The Reading Vent & Rant Thread - Page 141

Sirtel · 10-08-2023, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

A fanfic turned a canonically gay character into a heterosexual with zero explanation. Yuck.

But the opposite is done very often, I think.

ownedbycats · 10-08-2023, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirtel

But the opposite is done very often, I think.

Yes. Goes all the way back to Star Trek fanzines and Kirk/Spock.

ownedbycats · 10-08-2023, 06:01 PM

Reading a book that used "raven-haired" to repeatedly describe a character. It was a bit distracting, especially when I started imagining them with a bird perched on their head.

DNSB · 10-08-2023, 11:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

Reading a book that used "raven-haired" to repeatedly describe a character. It was a bit distracting, especially when I started imagining them with a bird perched on their head.

You mean that she didn't have black feathers instead of hair?

Quoth · 10-09-2023, 04:30 AM

Well, raven-haired is OK once or twice, but not more often. It's a traditional description for very black hair in British Isles.

It is annoying in a novel if the author keeps repeating the descriptions.

I find "ginger" annoying in a book (and IRL), especially if linked to a fiery temper. It's English bigotry. It's historically red hair (which is various shades none of which are red) and people's temperament is nothing to do with hair colour. Ginger is used as a term of abuse to redheads in England, because usually they are Scottish or Irish. Finns, Jewish people (less common now) and a Eurasian region formerly in the USSR are the other commonly red-haired people. Supposedly King David was a red-head.

While we are at it, black eyes and violet. Some brown eyes (the overwhelming common colour) are very dark and blue eyes may seem slightly violet in some lighting conditions, or on film. In fantasy non-humans can have strange colours, but AFAIK no real animals have a black or violet iris.

JSWolf · 10-09-2023, 06:02 AM

What I cannot stand are awful romances very thinly-veiled as fantasy or science fiction.

ownedbycats · 10-09-2023, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

What is with people who do this?

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Oh for fudge's sake

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hildea · 10-09-2023, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

What I cannot stand are awful romances very thinly-veiled as fantasy or science fiction.

Huh, that's weirdly specific. For myself, I can't stand awful books. It seems a bit strange to me to hate awful SF romance and awful fantasy romance more than awful SF, awful fantasy, or awful romance, but to each their own.

---

I contacted the author I wrote about in #2050, and she wrote a very nice reply explaining that so far she'd gone with Amazon only because they make it very easy for authors, and the alternatives she'd looked at were difficult to use, but she was going to consider seriously publishing elsewhere in addition when/if she gets time. So I've subscribed to her newsletter and will be crossing my fingers

ownedbycats · 10-09-2023, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hildea

I contacted the author I wrote about in #2050, and she wrote a very nice reply explaining that so far she'd gone with Amazon only because they make it very easy for authors, and the alternatives she'd looked at were difficult to use, but she was going to consider seriously publishing elsewhere in addition when/if she gets time. So I've subscribed to her newsletter and will be crossing my fingers

I was able to finish a series due to the author taking it off Unlimited in order to offer it as a Kickstarter bonus.

JSWolf · 10-09-2023, 03:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hildea

Huh, that's weirdly specific. For myself, I can't stand awful books. It seems a bit strange to me to hate awful SF romance and awful fantasy romance more than awful SF, awful fantasy, or awful romance, but to each their own.

The reason being is that these books are not really SF or fantasy and all they do is get in the way when looking for books. I don't want them as results when searching for SF and/or fantasy.

ownedbycats · 10-09-2023, 03:16 PM

Back when I still perused Kindle, going to the Science Fiction > Alien Contact section was always hilarious because so many of the aliens are just human males, occasionally with oddly-coloured skin or horns or something.

The sheer amount of romance everywhere is a bit overwhelming at times, honestly. Skimming through Kobo's daily deals, it sometimes feels like 90% of the offerings are some type of romance.

JSWolf · 10-09-2023, 03:24 PM

Why is it so much romance is rubbish?

hildea · 10-09-2023, 03:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Why is it so much romance is rubbish?

Sturgeon's law

And since romance is a very popular genre which sells a lot, 90% of it amounts to a lot more than 90% of any other genre.

ownedbycats · 10-11-2023, 06:59 AM

God, I wish fanfic authors would stop tagging characters who appear for only two paragraphs (or even better, are only mentioned.).

The rule of thumb is supposed to be something like "would you show them on the poster if this was a movie?" but a lot of people don't do this.

ownedbycats · 10-13-2023, 03:45 PM

I wonder how long it'll take the Kobo recommendations to recover from buying two books from the same universe.

Spoiler:

10-09-2023, 04:30 AM	#2105
Quoth Still reading Posts: 14,217 Karma: 105212135 Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Ireland Device: All 4 Kinds: epub eink, Kindle, android eink, NxtPaper	Well, raven-haired is OK once or twice, but not more often. It's a traditional description for very black hair in British Isles. It is annoying in a novel if the author keeps repeating the descriptions. I find "ginger" annoying in a book (and IRL), especially if linked to a fiery temper. It's English bigotry. It's historically red hair (which is various shades none of which are red) and people's temperament is nothing to do with hair colour. Ginger is used as a term of abuse to redheads in England, because usually they are Scottish or Irish. Finns, Jewish people (less common now) and a Eurasian region formerly in the USSR are the other commonly red-haired people. Supposedly King David was a red-head. While we are at it, black eyes and violet. Some brown eyes (the overwhelming common colour) are very dark and blue eyes may seem slightly violet in some lighting conditions, or on film. In fantasy non-humans can have strange colours, but AFAIK no real animals have a black or violet iris. Last edited by Quoth; 10-09-2023 at 04:39 AM.

10-11-2023, 06:59 AM	#2114
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 11,035 Karma: 75555555 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	God, I wish fanfic authors would stop tagging characters who appear for only two paragraphs (or even better, are only mentioned.). The rule of thumb is supposed to be something like "would you show them on the poster if this was a movie?" but a lot of people don't do this. Last edited by ownedbycats; 10-11-2023 at 07:06 AM.

10-13-2023, 03:45 PM	#2115
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 11,035 Karma: 75555555 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	I wonder how long it'll take the Kobo recommendations to recover from buying two books from the same universe. Spoiler: Last edited by ownedbycats; 10-13-2023 at 03:47 PM.

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10-08-2023, 06:01 PM	#2103
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 11,035 Karma: 75555555 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	Reading a book that used "raven-haired" to repeatedly describe a character. It was a bit distracting, especially when I started imagining them with a bird perched on their head.

10-09-2023, 06:02 AM	#2106
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,798 Karma: 146391129 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	What I cannot stand are awful romances very thinly-veiled as fantasy or science fiction.

10-09-2023, 03:16 PM	#2111
ownedbycats Custom User Title Posts: 11,035 Karma: 75555555 Join Date: Oct 2018 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Libra H2O, formerly Aura HD	Back when I still perused Kindle, going to the Science Fiction > Alien Contact section was always hilarious because so many of the aliens are just human males, occasionally with oddly-coloured skin or horns or something. The sheer amount of romance everywhere is a bit overwhelming at times, honestly. Skimming through Kobo's daily deals, it sometimes feels like 90% of the offerings are some type of romance.

10-09-2023, 03:24 PM	#2112
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,798 Karma: 146391129 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Why is it so much romance is rubbish?