Into the Fire

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The thing about writing . . .

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The thing about writing is . . . anyone can do it, but only some can do it well. Or at least not badly.

I've been told that the ultra popular novels such as The Twilight Series and the controversial 50 Shades of Grey series were not written well. At all. This was not the opinion of a few – it seemed to be the consensus. Oddly enough, no one who liked either series seemed to care. Intrigued for different reasons by the storylines, both novel series accrued large followings who supported the movies rising from the tomes.

For those who slave over their craft, to see the astounding successes of these some would say "poorly written" books led to real disappointment. Other novelists shrugged it off, attributing the success to unique stories appealing to a large diverse audience. The Twilight Series cashed in on the growing fad of renewing the various vampire fetishes, and 50 Shades of Grey exposed the hidden, macabre, and perverse fantasies of apparently a significant number of the female population.

What these two novel series – and others no doubt – say about the reading population presents a conundrum of opinions. Is the "average" reader looking for unusual storylines? Do the average readers not care about the quality of the storytelling? Do average readers not notice how well or poorly stories are written?

The thing about writing is . . . some do it very well with little success. Others write technically well with little style and find success. And still others, to the dismay of those who do wonders with words, catch the attention of a large group of readers who care very little about how a story is told as long as it interests them for whatever reasons.

 

Father, I only ask that my writing be done as you direct. Period. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

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8 responses to “The thing about writing . . .”

  1. BK Jackson Avatar
    BK Jackson

    Well I have read none of the books in question so I can’t speak to the speculation about targeting the fantasies of the female population or what about any of them appeals to a broad swathe of readers, but you just never know when a character is going to resonate with you.
    I think we’ve all written books where we started writing about one particular character but another took over in our heart.
    But I suppose in these mysterious overnight success cases, character alone doesn’t account for it either. It’s hard to build a frame of reference because most of what is hugely popular I’ve never read. I did read the first Hunger Games book (which WAS extremely good) but not the rest.
    Closest next example I can think of is Jerry Jenkins and Tim LaHayes’ “Left Behind” series, though that’s been several years ago now. I’ve seen Mr. Jenkins’ writing get trashed time and again, but the bottom line is he & LaHaye came up with a concept and characters that appealed to people’s sense of “I want to know.” Enough to sell millions of copies.
    I wonder if maybe as writers, we should take this to heart, especially the perfectionists among us, and focus on writing compelling drama, whatever form it takes, and stop worrying so much about the nitty gritty of what constitutes “fine writing”.
    Isn’t it Steven James who recently released a writing craft book about “Story without Structure”? I’m not finished with the book yet, and he’s not advocating lousy writing, but he is talking about writing compelling memorable stories. As we’ve recently discussed his fiction–we can use Tessa as an example. I find her character deplorable, but she most certainly is not forgettable (though I wish I could forget).
    When I read and analyze my own manuscripts or someone else’s, I know they’ve succeeded when I’m so busy reading I forget to write comments on the pages.
    How you bottle that successfully time after time and use it–I don’t know. I don’t think obsessing about every story rule or convention is going to get it.

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  2. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    I didn’t read the Twilight series because vampires, et al, don’t interest me regardless of how the story is written or told. I haven’t read 50 Shades because sadism and sexual domination hold zero interest for me, and I can’t help but wonder how this “fantasy” for women gained such perverse traction for them. Having said that, when the “terrible” writing is mentioned, discussed, and brought up repeatedly, I tend to believe there is some truth to the claims. However, little does it matter when the sales of these novels is in the multi-millions of dollars, and their movie debuts gross multi-millions of dollars.
    So. I’m not a by-the-rules writer because I find much of the rules stereotypical and pedantic. In other words: boring. But several successful-to-some-degree authors have achieved that success by sticking to their story-writing formulas and using the rules to keep their stories “clean” (in the sense of no unnecessary words, i.e. too many adjectives, adverbs, etc.) and even predictable for their brands.
    It’s definitely confusing and frustrating to a writer who strives to put good stories together using quality craftsmanship to learn/read/discover how utterly successful some embarrassingly bad writing of a story succeeds in astounding numbers.
    I think the only solace comes to those of us who know we have a certain audience and it’s not necessarily a large one. We write to satisfy our souls, to create the kind of characters and stories we want to read. At least that’s how it is for me. I gave up on typical success a long time ago.

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  3. Bk Jackson Avatar
    Bk Jackson

    The profane will always appeal to a large cross section of people. I can translate that to a tv example. Early in this 5th season of five-o, before i quit watching, det, Danny Williams shot a guy in the face in cold blood. I was thunderstruck by how many people were totally fine that. While i didn’t see it, i understand his girlfriend intentionally ran someone down in a recent ep. Throwing laws and moral principles to the wind is very much in vogue.
    the perenially selling sweet books i don’t know–maybe its the polar opposite of the 50 shades crowd. You’ve either got the extreme of corruption or safe and sanitary. That which is in between must be a smaller chunk of the market.

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  4. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    I agree, Brenda, about the profane appeal. Without getting swamped in the political or philosophical, I will offer this: I believe there is such a thing as “trickle-down-evil”, and we see it demonstrated succinctly by this administration. With soiled leadership and examples, those who need an outlet for their rebellion, sinfulness, wickedness – call it what you will – find it “okay” since it’s exemplified from a place of authority. It provides justification for indulging those wicked ways we either suppress (as written about in the Patrick Bowers Files) or let go. If sin wasn’t satisfying for a season, it wouldn’t survive.
    The “sweet little romances” often contain a fantasy of their own – looking for that perfect romance that doesn’t exist, the happy endings most of us yearn to find. They supply the bookend to the wicked spectrum.
    As for the 5-O episodes you mentioned, I think those particular segments were an example of people taking the vigilante position, knowing there will be no real justice without taking it into their own hands. Definitely the case with Danny. In a foreign country with a corrupt drug lord who murdered his brother and put him in a barrel, Danny exacted his vengeance – and I’m not sure he shot him in the face (it was off-screen). The girlfriend hit (with her car) her very abusive husband who knifed Danny and they escaped so she could get him to the hospital. When she ran over him after he lay unconscious on the driveway, it was shocking. Again, people have lost their hope in justice being served.
    Does this justify the profane? No. Does it salve the conscience of those who indulge their wickedness? No. It sears it.

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  5. Bk Jackson Avatar
    Bk Jackson

    Danny ASSUMED his brother was dead in the barrel—he didn’t bother to check.

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  6. Brenda Anderson Avatar
    Brenda Anderson

    I’m very guilty of decrying the lack of excellence among much of popular fiction, and I’m saddened that authors whom I perceive as the best have stopped writing because their books don’t sell, but that lack of “excellence” isn’t unique to books. Look at the Oscars last night. Many of the best weren’t popular successes: Birdman, Boyhood, Whiplash (who ever heard of that one?)
    As you said, it comes down to telling that unique, compelling story. In the end, that’s what matters.

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  7. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    It’s the taste in stories poorly written that never fails to surprise me (i.e. 50 Shades). I mean, come on. Unique and compelling to whom? Wow. To think millions of women absorbed this trilogy, and some Christian women among them, is a bit shocking.
    And I agree on the Oscars. I tuned in toward the end just to see if Bradley Cooper or American Sniper would reap any awards. Nope. And all the political and racial pomp and circumstance? Give me a break. The “black” president has done more to amp up racism than any president before him, resurrecting a terrible past and making sure it stays in the forefront. Shame on him and all his cohorts.
    The Academy Awards are like watching some literary fiction win awards – the kind that nobody reads because all it consists of are superfluous words and images, outlandish metaphors, and a next-to-nothing storyline of emotionally disturbed people.

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  8. Nicole Avatar
    Nicole

    Fairly safe assumption, Brenda.

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