Timewaster's Guide Archive
Departments => Books => Topic started by: Patriotic Kaz on April 29, 2009, 11:18:06 PM
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This isn't a "best" author as in most skilled...but who's works do you enjoy reading the most... I have a tie between Robert Heinlein and Rodger Zelazny
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If we say just fantasy mine is Brandon, but if you say all of writing ever it's most likely Agamben.
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Roger Zelazny is on a pedestal to me. So he's number one. After reading The Hero of Ages though I started really wondering if Brandon was my new favorite. Man, that scene at Kredik Shaw was really cool (sniff--why couldn't Matrix Revolutions have ended cool like that).
Right below them though would be Steven Brust and E. E. Knight. Brandon, Brust and Knight are about the only three authors that I keep track of when their new stuff is coming out.
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I'm going to go against your will, Kaz, and say Tolkien, who is not the person whose writing I prefer the most.
The problem is, when it comes to quality of read, I'm just not that attatched to authors—some are better than others, certainly, but I find more relevance in discussing books and series than talking about the author.
For example: I considered Elantris to be middling Fantasy (on the better side of middling). But I think Mistborn is excellent.
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Can't say that I can settle on just one favorite.
I'd say that the top few are Watson, Jordan, Hogan, and Chalker.
No scratch that. Dumas kills em all. :D
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Three Musketeers was excellent. He's a hard read in French, though. Man's vocabulary was huge.
(Nothing quite so exasperating as looking up a word to discover you've never heard of its translation!)
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Douglas adams is by far my favorite. Every book of his is a complete joy to read, and I find no parts of any of his work boring or mundane.
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Like most I can't decide on just one. A few of my favorites would be Martin, Sanderson, and Jordan.
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I love Diana Wynne Jones. She was the first fantasy author I read, and I've loved her ever since. I also love Terry Pratchett, Patricia C. Wrede, Patricia McKillip, and Robin McKinley.
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Now Lynn Abbey is particularly good. But I prefer the work she did in the Sanctuary anthologies. Haven't been able to get into her novels. If she hit on a topic and plot as good as Shadowspawn in her novels I'd move her into the list above. ;P
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For me it depends on my mood. If I am feeling lazy I know I can always read a Pratchett novel and they are all on my bookshelf so i don't need to go to the library.
I've loved Heinlein since I was a kid but I don't reread him so much anymore.
New authors, Sanderson (of course), I just read Old Man's War and I think I'm going to have to check out the rest of Scalzi (ducks :P), and Dianna Wynne Jones.
I have found a lot of authors that I love one or two things enough to buy and re read but can't stand some of their other stuff, Connie Willis for example.
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Hemingway.
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The Old Man and the Sea was enough to put me off Hemingway forever...
Granted, I read it when I was so young that I should probably give him another chance...
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The Old Man and the Sea was enough to put me off Hemingway forever...
Granted, I read it when I was so young that I should probably give him another chance...
That's my favorite novel (despite the fact it is in truth a novella), and I too read it at a young age.
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I can't settle for one author. If I HAD to pick it would be Brandon or Rowling (I feel like I spelled that wrong).
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As in JK Rowling? Man I like her but she is only a b+ author...either she or Orson Scott Card is the most over-rated author in the genre...but hell everyone is entitled to their opinion, else we are living in chains
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Orson Scott Card is overrated?
Rowling I can understand, but damn, The Enders series is a classic.
It's funny, I actually read an article by Card where he tears into Rowling. Doesn't seem like he likes her.
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I like Tamora Pierce, Anne McCaffrey, C.S. Lewis, and Gerald Morris. I don't think Gerald Morris is very well-known, but I love his books.
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I didn't care for the Ender series and Orson Scott Card has like 4 Hugos and 2 Nebulas and Enders Game didn't deserve the Nebula it received...so yes he is well decorated but i don't think his writing is much better than a B rate... to me he is on par with Rowling no more...
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Nebulas are voted on by the Science Fiction Writers of America. The writers all voted and decided Ender's Game deserved the Nebula. Therefore, it did deserve it. Maybe it doesn't deserve the Champion Kaz Award, but by definition it deserved the Nebula.
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I didn't care for the Ender series and Orson Scott Card has like 4 Hugos and 2 Nebulas and Enders Game didn't deserve the Nebula it received...so yes he is well decorated but i don't think his writing is much better than a B rate... to me he is on par with Rowling no more...
Debating the merits of a Hugo is one thing, but debating a Nebula is a mute point.
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Point taken...i have my moments...
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I dont care for Card at all, frankly. Ender's Game is a great novel, but after that I can't stomach the novels. Of course part of this might have to do with a meeting I had with him in which he treated me like I was stupid and verbally ripped to shreds a kid behind me. I was appalled and sold all my copies of his novels except my signed trade paperback of Ender's Game.
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Actually meeting famous people can be like that. I lost a lot of respect for Elisabeth Elliott when I actually got to meet her and interact with her. She was better on paper.
Of course, even famous people probably have bad days.
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Psssh...No they don't...stop being silly b/c everyone knows that if you are famous you are rich and Steven Colbert assures me that being rich makes everything better...now why would he lie? :P
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I hear that Card has a lot of bad days...
But I did like Ender's Game.
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Shouldn't a book be judged on how well it's written, and not how much of a jerk the writer is? :P
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Shouldn't a book be judged on how well it's written, and not how much of a jerk the writer is? :P
I can understand what Bookstore Guy is saying. There are people I know to be good workers, but because I also know that they're jerks I criticise their work unfairly. It's hard to seperate the person from their work.
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I agree with Eerongal that it should be the person's work that matters, not his/her attitude toward fans (or, for that matter, his/her lifestyle or moral decisions). After all, I can appreciate Mozart's music while not admiring his personal choices. But of course Maxonennis is right too; once we have a certain impression of a person's personality, that inevitably colors our judgment of their work. It's possible that had I met Mozart at a party, I would thereafter find it hard to enjoy his music.
Maybe it's just one of the dangers of book tours and interactive websites and such: authors need to be likable as well as knowing how to write. It might be wiser for some of the grouchier authors to cut back on the fan interaction, if it does their reputations more harm than good.
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i agree for the most part that it is the person's work that matters. however, when mr. author decides to yell at and then humiliate the 10 year-old behind me, i decide I dont want to support that author. it's the same thing with Goodkind - no matter how good his first novel, the only thing I can think of is him insulting his readers.
on the flip side, there are a number of authors who go out of their way to thank their fans for supporting them. their attitudes make me want to read their novels to support them regardless of whether their books are awesome or terrible. my first meeting with Brandon, for example, impressed me to the point of hard-core pushing his book in my bookstore. he'll be the first to tell you that the signings he had at my store helped his exposure tremendously. people like Kat Richardson, Lawrence Watt-Evans, Glen Cook, Neil Gaiman, John Scalzi, Brandon Sanderson, William Dietz, and Dave Farland make their fans appreciate them even more by not being jack-asses. These are the authors i will support even if sometimes their stuff isnt the greatest (though these authors ARE fabulous!).
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I never got to meet Mr. Rigney, all i know about him is common knowldege (the exerpt about the author ect.) what was he like?
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In Goodkind's defense, he's Canadian and a certain amount. . .
Um In Good kind's defense, he is a competent historical reenactor specializing in the long. . .
Hrm. In Goodkind's defense he's been around too many SCA types and believes his own press. :)
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Is there something wrong with being Canadian?
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my 2 favorite authors are Canadian, so im afraid i can't contribute here.
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His joke was that there was nothing in Goodkind's defense BECAUSE being Canadian, etc. isn't an excuse for his behavor.
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This is really, really tough, and I'm 200% sure I'll be leaving someone out, but my favorite writers (as of now) are probably Robert Jordan, for (A.O.T.) his fluency and wonderful descriptions, Patrick Rothfuss, for (A.O.T.) his plot and character development and his magic system, D.J. MacHale for (A.O.T.) his contemporary, funny, yet still engaging writing and Ray Bradbury, if only for the fact that his beautiful short stories were perhaps the only things I've ever read that have ever made me lose 4+ hours of sleep.
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Favorite fantasy authors working now are Brandon Sanderson and R. Scott Bakker
Favorite deceased fantasy authors and J.R.R. Tolkien and Robert Jordan
Other favorites include Chuck Palahniuk, Mark Z. Danielewski, Will Christopher Baer, David Foster Wallace, Ernest Hemingway, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Leo Tolstoy
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Oooh fun topic! ;D
I'm not ready to narrow my favorite authors into certain categories. In fact I only have two, and they are very generalistic (I know it's not a word but I can't think of the right one *glares at her brain* ):
Category 1: Favorite Authors whose books I will almost always enjoy and will rarely hate, if ever.
Category 2: Nearly Favorite Authors of whom I like some of their books but I want to see more out of them before I can add them to C1 and/or some of their books I really enjoy and some of them I don't and they will never be added to C1.
It seems I need to take some analytical classes in college and then maybe I'll stop liking almost everything I read or see. Though I am much more critical of what I read than what I watch.
So...Category 1 Authors: Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss, Jacqueline Carey, and Juliet Marillier. I also really enjoy Tom Clancy, John Grisham and Philip Yancey though I don't read them as often as the others anymore.
Category 2 Authors: Stephenie Meyer (yeah, bite me! :P), J.K. Rowling, George R.R. Martin (an example of an author who while I really enjoy ASOIAF I must admit I've been caught up in the annoyance of some fans in the misdirection and basically, I'm going to sell you something all the time aspect of his blog. Blogs do influence how I see an author, which is probably why Brandon and Patrick are definite favorites while GRRM is relegated to C2), Orson Scott Card, Scott Lynch, Robert Jordan (yeah, balefire me!), Jane Austen and Alison Croggon.
Feel free to discuss/pester me about my choices though I'm not sure how well I'll be able to articulate my positions.
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I'm going to cry my thread was invaded by someone brainwashed into thinking that Twighlight was indeed a book!!!! Darn teenie boppers are stirring up mischief again...this calls for extreme measures should a write and equally bad story destroying others happy dayd dreams about an awesome myth hmmmm... oh wait Myers ruined more than vampires... werewolves were mentioned too!!!!!!!! *weeps* :'(
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And it's even worse...I'm not a teenager! OH THE HUMANITY!
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I'm going to cry my thread was invaded by someone brainwashed into thinking that Twighlight was indeed a book!!!! Darn teenie boppers are stirring up mischief again...this calls for extreme measures should a write and equally bad story destroying others happy dayd dreams about an awesome myth hmmmm... oh wait Myers ruined more than vampires... werewolves were mentioned too!!!!!!!! *weeps*
Well, to add to your misery, the Twilight series is now becoming vastly popular in bookstores in Spain (at least, they were almost sold out where I went).
Also, to my list I was like to put John Flanagan.
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I'd also like to say that it was rather rude to say I had been brainwashed. :(
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Will someone explain to her that i am indeed a savage little man who does not adhere to the rules of civilization and by extension civility?
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Will someone explain to her that i am indeed a savage little man who does not adhere to the rules of civilization and by extension civility?
What he said.
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AND rude, glad that's all cleared up ;D
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The humours thing is by going about this over and over again you lead yourself only into hypocrisy... and if you are looking for an apology you're out of luck because i don't see how anyone could like something that copies mythos only to rob of them all of their designated charteristics just to make them into little disco balls.... not too mention the phrase bite me is every way as offensive as me being blunt and indifferent in my response...and if their is one huge turnoff (not neccesarily in a manner of courtship) it is blunt blind hypocrisy so before you go telling me of the spec in my eye go pull the plank out of yours....
P.S. for everyone else i do apologize for witnessing this spat
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holy over-reaction batman!
though i agree about Meyer ruining vampires. people need to read more Lumley...
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Well, to add to your misery, the Twilight series is now becoming vastly popular in bookstores in Spain (at least, they were almost sold out where I went).
It could be even bigger than that. I came across an article on the internet last month where they were estimating that 1 out of every six books sold in the US this year (yes, they said ALL books sold) had been authored by Miss Stephenie. Wow. Granted, The Host has been on the NYT best seller list for over a year now, but one in six? I want to decry this as a hoax, but there is still some part of me that hesitates. One in Six? Betcha Bookstore guy could debunk it. Whaddya think, man?
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i think i feel nauseous just thinking about it.
but yeah, that seems like an awfully high ratio. I'm going to call that number B.S.
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maybe someone forgot a zero or two.
1 in 60 could be believable. 1 in 6? no way. that assumes that 1 in 6 readers like Vampire Novels.. and ones aimed at 12 year olds at that. I would bet Janet Evanovich has sold more that her.
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Anyone who likes vampires should go check out a documentary of Dracula... the things he did were disturbing but they really do form the basis of the myth
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maybe someone forgot a zero or two.
1 in 60 could be believable. 1 in 6? no way. that assumes that 1 in 6 readers like Vampire Novels.. and ones aimed at 12 year olds at that. I would bet Janet Evanovich has sold more that her.
i dont know about the Evanovich thing - she is popular, but her fan base isnt as fanatical as Meyer. but yeah, there is no way 1 in 6 were Meyer novels. maybe at a specific store...on the release week of her novel...
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Sorry guys and gals it appears to have some truth to it. According to USA today anyways.
http://twilightersanonymous.com/usa-today-stephenie-meyer-novels-account-for-16-percent-of-books-sold-in-2009.html
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ah, sales for Q1 (January - March). No one releases books in Q1 in the US, so it makes sense. especially when you consider the DVD for the 1st movie was released in Q1.
the book industry is crap for the first 3 months of the year. April is the beginning of the sales increase which peaks Black Friday in November. December is lower than November, then sales completely plummet in January.
as an example, the sales figures at my bookstore (this was during good economic times):
A week in January: ~ $2000
A week in June: ~ $5 - 6K
A week in November: ~ $20 - 30K
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key phrase in the USA Today article - 16% of all book sales tracked by the list
so, out of how many different books are they tracking? 50? 500? 5 million?
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key phrase in the USA Today article - 16% of all book sales tracked by the list
so, out of how many different books are they tracking? 50? 500? 5 million?
The "list" they are referring to is the USA Today Best-Selling Book List.
Taken from usatoday.com
Included are more than 2.0 million volumes from about 6,400 independent, chain, discount and online booksellers.
Reporting stores include: Amazon.com, B. Dalton Bookseller, Barnes & Noble.com, Barnes & Noble Inc., Books-A-Million.com, Books-A-Million, Bookland and Books & Co., Borders Books & Music, Brentano's, Davis Kidd Booksellers (Nashville, Memphis in Tenn.), Hudson Booksellers, Joseph-Beth Booksellers (Lexington, Ky.; Cincinnati, Charlotte, Cleveland, Pittsburgh), Powell's Books (Portland, Ore.), Powells.com, R.J. Julia Booksellers (Madison, Conn.), Schuler Books & Music (Grand Rapids, Okemos, Eastwood, Alpine, Mich.), Target, Tattered Cover Book Store (Denver), Waldenbooks.
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and once again, it means nothing since it was for only the first 3 months of the year. there was no competition for Meyer novels, and she had a movie release pumping her sales. i highly doubt the 1:6 or 1:7 ratio is even close anymore.
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ok, 2 million volumes... 2 million different volumes? 2 million titles?
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ok, 2 million volumes... 2 million different volumes? 2 million titles?
@Bookstore Guy
I read you loud clear. I was just informing mtlhddoc2 what the ratio was actually concerning.
As far as what "2 million volumes" is referring to I assumed that it meant 2 million different titles.
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I find it hard to believe they are tracking 2 million titles and put her in first place... i mean, noone teacks the best selling book of all time any more? LOL (its the Bible, for those that didnt know)
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No other book has made an industry of interpretting a book so it is kinda obvious...
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I find it hard to believe they are tracking 2 million titles and put her in first place... i mean, noone teacks the best selling book of all time any more? LOL (its the Bible, for those that didnt know)
"Best selling of all time" means "Has sold more over the years than any other book." It does not mean "best selling book at every given moment."
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It's kinda a given Jade...I mean it's in the wording for any who care to think
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It's kinda a given Jade...I mean it's in the wording for any who care to think
No, not quite. There's a world of difference between "of all time" and "at all times".
It's kind of the like the difference between "he lived as the poor" and "he lived near the poor".
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Corporate purchases alone would push the bible into "at all times" territory.
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There was a short lived industry in commentaries etc. supporting Lord of the Rings.
Is it just me or is that pic on the USA Today article far more frightening than most serial killers?
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Corporate purchases alone would push the bible into "at all times" territory.
Do you have any statistics to back this up? I really don't think very many people buy the Bible that often...
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A lot of churches provide bibles at each seat in the auditorium. These tend to wear out and have to be replaced fairly often. I think that's what was meant by corporate purchases. The Gideons have some stats on bible distribution (not limited to their own).
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I'd be interested in seeing them.
Also: I think the ISBN has to be the same for it to be considered the same "book" for sales chart purposes.
For example, are two different translations to be considered the same book? What if one is a translation with lots of commentary? Etc.
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Well technically the King James Authorized Version is the property of the Church of England and, whoever prints it, it's still the same book. There are similar issues with the Hebrew text in the form of a kosher scroll. But yeah I think the Gideons do tend to merge all versions and editions into one lump for purposes of statistics. Except they do distinguish the volumes with their logo and copyrighted forwards, which by license can never legally be sold.
The only way I've ever encountered the Gideon stats is in the pamphlets they hand out when they are itenerating for donations. [url link=http://www.gideons.org/?HP=USA&LevelID=5&sc_lang=en]The Gideons International[/url]
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LOL, everyone likes to hate on Meyer.
All I can say is, Damn, I wish I could have a tenth of her success, for just one year. I'd be set for life :D
I much prefer her Vampires fans over the majority of vamp fans I've dealt with over the years . . .
If anyone is curious, I think Stephanie made over 50 million in 2008, which is like 0.2% of the total book sales in America (24-something billion).
Then again, Dan Brown makes more . . .
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Ugh. Live Action, Masquerade types. What a horror (as in the pimply teenybopper in a wool cloak with stakes and a hammer chasing through a convention center trying to tackle a middle-aged ingenue in fishnets and and a black pvc opera cape with fake teeth).
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Well technically the King James Authorized Version is the property of the Church of England and, whoever prints it, it's still the same book. There are similar issues with the Hebrew text in the form of a kosher scroll. But yeah I think the Gideons do tend to merge all versions and editions into one lump for purposes of statistics. Except they do distinguish the volumes with their logo and copyrighted forwards, which by license can never legally be sold.
The only way I've ever encountered the Gideon stats is in the pamphlets they hand out when they are itenerating for donations. [url link=http://www.gideons.org/?HP=USA&LevelID=5&sc_lang=en]The Gideons International[/url]
Technically, in the US, the King James Authorized Version of the Bible is in the Public Domain, and as such, the Church of England does not own it (unless you're talking about some recent CoE reprinting I'm unaware of, in which case that specific reprinting would belong to them). Furthermore, each edition of that Bible, published with a separate ISBN, is a separate book as far as a publisher is concerned.
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Aren't we talking authorship here, not ownership? Should be obvious.
Now that you mention it, my favorite author: God.
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Why must people make everything controversal...I will refrain from saying anything further in hope that this topic is dropped.
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Well if that isn't the pot calling the kettle black, I don't know what is! You know I love ya, though. :-* :-* :-*
I don't plan on closing down another thread. At least not this week.
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When did i ever claim to be a goody goody or even an honest soul? I just don't want a thread i made closed!!!
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No worries, mate.