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gmw · 12-26-2019, 06:36 PM

The second trend that you call "story teller's gene" I think of as "voice". I can't really call this a trend, it's always been like it for me. There are some authors whose voice I just enjoy hearing in my head. I can pick up almost any of their books and immediately feel at home. Sometimes the plots aren't particularly amazing, sometimes there are obvious holes, but for some authors it just doesn't seem to matter.

But when you're not enjoying the ride, the voice your head, you have too much time to think about the holes, the thread-bare plot or whatever. So you pick at things that seem like the reason you are not enjoying the book but really it's just that you don't care for the voice. Like, back to school and university days and that intangible quality some teachers had to keep your interest while others sent you to sleep.

For me voice is what best explains why popular author x doesn't work for me. Or why some people don't like some books that I think are as close to perfection as it comes.

Your first trend speaks of using historical events as a basis for a book. I am think it is simpler and more general that: most books are based on (or inspired by) what has gone before, be that movie, or real events, or successful fiction. I suspect that many times a book might be based on a book based on another book or real events - and so on ad infinitum - making it difficult for an outsider to tell where the author started from. And I also see this as a fact of life rather than a trend. Sure there is lots more of everything being published now, but so many of the cheap paperbacks I bought years ago were the same story told by someone different - and so unmemorable that if I saw the books today I would have no idea if I had read them before or not. Even looking through the non-fiction I purchased as a kid, I see books that are virtual clones (be they about aeroplanes, dinosaurs or whatever).

So I'd have to ask if what looks like a specific trend is just a reflection of the sheer volume that is being published now. Yes there is more, but perhaps not proportionately more?

12-26-2019, 06:36 PM	#4
gmw cacoethes scribendi Posts: 5,818 Karma: 137770742 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Aura One & H2Ov2, Sony PRS-650	The second trend that you call "story teller's gene" I think of as "voice". I can't really call this a trend, it's always been like it for me. There are some authors whose voice I just enjoy hearing in my head. I can pick up almost any of their books and immediately feel at home. Sometimes the plots aren't particularly amazing, sometimes there are obvious holes, but for some authors it just doesn't seem to matter. But when you're not enjoying the ride, the voice your head, you have too much time to think about the holes, the thread-bare plot or whatever. So you pick at things that seem like the reason you are not enjoying the book but really it's just that you don't care for the voice. Like, back to school and university days and that intangible quality some teachers had to keep your interest while others sent you to sleep. For me voice is what best explains why popular author x doesn't work for me. Or why some people don't like some books that I think are as close to perfection as it comes. Your first trend speaks of using historical events as a basis for a book. I am think it is simpler and more general that: most books are based on (or inspired by) what has gone before, be that movie, or real events, or successful fiction. I suspect that many times a book might be based on a book based on another book or real events - and so on ad infinitum - making it difficult for an outsider to tell where the author started from. And I also see this as a fact of life rather than a trend. Sure there is lots more of everything being published now, but so many of the cheap paperbacks I bought years ago were the same story told by someone different - and so unmemorable that if I saw the books today I would have no idea if I had read them before or not. Even looking through the non-fiction I purchased as a kid, I see books that are virtual clones (be they about aeroplanes, dinosaurs or whatever). So I'd have to ask if what looks like a specific trend is just a reflection of the sheer volume that is being published now. Yes there is more, but perhaps not proportionately more? Last edited by gmw; 12-26-2019 at 06:38 PM.