Politics forums where I become hated, nobody reads what is posted, many are angry, and I am there, daily, stirring the pot rather than writing.

In another forum I frequent politics and religion are taboo subjects. Much simpler :)

The only reason I ever visit the Politics section is to clear up other people's arguments
 
only author i've never really been able to get into is stephen king, granted im not a fan of the style of books he writes.
 
only author i've never really been able to get into is stephen king, granted im not a fan of the style of books he writes.

Only thing of his i could read was something called 'Eye of the Dragon' or something like that... was a very un-stephen king like book
 
The three authors I can't stand, all have a history of psychiatric disorders: Virginia Woolf, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll) and Heinrich Hoffmann. The books these individuals wrote, very much reflect their distorted minds. In fact I find their books quite nauseating to read. When it comes to reading, I like something refreshing and beautiful.
 
Matthew Reilly comes to mind for an author I (love to) hate.
I've read (ok, I skimmed the pages, speed reading as fast I can) 3 -maybe 4 - of his books. All of his books have a reasonable story line (they're 'action' books, but they have enough of a story to hold them together) but his writing style really annoys me. So I skim his books as fast as I can, I keep it just slow enough to get the gist of the story.
 
re: other people's hates;

steinbeck is classic
king is ok but overrated
crichton is what king wishes he was ;)


Biggest Hate: Oscar Wilde
The first page of dorian grey makes me want to rip my eyes out. Why crap like this is required reading for some poor high school students is beyond me.
 
I hated, Hated!, HATED!!! the first thirty pages or so of The Picture of Dorian Gray. I never made it any further than that.
 
Love but hate: George R.R. Martin. Fantastic writer, amazing storyteller, but for fluff's sake, don't start a long, complicated series and then just go off and do other stuff for 6+ years!

And speaking of long, drawn-out series... one of my absolute least favorite authors (and speaking ill of the recently-dead, sorry) is Robert Jordan. Wheel of Time series... first few books held my interest, and then I picked up on the fact that it was the same book, over and over, drawn out to increase the cash flow. He was the first fantasy author I read, so I didn't realize at the time how dull and formulaic he was.

Eddings is one I SHOULD hate, as he's also formulaic, but he kinda perfected the formula, so he's forgiven.

For classics, I can't stand Dickens. I've tried and tried to read him, and just can't do it. The stories are good, but the writing is dull.

And finally, worst book ever goes to Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson. I can't comment on the author himself, as I absolutely won't read anything else by him after slogging my way through that mess. Far too much science in the science-fiction, with characters just interesting enough that I wanted to find out what happened to them. That's actually worse than someone who just plain sucks at writing, because then you can at least put the book aside without caring how it ends.
 
Love but hate: George R.R. Martin. Fantastic writer, amazing storyteller, but for fluff's sake, don't start a long, complicated series and then just go off and do other stuff for 6+ years!
I'm with you there sista! It's a love and hate relationship I and many fans have with good ol' George. It's like, 'sit your ass down boy and finish Dance already!!! Why are you writing two other books (I believe both are published?) and working on a TV show and some games and other crap!!!'

And speaking of long, drawn-out series... one of my absolute least favorite authors (and speaking ill of the recently-dead, sorry) is Robert Jordan. Wheel of Time series... first few books held my interest, and then I picked up on the fact that it was the same book, over and over, drawn out to increase the cash flow. He was the first fantasy author I read, so I didn't realize at the time how dull and formulaic he was.
Just never got into Jordan...the first book I read was kind of boring from what I remember. For if it wasn't, I would have eaten it all up in a couple of days.

Eddings is one I SHOULD hate, as he's also formulaic, but he kinda perfected the formula, so he's forgiven.
Eddings is OLD SCHOOL and follows the general script of a fantasy through and through. Though I did find Belgarath the Sorcerer and Polgara the Sorceress were his best work. Love the stories of the father and daughter.

For classics, I can't stand Dickens. I've tried and tried to read him, and just can't do it. The stories are good, but the writing is dull.
I love Dickens though I can't stand Jane Austen no matter how many times I TRIED to read her work. I simply can't *picture* the plot very well.
 
I love Dickens though I can't stand Jane Austen no matter how many times I TRIED to read her work. I simply can't *picture* the plot very well.

Jane Austen works best with zombies, definitely. With the added zombie goodness, I was actually able to enjoy the original story threaded through it.
 
Eddings is one I SHOULD hate, as he's also formulaic, but he kinda perfected the formula, so he's forgiven.
That is a very valid statement. Some characters are recycled also. You only pick up on it if you actually read ALL his works. When i read dreamers it was like he even re-used a bunch of dialogue. And i would of been completely happy if not for the way it ended. Not even gonna go into that.... damn it!!
SPOILER ALERT:
At the end of the fourth book, the bad guys all beaten, the 'gods' decide to go back in time before main characters fiancee is killed(which set off the story pretty much) and do exactly the same thing they took 4 books to figure out to stop the bad guy, negating the ENTIRE book. They even reflect on how now no one will meet each other, all the very interesting friendships forged will never happen, in truth nothing in ALL 4 books NEVER took place!! Then 'The End'!! That was it!! Was so frustrated I can't even properly voice my impotent fury at the way it ended!! Made me feel like i wasted the 2 weeks it took to read the series....
AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHHHH
/end rant
I will say that 'Regina's Song' was a great read set in modern times, also 'The Losers' though i read that so long ago i don't really remember much about it other than i enjoyed it, lol
I'm with you there sista! It's a love and hate relationship I and many fans have with good ol' George. It's like, 'sit your ass down boy and finish Dance already!!! Why are you writing two other books (I believe both are published?) and working on a TV show and some games and other crap!!!'
Yall just holla at me when that series gets complete, i might be in my dotage by then but i'll still give it a go, hell by then we might have some cool interface that beams the books right into are brains:p

Eddings is OLD SCHOOL and follows the general script of a fantasy through and through. Though I did find Belgarath the Sorcerer and Polgara the Sorceress were his best work. Love the stories of the father and daughter.
Amen sister!! The 2 5 book series were the greatest reads ever for me. I have re-read those 10 books more times then i can even count. (The Belgariad and The Mallorean) I was in high school(i think) when he released Belgarath and for me it was the greatest book ever. The complete story of the 7,000 year old sorcerer from his early years to the conclusion of 'The Mallorean' It didn't get any better than that for me. Polgara was a good read as well but honestly i could do without her. A must read for any fan of the series but I was never a big polgara fan.
On a side note, my internet alias has always been Garion or Belgarion, i even get mail in that name, lol
 
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