Are Baen books really that bad?

[gbm]

Originally Posted by mgbino

Let's also take moment to recognize that Baen has always been a supporter of DRM free ebooks.

Baen has quite a few excellent authors (Bujold, Spoor, Gannon), a lot of enjoyable authors (Hoyt, Weber, Taylor, Flint...) and a few bad authors (Ringo, Kratman). They also have an excellent back catalog of classic science fiction authors like Kutner and Schmitz.

I do not see a single bad author in your post. Because you do not "like" an authors work does not make them a bad author.

bernie

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by Waylander

I've read some of Baen's output and have enjoyed it. It just seemed a rather harsh take on the company, particularly as it was the only publisher specifically mentioned in the article. It was as though it had been single out for contempt by the article's author. I kind of though he missed the point about the covers, as I always thought they were a combination of an homage to classic sf and a tongue-in-cheek take on it, but he just used them as a way of saying "these books have crap covers, have (supposedly) crap prose, and worst of all in my view, some are written by more conservative writers". Whether he's actually read any of the books I don't know. It's not even like I'm a rabid libertarian myself, but it just seems like he tarred all Baen's books with the same brush.

Exactly.
Which is why I mentioned all the classic authors they carry. And the non-conservatives in their ranks. Like Eric Flint, the self-proclaimed Trotskyist. Not socialist; but outright communist. And proud of it. Like any good writer, he doesn't let his politics control his stories.

Baen is hardly the hotbed of reactionary conservatism some keep trying to paint them as.

[mgbino]

Originally Posted by gbm

I do not see a single bad author in your post. Because you do not "like" an authors work does not make them a bad author.

bernie

Fair enough. Now stop smacking yourself, it's a bad habit.

[PurpleStar]

I am quite liking Baen books. Okay, John Ringo's prose isn't the greatest, but his books are darn entertaining. I have also liked David Drake and David Weber. I have a bunch more to try!

[RDaneel54]

Just for balance, I like right-wing, conservative, militaristic science fiction! So much better than that left-wing, liberal, namby pamby science fiction.

Not really, but come on. A good story is a good story. David Drake pumps out some good stuff for example. I ate up his Lt. Leary/RCN series.

[Calenorn]

I've encountered some Baen books containing long-winded passages about politics or economics. Within the context of the story, certainly, but clearly inspired by real-world issues.

I wasn't so much offended as wishing they would skip a bit and get back to the plot. Really, I can live without knowing the corrupt history of the villains' culture.

It's a peccadillo. Easily forgiven when their generous DRM-free policy is taken into account.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by RDaneel54

Just for balance, I like right-wing, conservative, militaristic science fiction! So much better than that left-wing, liberal, namby pamby science fiction.

Not really, but come on. A good story is a good story. David Drake pumps out some good stuff for example. I ate up his Lt. Leary/RCN series.

Gotta love that librarian.

[susan_cassidy]

I love a lot of Baen's books, except for fantasy, which I dislike. I pay no attention whatsoever to covers.

[cromag]

I love some Baen titles, I like others, and don't buy all the ones I think I won't like -- which covers a lot of ground. I don't mind that they publish books I don't like, since they're a business and have to appeal to a broad audience.

But the covers really do seem to be aimed at 13 year old boys.

[Luffy]

Wow I knew nothing about this Baen thing. I don't want to read any book from it. And no, it's not my loss.

[eschwartz]

Originally Posted by Luffy

Wow I knew nothing about this Baen thing. I don't want to read any book from it. And no, it's not my loss.

What is your loss is the time you just took to respond to a thread about something you apparently aren't interested in.

[pdurrant]

I'll agree that some of Ringo's and all of Kratman's books are overly preachy and on the right-wing of American politics. I try to avoid those.

But you'll miss a lot of really enjoyable stories if you don't look at Baen books. I can only think that the article writer has missed the wonderful books by Bujold, Lee and Miller, Flint, Spencer, Lambshead, Moon, Hoyt, ... so many great authors who aren't shoving political opinions down your neck within their books.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

I'll agree that some of Ringo's and all of Kratman's books are overly preachy and on the right-wing of American politics. I try to avoid those.

But you'll miss a lot of really enjoyable stories if you don't look at Baen books. I can only think that the article writer has missed the wonderful books by Bujold, Lee and Miller, Flint, Spencer, Lambshead, Moon, Hoyt, ... so many great authors who aren't shoving political opinions down your neck within their books.

Exactly what happen also when you set an arbitrary limit of what an ebook can cost for you to consider buying it. Actually the political views of the publisher seems to be a more rational criteria than a price limit.

[darryl]

The Guardian is not exactly a right wing newspaper, and this should be borne in mind when reading their articles. There is some fire behind this smoke, but Baen publishes a wide variety of titles. Yes, some of the hard-core military sci-fi is written by authors with right wing views, and those views are reflected in their books. If you are offended by this, don't read those titles. As some of you have probably gathered, my views lean generally but not exclusively to the right. But I can't recall ever putting down a work of fiction because of the left-wing ideas it contains. Whilst it may be a radical idea to some, it is quite possible to enjoy a book even when you don't agree with a single thing it contains. The exposure to different points of view is something we should all relish, for obvious reasons. However, if you can't do this, don't read the book. Baen has plenty of titles where even the most extreme leftist would have trouble finding something to take offence at.

Finally, I agree with pdurrant's comments about Tom Kratman and John Ringo, except that I personally love reading their books and seek them out rather than avoiding them. I also note that he has set a fine example for others in that it appears he has read some of their books and, having found them not to his taste, has chosen not to read more. (I can also see where he is coming from with his preachiness comment, which is not without some basis at times). And he has managed to refrain from condemning or suggsting a boycot of Baen for having the temerity to sell such books.

[tompe]

The problem is the suspicion that sub standard books have been published because they politically agree with the publishers views.