Quote:
Originally Posted by DiapDealer
That all looks like Fantasy to me (and there's a lot there I like, too  )—not that I worry overly about the distinction between sci-fi and fantasy—but surely you're not saying you've had to stop reading SFF because you can't find anything that satisfies your needs? That small list can't be causing you that much grief compared to what you can enjoy, can it?
I just think we need to be careful about what we're actually saying. Are we saying; "I wish there was more upbeat and positive scifi"? Or are we saying; "I wish gritty, seedy, morally-ambiguous scifi wasn't as popular as it seems to be right now"? I'm OK with the first (although I still believe there's more than enough variety in the genre to satisfy everyone's needs), but the second seems a little petty to me. I mean, the only time you should need to worry about stuff you don't like is if you've run out of stuff that you do like... right? Plus it's never a good idea to ponder too heavily on why something you don't particularly care for seems to be so popular. I try my very best not to give a damn what other people like to read and focus on what I like to read. 
I'm not looking to read science-fiction that inspires real scientists to invent the marvelous stuff they're reading about (I'm not sure today's scientists are even science-fiction fans, to tell the truth), but I'm sure if enough people do want to read books like that... someone's going to write them. They might never make the top of the best-seller list, but who cares? Read what you like and don't read what you don't like—and I'm betting you never run out of reading material you enjoy.
Note: the yous in my tl;dr post are not directed toward anyone in particular (except for the first few). |
Well, I did say my list is shorter than most. I've made a habit of not taking the rec's from a lot of people. That list is what happens when I
do take recs.
ANd speaking of GRRM...I tried
twice to read that series...and twice I ended up giving the book(s) away. It was so...gory and gross and depressing and freaking SAD that I was just...
So, for all yall who would prefer GRRM (and I cannot understand why...although I have tried) yall missed out on a fire sale. I was giving those books away like hotcakes (HB, too). Couldn't even stand to have them in my house. *shudder*
I don't mind the sad stuff being out there...I just want to be able to avoid it better. I end up giving away a pretty big pile of books (which is rather painful for a book hoarder like myself) - or wasting money. Yall can have all the dark, gritty, sad, bloody books yall want. I just want people to stop pushing the "
greatest new sff book out! You gotta read it!" bloody, gory, eat your face off stuff on me.
I've managed to keep myself out of the dystopian cesspool that has emerged by being thorough enough in review reading to dig out the spoilers.
I'm pretty out there with my dislike of anything nightmare inducing. I tell my friends and anyone who's trying to rec a book to me that I'm a wuss. I don't want my hero dying, raping or anything like that. I can take a dark-tinted story...but gosh darned it! there better be a light at the end of that tunnel!
So, for me...I'll take an elf riding a white winged unicorn over a rainbow while wielding a magic sword handed down from his super-hero unknown father saving the day over anything GRRM can ever conceive.
