Full disclosure: none of these people have ever heard of me. I just really, really love their writing.
I have another list - the Black List - but it's a list of one, and doesn't really count. I make it a rule to never finish reading a bad book, in case the terrible craftsmanship is catching, but I've only officially put one writer on that list. And I'm not telling you who it is, because hundreds of thousands of people disagree with me. As is their right.
The List of Worthy Opponents and Etc is my list of writers who are so great that I want to write like them and eventually surpass them. (Admittedly, it boggles me slightly when I imagine surpassing Terry Pratchett - all hail the Discworld Creator!) The List is not the same thing as all writers that I enjoy reading. I enjoy reading Georgette Heyer, but I have no intention of making a career in romance. C. J. Cherryh is another great writer, but at this time I don't plan on branching into hard core sci-fi. David Brin, on the other hand, writes what I think of as 'soft' sci-fi, (no judgment on the story substance at all), which is like fantasy with a different flavor and style.
Behold, on the sidebar, the current List of Worthy Opponents and Magnificent Mentors, abbreviated to The List because the full title won't fit. I'll update it as I remember and/or find more worthy opponents and magnificent mentors. It is in a state of permanent incompleteness.
If you're interested in trying out a new author, or finding out what my taste in awesomeness is, try one of their books. You might not like it, but you certainly won't be disgusted by sloppy POV, poor characterization, blatant emotional manipulation, plot holes, unbelievable character motivations, and if I don't stop now I'll go on all day.
(Disclaimer: Martha Wells wrote the excellent Fall of Ile-Rien trilogy, and Dean Koontz wrote (is writing, please, a new one soon soon soon) the Odd Thomas books. I can't recommend every book, because I haven't read all of them.) (In fact, that applies to everyone on The List except Terry Pratchett, who is at the top for a reason. Everything Terry Pratchett writes is great. (Collaborations don't count.) Everyone after Terry Pratchett is in no particular order.)
3 comments:
Nice to see your blog! And there are quite a few of those I haven't read. I tend to focus on middle grade and young adult books plus the old, old classics. And yes, I didn't see myself as becoming a romance writer and yet, I am!
Nice to see your blog! And there are quite a few of those I haven't read. I tend to focus on middle grade and young adult books plus the old, old classics. And yes, I didn't see myself as becoming a romance writer and yet, I am!
Interesting! I will say that Robin McKinley is my favorite author of all time, but I almost chucked her last book (Pegasus) across the room when I finished it, because I did NOT know that it ended on a cliffhanger, and it did NOT tell me that there was a sequel coming out next year - I didn't find that out until I went on Amazon to write a scathing review (which was modified once I realized that at least the whole story didn't end that way). Still, it took her down a notch in my estimation.
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