tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1164684531570048336.post2610458915156865597..comments2023-10-09T04:28:16.384-07:00Comments on Writing about writing: The curse of genre fictionTCWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13053437802878060775noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1164684531570048336.post-72830329126711887742015-05-28T14:32:22.859-07:002015-05-28T14:32:22.859-07:00And also, the older we (I) get, the less elastic i...And also, the older we (I) get, the less elastic is the brain. When I was young I would take on anything, the more pretentious the better, and worked my way through Camus, Zola, Kafka, Sartre and the Russians. I won't say I understood it all, but I still read it. Maybe it's not elasticity but energy I lack now - I'm not so willing to to give up my time and potentially giving myself brain ache. x Gilli Allanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13234069151918319605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1164684531570048336.post-42260050046711640802015-05-28T09:29:13.164-07:002015-05-28T09:29:13.164-07:00Yes, that's why we read authors that we've...Yes, that's why we read authors that we've read before (and why it's so difficult for new writers to break into the best-seller lists). But I have taken to reading things that I have randomly been offered for review or books by other Accent authors and I have been pleasantly surprised to find things that I would never usually have read have actually proved very satisfying. Sometimes it's worth just trying something more or less completely random. When I was younger, that was a large part of the appeal of public libraries, but they are losing out to electronic systems that just give us more of what we liked last time. Like fast food, it's very convenient, but not necessarily good for us.TCWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13053437802878060775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1164684531570048336.post-23513780421205182332015-05-28T08:52:05.093-07:002015-05-28T08:52:05.093-07:00Well said, Tom. But....
Like your wife, I don...Well said, Tom. But.... <br />Like your wife, I don't read Sci Fi, but when I was a young woman, I did read and enjoy J G Ballard's dystopian short stories. One of the problems is time. If I am offered a choice between reading the latest C J Sansom, or trying a critically acclaimed new Sci Fi (which I'm assured isn't full of bug-eyed space monsters and rockets) I will still choose the Sansom. I can't read everything. My prejudice is maybe just a kind of self-preservation. Isn't there a song about it? I know what I like and I like what I know. <br />There is another debate to be had about genre and sub-genres, but perhaps another day? gxGilli Allanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13234069151918319605noreply@blogger.com