Re: Books!

by Ringdrotten Thu Feb 27, 2014 2:37 pm

Congratulations, Norc, that was well deserved Very Happy

You write well, and your arguments are very good (I wish I had thought of some of those when I wrote an essay about the book Laughing

) Reflektert! Smile

by halfwise Thu Feb 27, 2014 2:51 pm

That is a statement the readers could, if given the trust from the writer, very well come up with themselves. There are a couple of other examples where the reader is deprived of the chance to figure it out themselves, connect the dots.

That is an important point about what makes a good writer: they have to provide what is needed for the reader to follow the story, yet not so much to deprive said reader of the sense of reality that comes from figuring things out from the circumstances. It really pisses you off when a writer keeps thunking you over the head with the near-obvious!

by azriel Thu Feb 27, 2014 4:06 pm

Halfy! you naughty little fuzz ball ! your talking bout Peter Jackson again arent you ? eh ? eh ? eh ?

by halfwise Thu Feb 27, 2014 5:01 pm

by Norc Thu Feb 27, 2014 6:09 pm

thanx guys ^^

by RA Tue Mar 18, 2014 5:42 am

Would anyone recommend the books that the Witcher series is based on? I think they're written in Polish but there are translations available now.

by bungobaggins Fri Mar 21, 2014 12:34 am

Has anyone here read C.S. Lewis' Space Trilogy (it's something I had forgotten about for many years, and only remembered it tonight)? I read the first two books when I was a teenager, but could not get through the third book to save my life.

by malickfan Sun Apr 13, 2014 9:25 pm

Random thought, why are do many fantasy series span 7 volumes?-Harry Potter, Narnia, Dark Tower (I think), ASOFI(projected), Keys to The Kingdom...

Shrugging

Crikey I'm a geek-read The Fall of Arthur, Mr Bliss, Smith of Wooton Major, Father Xmas Letters recently. Started The Inklings by Humphrey Carpenter, with 1984, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea to follow.

by Mrs Figg Sun Apr 13, 2014 9:36 pm

have you read The Weirdstone of Brisingamen?

by malickfan Sun Apr 13, 2014 9:58 pm

Never heard of it, looks intriguing (and rather weird) judging by it's wiki page

I've been told on more than one occasion I own too many books for my own good (around hundred I think, hardly excessive imo...) and I have no interest in getting a Kindle so I'm kinda limited at the moment as to what books I can read.

by Eldorion Sun Apr 13, 2014 10:06 pm

malickfan wrote:Random thought, why are do many fantasy series span 7 volumes?

Probably because seven is considered a highly symbolic number, especially when you're talking about magic, which of course many fantasy series are.

Although I doubt that ASOIAF will finish in only two more volumes. Razz

by Ringdrotten Sun Apr 13, 2014 10:09 pm

He's said he'll write seven books, though, hasn't he? I hope he sticks to that, considering the pace at which he writes these books pale

by Mrs Figg Sun Apr 13, 2014 10:19 pm

malickfan wrote:Never heard of it, looks intriguing (and rather weird) judging by it's wiki page

I've been told on more than one occasion I own too many books for my own good (around hundred I think, hardly excessive imo...) and I have no interest in getting a Kindle so I'm kinda limited at the moment as to what books I can read.

you can never own too many books. Books are my personal obsession too. I would rather buy a book than anything else. Alan Garner is a classic author from the 60s The Weirdstone, Moon of Gombrath, Elidor are up there in my all time favorite fantasy books. Elidor haunts my imagination, its beautiful. He sets his books in landscapes I grew up in so they are precious to me. Once you read them you will never forget them. Very Happy

by Eldorion Sun Apr 13, 2014 10:25 pm

Ringdrotten wrote:He's said he'll write seven books, though, hasn't he? I hope he sticks to that, considering the pace at which he writes these books

He has, although the original plan was for it be a trilogy. He has since upped the planned number of books to four, six, and the current seven. The original planned first book eventually became the first three volumes of the series that were actually published.

Edit: here's what Martin had to say on the topic back in 2011, when ADWD came out. The whole interview is pretty interesting.

Do you still think you'll be able to wrap everything up in the remaining two books?

I certainly hope so! That's my plan, that's my intent, that's what I'm going to try to do. But at this point I know better than to promise anything and write it out in blood.

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/07/george-rr-martin-on-sex-fantasy-and-a-dance-with-dragons/241738/

by Ringdrotten Sun Apr 13, 2014 10:53 pm

Thanks, Eldo, bunch of things I didn't know! Well, I still hope he finishes it, and soon! Very Happy

by halfwise Sun Apr 13, 2014 11:15 pm

malickfan wrote:
I've been told on more than one occasion I own too many books for my own good (around hundred I think, hardly excessive imo...)

phttt....amateur. You merely dabble in the art. Rolling Eyes

by Eldorion Mon Apr 14, 2014 1:51 am

Ringdrotten wrote:Thanks, Eldo, bunch of things I didn't know! Well, I still hope he finishes it, and soon!

I mainly hope he doesn't "pull a Jordan", as they say. Razz

{{{Robert Jordan was the author of the Wheel of Time series, which was also originally intended to be a trilogy, but got so bloated and out of hand that even after 12 books and nearly 20 years, it wasn't finished when he died. The series was ultimately completed by Brandon Sanderson from Jordan's notes.}}}

by bungobaggins Mon Apr 14, 2014 1:53 am

I'm thinking about getting into a new book series, and Wheel of Time is one that I'm considering.

by halfwise Mon Apr 14, 2014 2:23 am

One of these days I'll work up enough gumption to tackle Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Not sure why, I just feel I should. (may be because Isaac Asimov said it inspired his creation of the Foundation series.)

by Eldorion Mon Apr 14, 2014 6:09 am

@bungo Years ago, I almost borrowed The Wheel of Time from the same friend I initially borrowed The Silmarillion from, but his comments on the series put me off. I haven't been tempted by any of the other things I've heard about the series since then.

@Halfy I too would be interested to read The Decline and Fall, though the only version I've actually seen in a bookstore is an abridged one volume edition. Though maybe that's not such a bad thing for a first-time Gibbon reader. Shrugging

by bungobaggins Mon Apr 14, 2014 4:23 pm

What were his comments that put you off?

by malickfan Mon Apr 14, 2014 6:35 pm

Yes, do tell Eldo! Weirdly enough I was thinking about reading The Foundation Trilogy and The Wheel of Time series only yesterday..

by halfwise Mon Apr 14, 2014 7:05 pm

Well, if you haven't read the Foundation series you really should. But remember it's about grand sweeping ideas rather than great characters and plots. His writing is slightly cartoonish at times.

by Eldorion Mon Apr 14, 2014 8:09 pm

bungobaggins wrote:What were his comments that put you off?

Well, he liked the first five or so books, but he said that after that the quality fell off and the pacing became unbelievably atrocious (paraphrasing here since these conversations were about seven years ago, at which point it was unclear if the series would ever be completed).

by Eldorion Mon Apr 14, 2014 8:11 pm

malickfan wrote:

Yes, do tell Eldo! Weirdly enough I was thinking about reading The Foundation Trilogy and The Wheel of Time series only yesterday..

I really enjoyed the Foundation series, though like Halfy says it's very much a "big ideas" series. Even though it spans centuries and has few if any immortals, there are definitely some very memorable characters in there. The presentation is a little on the dry side, though.