tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post9077909798515392191..comments2023-09-29T05:32:04.308-07:00Comments on StrangePegs: Side Jobs (a book review post)Andrew Leonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-17352716760009138472015-04-24T12:35:52.895-07:002015-04-24T12:35:52.895-07:00Sally: Sure, no problem.
I just wish more authors ...Sally: Sure, no problem.<br />I just wish more authors would actually learn how to write rather than just use first person as the easy out.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-49334762101413438272015-04-24T12:34:18.896-07:002015-04-24T12:34:18.896-07:00TAS: I think that's probably more true with fl...TAS: I think that's probably more true with flash fiction than a regular short story, but I do agree with the idea that short story writers try too hard to provide some kind of twist ending.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-47662447502538559412015-04-24T07:04:24.934-07:002015-04-24T07:04:24.934-07:00I don't know these books or the author but you...I don't know these books or the author but your explanation of first person writing has explained a few things to me about why I don't like/get on with some books, it all makes sense to me now. Thank you. Sallyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14090018804016223955noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-25279201524156290632015-04-24T04:51:19.958-07:002015-04-24T04:51:19.958-07:00I'm not a big fan of short stories, either. T...I'm not a big fan of short stories, either. They nearly always involve death, as if writers of short fiction can't imagine any other way to make a dramatic impact in the shorter format.The Armchair Squidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10739833215220853127noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-28182107990349350942015-04-04T21:08:24.091-07:002015-04-04T21:08:24.091-07:00Jo: That was book 12: Changes. I have a non-spoile...Jo: That was book 12: Changes. I have a non-spoilery review up.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-23483444882574793472015-04-04T12:49:33.909-07:002015-04-04T12:49:33.909-07:00Oh definitely Andrew, one of my favourites. I thin...Oh definitely Andrew, one of my favourites. I think I've read them all but got a bit muddled towards the end. Think I missed the destruction of the red court.Johttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14087140585742801854noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-38988387980989898212015-04-04T11:52:36.907-07:002015-04-04T11:52:36.907-07:00Shannon: I think 1st hasn't actually peaked, y...Shannon: I think 1st hasn't actually peaked, yet.<br />I agree about Thomas, which is why I was upset by the story.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-16007854921254644242015-04-04T11:50:36.195-07:002015-04-04T11:50:36.195-07:00Jo: I didn't realize you read Dresden.Jo: I didn't realize you read Dresden.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-22728618269300931682015-04-04T11:50:12.364-07:002015-04-04T11:50:12.364-07:00Jeanne: I think that probably depends upon the per...Jeanne: I think that probably depends upon the person.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-358213991342744922015-04-04T11:49:36.331-07:002015-04-04T11:49:36.331-07:00Briane: I did consider that but, then, I checked t...Briane: I did consider that but, then, I checked through all of my reviews, and it seems that Butcher has neglected to leave any, yet. I guess I'm pulling for the first time 1-star review just so that I can say Butcher reviewed my work.<br /><br />The thing about third person is that it's the narrator's voice. In that respect, it's perfectly acceptable for an author to write all of his/her (3rd person) books in the same voice. That's frequently why a reader will follow an author, even if it's subconscious, because he likes the voice.<br /><br />I'll think about the 1st person question. The short answer is that it's like acting.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-74812508010873319922015-04-04T11:36:19.551-07:002015-04-04T11:36:19.551-07:00Alex: It's just how most people start out. I s...Alex: It's just how most people start out. I suppose because that's how most people think.Andrew Leonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13964775673414653644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-53794061796522095282015-04-03T22:50:29.981-07:002015-04-03T22:50:29.981-07:00Hm, I haven't read this one. I'm behind on...Hm, I haven't read this one. I'm behind on the whole series, though. I lost my place, got behind, and now I don't have the time or desire to go through my books to see where I left off and start again. Hmph. I avoid first person. It got way too popular there for awhile, and I don't especially enjoy reading it. Thomas would have been an interesting character change of Harry if it had been done right. He's very distinctive from Harry.Shannon Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00934641808195675935noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-30324099739480766332015-04-03T13:48:32.205-07:002015-04-03T13:48:32.205-07:00Not something I would ever think about and I don&#...Not something I would ever think about and I don't suppose for one moment I will notice them in this book. I'm not much into short stories, but can't miss out on Dresden tales.Johttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14087140585742801854noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-70178843565252512292015-04-03T13:47:13.349-07:002015-04-03T13:47:13.349-07:00I wonder if the more you write as the character, t...I wonder if the more you write as the character, the harder it is to switch to another character.J E Oneilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09780097298061829471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-57270369920535465352015-04-03T07:14:05.565-07:002015-04-03T07:14:05.565-07:00Butcher's probably going to downgrade the revi...Butcher's probably going to downgrade the reviews he posted of YOUR work now.<br /><br />The voice thing is well-taken. First person is really hard; I was trying to remember how many stories of any real size I've written in first-person. "Temporary Anne," I did, but I feel like I got the voice different than my own, in that I am not a centuries-old ghoul. <br /><br />Voice in general is hard. While I was reading this, I was thinking of John Irving and Tom Wolfe, two authors I've read recently. They both have a similar voice, overall; their characters are sort of hard to distinguish from book to book because the tone is so similar. Vonnegut is like that, too. So even writing from the third person can be hard if that person is essentially an extension of your own persona. <br /><br />I think my most successful creation as a character might have been Sarah in "Up So Down," in that as a lead character she is probably the furthest away from how I actually am. Saorise in "the After" is a close second. But it's tough, for any writer, I think, to distance the main character from him- or herself. First person just makes it exponentially harder, I suppose, to do that -- or exponentially easier to write.<br /><br />You did a good job, though, in differentiating among the various first-person perspectives in "House," and wasn't "Tea Kettle" first person? That felt different, too. You should talk about how you do that.Brianehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01616494058636881575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7658526372996117205.post-14864621781325456312015-04-03T03:50:18.565-07:002015-04-03T03:50:18.565-07:00I never really thought about that - how easy it wo...I never really thought about that - how easy it would be to make the character's voice your own but never grow past that. One more thing to watch out for when writing first person.<br />Not sure why people think it's easy. I find first person very difficult to write.Alex J. Cavanaughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09770065693345181702noreply@blogger.com