12-02-2012, 06:26 PM | #16 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 27,547
Karma: 193191846
Join Date: Jan 2010
Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD
|
13th? First 10 or 12? Number 9? Isn't it just possible that readers are simply tiring of the same old sh!t after that many books with the same characters/settings? I know I do at about the 3-4 book mark... even with authors I really, really like.
Readers share a big chunk of the responsibility here too. Just because authors are writing series that run to double-digit installments, doesn't mean fans have to continue buying them. If interest wanes and dollars start running thin, they'll wrap up and start something new. If you keep buying, however, there's no reason for them to stop riding the gravy train for all it's worth. |
12-02-2012, 07:28 PM | #17 |
Grand Master of Flowers
Posts: 2,201
Karma: 8389072
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Naptown
Device: Kindle PW, Kindle 3 (aka Keyboard), iPhone, iPad 3 (not for reading)
|
I knew some guys in a mildly successful rock band. They had a few hits, but got really really tired of being asked to play them all the time, year after years.
So I kind of think that there's some of that going on. Several years ago, I read the first few installments of Sara Paretsky's V.I. Warshawski series. But then I pretty much lost interest all at once; Warshawski no longer seemed interesting and a lot of the same sort of stock situations came up in all of the books. Paretsky could write when she wanted to, so my theory was just that she had no more to say about the character, but felt obligated (either contractually or monetarily) to keep pumping them out. (I haven't read her in a while, and according to wiki she took a 5 year break in the 90's, so maybe she got her mojo back). |
12-02-2012, 07:56 PM | #18 | |
Guru
Posts: 891
Karma: 8893661
Join Date: Feb 2012
Device: Kindle
|
Quote:
|
|
12-04-2012, 10:03 PM | #19 | |
Witless protection Agent
Posts: 290
Karma: 1002898
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Los Angeles
Device: Kindle
|
Quote:
|
|
12-04-2012, 11:37 PM | #20 | ||
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 27,547
Karma: 193191846
Join Date: Jan 2010
Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD
|
Quote:
Quote:
|
||
12-05-2012, 01:43 AM | #21 |
Indie Advocate
Posts: 2,863
Karma: 18794463
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Device: Kindle
|
That's certainly a relevant observation for me. RIP Feist and Wurts. I loved you for a while there, but then you just kept dribbling on about something I had lost interest in.
|
12-05-2012, 12:28 PM | #22 |
immortal observer
Posts: 24
Karma: 263256
Join Date: Nov 2009
Device: PRS505
|
|
12-05-2012, 12:32 PM | #23 |
The Dank Side of the Moon
Posts: 35,872
Karma: 118716293
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Denver, CO
Device: Kindle2; Kindle Fire
|
Yes, I should have said 'as applied to writing'.... now if it had of said 'spacing your characters' ....
Last edited by kennyc; 12-05-2012 at 12:39 PM. |
12-05-2012, 12:36 PM | #24 |
eBook Enthusiast
Posts: 85,544
Karma: 93383043
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: UK
Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6
|
For those of us who grew up watching the Apollo landings, "LEM" will probably always have that meaning.
I really see no need to make up silly words like that for the concept of disliking a book. |
12-05-2012, 08:05 PM | #25 |
Witless protection Agent
Posts: 290
Karma: 1002898
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Los Angeles
Device: Kindle
|
The other genesis of "Lem" came from Veronica Belmont on the "Sword and Laser" podcast and YouTube show. They were reading "Solaris" by Stanislaw Lem and Veronica could just not get through it. "LEM" became a verb for a book you just stopped reading in the middle. I prefer "LEMming" for things that jump over a cliff or a book that is so awful you should toss it into the ocean.
I am enjoying re-reading the early Kathy Reichs, Glen Cook and even early James Patterson. So it does not seem to be author or 'genre exhaustion'. This is why I posted the question. I want to know if anybody else has experienced this with favorite 'franchise authors' or if it was just me. |
12-07-2012, 09:18 AM | #26 |
Wizard
Posts: 2,549
Karma: 3799999
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: O'Fallon, Missouri, USA
Device: Nokia N800, PRS-505, Nook STR Glowlight, Kindle 3
|
I stopped reading the charlaine Harris books for that reason. The only book series i have enjoyed all the way through were planned fully from start to finish. Harry Potter and Dresden Files come to mind. Those have a known lifespan. We know in advance the Xth book will be the final. When things are open ended, that's when things get formulaic
|
12-07-2012, 10:02 AM | #27 |
Wizard
Posts: 2,776
Karma: 30081762
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: US
Device: ALL DEVICES ARE STOCK: Kobo Clara, Tolino Shine 2, Sony PRS-T3, T1
|
I can understand that after a while, an author might run out of ideas. If they can see that happening, I would prefer they go ahead and wrap up the series and tie up any loose ends, so we can say goodbye to the characters while we still like them.
|
12-07-2012, 02:54 PM | #28 |
Wizard
Posts: 2,986
Karma: 18343081
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Sudbury, ON, Canada
Device: PRS-505, PB 902, PRS-T1, PB 623, PB 840, PB 633
|
This is reasonable, but I wonder how many authors have read or watched "Misery", and are a bit nervous now about breaking it off with some readers.
|
12-07-2012, 03:25 PM | #29 | |
Wizard
Posts: 1,432
Karma: 25151986
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Seattle, US
Device: Kindle Oasis 3, Kobo Libra 2
|
Quote:
Michael Connelly's series have been successful with no diminishing quality. I think part of that success has been the characters who pop up each in other's series. It's fascinating to see Harry Bosch appear in a novel mostly about Mickey Haller or Terry McCaleb. Connelly has created a rich and stark world where we see each beloved series protagonist through the eyes of other leading characters. As much as I love James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux and hate to see him ever leave us, I think that series would have benefited by Connelly's treatment. |
|
12-08-2012, 10:03 AM | #30 | |
eBook Enthusiast
Posts: 85,544
Karma: 93383043
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: UK
Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6
|
Quote:
|
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
New translation of Stanislaw Lem's Solaris down to $1.99 | garygibsonsf | Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) | 3 | 06-26-2012 12:54 PM |
¿Convert unicode decomposed characters to unique/normal characters? | JohnQwerty | Calibre | 3 | 04-05-2012 12:08 PM |
Short Fiction Authors, Various: Stories by Foreign Authors: Polish, Greek, Belgian. v1, 20 Feb 2008 | nrapallo | IMP Books (offline) | 0 | 02-22-2008 12:45 AM |
Short Fiction Authors, Various: Stories by Foreign Authors: Polish, Greek, Belgian. v1, 20 Feb 2008 | Madam Broshkina | Kindle Books (offline) | 0 | 02-20-2008 08:41 PM |
Short Fiction Authors, Various: Stories by Foreign Authors: Polish, Greek, Belgian. v1, 20 Feb 2008 | Madam Broshkina | BBeB/LRF Books (offline) | 0 | 02-20-2008 08:40 PM |