Wednesday, October 5, 2022

IWSG: October 2022

 


Fall is upon us and so is the October edition of IWSG. Much thanks to our founder, Alex J. Cavanaugh and all the admin of the Insecure Writers Support Group. Please visit as many of the group as you have time for as we share woes and victories. Find the entire list here.

What do you consider the best characteristics of your favorite genre?

High fantasy is my favorite genre and what I like best about it is that the good guys or girls win in the end. The journey to that victory is what makes it fun to read.

What I don't enjoy is 'dark' fantasy where there are no heroes and sometimes the bad guy wins. My daughter recently convinced me to read The Poppy War by RF Kuang. It is great writing, but the characters are all awful. Millions of people died and the series ended with very little hope going forward. Despite fine writing and historical roots of the story ideas, I regret the hours I spent reading the books.

Along the same lines, I'm not sure I can watch another episode of Blood of the Dragon. I find it to be a soap opera of the lives of an awful group of people. I don't care about any of the characters. Sure, the dragons are cool but they are such a small part of the whole mess.

"Certain things catch your eye, but pursue only those that capture the heart." Ancient Indian Proverb

The Rings of Power has many likeable characters and lots of mysteries to try and figure out. I'm really enjoying it.

I bought a new laptop finally. I'm still adjusting to the keyboard. I keep missing the shift and delete buttons. I'm just glad I finally have a good battery again. I see some coffee shops in my writing future. I'm trying to get back to writing every day.

"People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing. That's why we recommend it daily." Zig Ziglar

Do you have a favorite genre? What is motivating your writing? Ever read The Poppy War?


11 comments:

Liza said...

I'm with you. I find it very hard to read when I don't like the characters. There are very few books I start that I don't finish, but when it happens, it's usually because I can't get behind the characters.

L. Diane Wolfe said...

I love Zig Ziglar.

If I can't root for any of the characters, I can't get into it.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

That's a perfect description of House of Dragons. Everyone is just horrible. But it's like watching a train wreck and you can't look away.

Natalie Aguirre said...

I'm liking contemporary fantasy more than high fantasy lately. I don't know why because I used to love high fantasy. It's good to know The Rings of Power is good. I'm saving it for the holidays to watch. The Lord of the Rings movies are some of my favorites.

H. R. Sinclair said...

New keyboard! Woot. They do take time but they are so nice when they work. :)

Nick Wilford said...

Yeah, I definitely prefer my fantasy to have a message of hope rather than being doom and gloom. I still haven't read Game of Thrones. Is it all just people dying horribly?

Loni Townsend said...

That whole despair and everyone-is-terrible bit is why I couldn't read past the first Game of Thrones book (also why I haven't watched the series). I need something that brings a smile to my face in order to keep going.

I'm enjoying Rings of Power too!

Madeline Mora-Summonte said...

I recently read a book where pretty much all the characters seemed despicable, but I kept reading because I was so caught up in the writing and the plot, and it was definitely worth it at the end. :)

Ziglar has so many great quotes!

Victoria Marie Lees said...

I love the Ancient Indian proverb: "Certain things catch your eye, but pursue only those that capture the heart."
Good for you to have a new laptop. Yes, the keyboard takes some getting used to because we need to keep our hands up to type. You can't really rest your wrists. All best to you, Susan! https://www.victoriamarielees.com/

Damyanti Biswas said...

Oh, the disaster of bad characters. I can't quite decide what my usual response is. Sometimes I just can't watch because it is unbearable. But other times, its what makes it so bad, the reason I want to watch :P

Deniz Bevan said...

I'm with you, I don't think I would enjoy dark fantasy too much. Now that you mention it, it's true that House of the Dragon doesn't pick up any of the more funny bits from the book, it's all about the family battles... I quite liked Nori's character in Rings of Power!