The trouble with writing out of your element
“They” say that one of the best things a writer can do to hone his/her craft is to read. I read. Quite a bit, in fact. I read non-fiction, contemporary fiction, classical fiction, cookbooks, how-to books… I read it all.
I don’t read sci-fi/fantasy. There are a few notable exceptions, but for the most part, I tend to steer clear of that section of the book store. It’s usually scarily close to Mystery and Romance, and for me, “genre” fiction just ain’t my bag.
I’ve read Contact by Carl Sagan. I’ve read several Neal Stephenson novels and loved them. I’ve read Tolkien, Herbert, Clarke, Asimov and, of course, Vonnegut and Adams (though I don’t really count either Vonnegut and Adams in the category of sci-fi/fantasy). Note, however, that the most of my sci-fi/fantasy reading is by authors who have crossed from “genre” to main stream. Movies have been made based on their work (to varying degrees of success, of course). In some cases, their books have become required reading.
The issue I’m running into now, is that I know that if I want to improve my technique within genre writing, I HAVE to read the genre. What makes a good sci-fi/fantasy novel? My answer is “one that makes me feel like I’m not actually reading a sci-fi/fantasy novel.” If I’m perfectly honest, after peeking at a few of Jim’s, I often find myself cringing at the cheesy dialog or pedestrian narrative. Despite the flawed (to my mind, at least) writing, he seems to enjoy them. In fact, he’s re-read several of them and rarely reads anything NOT sci-fi/fantasy.
I know I should read more of them. I am just having trouble getting myself to actually do it. I know that at the very least it may help me unfold how sci-fi/fantasy writers incorporate otherworldly concepts and ideas into a narrative that keeps the reader a) immersed in the story and b) informed about the concept that was invented. I just have to find one that doesn’t make me want to run screaming for the hills.
If you have any suggestions for GOOD sci-fi/fantasy novels that are not necessarily mainstream and that are actually written well, PLEASE leave them in the comments section. In the meantime, I suppose I could dust off my copy of The Diamond Age and give that another whirl…
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::Cracks fingers::
Welcome to my world. Granted, I tend to skew more fantasy than sci-fi, but if you’re looking to read, I can help.
Start with Robin Hobb’s Farseer trilogy – Assassin’s Apprentice, Royal Assassin, Assassin’s Quest.
Then, tackle K.J. Parker’s dark, low fantasy Engineer Trilogy – Devices and Desires, Evil for Evil, The Escapement.
If you want to catch a story in the making, check out Pat Rothfuss’s The Name of the Wind (the first of a series, but he hasn’t written the sequels yet.)
As far as Sci-Fi goes, television is your friend there – watch Battlestar Galactica which is fantastic up to the last hour.
There’s more good sci-fi out there, too. Tor.com is your spec-fic best friend.
One of us. One of us. One of us.
I say “sci-fi/fantasy” as a catch-all, but if I had to peg it to one or the other, it definitely falls more into fantasy. No aliens or space or anything like that. This falls in the realm of “magic,” metaphysics, mysticism and life after death. Not so much wizards or sorcerers… I’ve been thinking of it as if Dead Like Me had a 3-way with Wanted (that Angelina Jolie movie) and the Matrix – minus the computer generated Agents or curving bullets.
Anyway, thank you muchly for the suggestions! I’ll take a gander at them (wonder if Jim has any of them already). I’ll probably post excerpts or bits of notes a little later to give more of an idea where this story’s going.
For Sci-Fi, try Octavia Butler, Orson Scott Card, but especially, especially, especially Ray Bradbury. He’s a lot more than Farehnheit 451, and if you didn’t like Farenheit 451 in school, it’s better than you remember it. No one can say Bradbury has flawed writing.
If you like Neal Stephenson, you might also try Vernor Vinge or Cory Doctorow. James Patrick Kelley is also great. I think those last two have quite a bit of shorter stuff free online.
For fantasy, Bradley’s right about Robin Hobb, although it sounds like some of the stuff she wrote under the name of Megan Lindholm might be closer to what you’re writing. I also reccomend Scott Card’s Alvin Maker series. He also wrote some stand alone contemporary fantasies that are closer to what you’re writing, of which Magic Street is probably the best in general, maybe Enchantment. I love Treasure Box, but it’s more of a “fun” book than a serious one, and I don’t reccomend it to everyone because not everybody enjoys reading a writer who just seems to be playing around and having fun in a book more than they’re trying to write the next Great American Novel. I sometimes do, though. Treasure Box worked for me.
If you like Adams and Pratchett, though, the next logical step into a little more of a mix of the dramatic and the humourous is Neil Gaiman. Your story might be in the same general ballpark as Neverwhere.
I know you said not mainstream, but for what it sounds like you’re writing, I’d also suggest dabbling in some Koontz and King (in that order).
I haven’t read it yet, but for life after death, I’ve heard good things about Neal Shusterman’s Everlost. I have also heard that his book Unwind is powerful. They’re both YA novels, the first one a fantasy, the second one Sci-Fi, but I’ve only talked to adults who have read them, and everyone’s liked them, strongly enough that I’m recommending them without reading them.
Also, you might want to read a Jim Butcher novel, not because you’re going to love it (I’ve only read the first book in the series, didn’t love it, but I’ve heard they get better) but because it’s sort of what every gritty contemporary magical urban fantasy is being compared to right now. The good news is you might see it as a low hurdle to jump. Ask someobody who likes Butcher, they might be able to tell you a good one you’ll enjoy more than I liked Storm Front, the first book.
Thanks Doc – Bradbury is another one I forgot about completely. I enjoyed 451 when I read it in Jr. High, but it’s been since about then since I read it. Will definitely re-read – and branch out from there.
What you said about Butcher has me intrigued, so I’ll check it out. At the very least, I may see how not to do it (which is sometimes more helpful than how TO). I’ve actually read quite a bit of Koontz and King – neither are really where I’m going, but they are both pretty strong in their 3rd person narrative skills. I’ll have to take another gander at them for help with technique.
You’ve given me A LOT to go on! Thank you so much. I’ll, no doubt, be posting little reviews and comments about what I’ve read as the year goes on.
Hey Mo. I got into science fiction without ever quite realizing it. Doc had given me Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, and I honestly didn’t think of it as being what I thought of science fiction at all. I liked it for the characters and how they think and interact with each other. Around that time, I also read The Truth Machine and The First Immortal by James Halperin based on a recommendation by my brother. This dealt with nanotechnology. Someone then commented that I read a lot of science fiction, and that was the first time I realized that I did. I later went to a sci-fi convention and was surprised to see things about Buffy the Vampire Slayer there. I commented to a friend that I never considered that to be science fiction. He said that it wasn’t science fiction, but it is sci-fi. From what I’ve gathered, sci-fi is apparently a less hard core version of science fiction, which incorporates fantasy, supernatural, and maybe even horror. My science fiction tastes lean toward the supernatural and time travel, which is apparently a subset of science fiction. Although it’s really the characters and their thoughts that make a story for me.
Anyhow, I’ve enjoyed the Ender Series and the Alvin Maker series (which is more magic and supernatural) by Orson Scott Card. I very much enjoyed and highly recommend Broken Time by Maggy Thomas, it has a very interesting concept affecting time. I also recommend The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. Bag of Bones by King is also very good, although I wonder if that’s straying too far away from “science fiction” – the lines between genre really do blur. I just listened to Shadows by John Saul on audio book and it has a very interesting story line about a school for genius kids – I don’t want to say too much because I don’t want to ruin it, but I would say that what goes on at the school would fall under science fiction. I’ve listened to The Traveler by John Twelve Hawkes, which is the first book of the Fourth Realm Trilogy – I haven’t gotten to the others yet. I also really enjoyed The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. There is a movie based on the book, although I haven’t seen the movie. The book seemed to haunt me – I saw it first while browsing at a book store in Santa Cruz, then Mike’s aunt was reading it, then I saw it at Barnes and Noble locally, and someone else mentioned it, so I finally had to get it – and I enjoyed it very much.
Anyhow, I apparently do read a lot of science fiction now, but it doesn’t “feel” like science fiction when I’m reading it. It’s the characters and their thoughts that keep me going.