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In unfortunate side effects,
I think that working on the Ridiculous may be spoiling me for reading. At least, some reading.
I started Michelle Sagara's Cast in Secret this morning, and it's not bad, but some of the literary devices are clumsy, and I notice. Perhaps clumsy isn't quite the right word. Some of them seem so transparent. Descriptions, infodumps, settings . . . I've noticed this with other books, too (although I'm noticing pretty strongly with this one). Not everything, but more than I used to. I've become more sensitive to the technical aspects of writing, now that I do more of it myself, and I'm more aware of when someone is handling them suboptimally. I don't know if I would have noticed the weaknesses in this book if I'd read it a year ago, when it was first given to me. (Maybe I would've. Some of them feel pretty obvious. But I wouldn't have noticed as much, and it wouldn't be such a trial to my suspension of disbelief.)
I am hopeful than there's less of it when she's finished setting the scene and characters. I hope so. I only have four paper books with me, and I'm much more inclined to be dubious of one of the others than I was of this one. (When your mother, who doesn't read sci-fi, says, "Hey, Miriam, this is sci-fi, you might like it." . . . )
I started Michelle Sagara's Cast in Secret this morning, and it's not bad, but some of the literary devices are clumsy, and I notice. Perhaps clumsy isn't quite the right word. Some of them seem so transparent. Descriptions, infodumps, settings . . . I've noticed this with other books, too (although I'm noticing pretty strongly with this one). Not everything, but more than I used to. I've become more sensitive to the technical aspects of writing, now that I do more of it myself, and I'm more aware of when someone is handling them suboptimally. I don't know if I would have noticed the weaknesses in this book if I'd read it a year ago, when it was first given to me. (Maybe I would've. Some of them feel pretty obvious. But I wouldn't have noticed as much, and it wouldn't be such a trial to my suspension of disbelief.)
I am hopeful than there's less of it when she's finished setting the scene and characters. I hope so. I only have four paper books with me, and I'm much more inclined to be dubious of one of the others than I was of this one. (When your mother, who doesn't read sci-fi, says, "Hey, Miriam, this is sci-fi, you might like it." . . . )