It’s not you, it’s me –

Maybe

Warning – soapbox ahead

Lately, I have been finding it hard to read. Except for a few authors whose stories are safe bets, I’ve found myself not wanting to finish books or continue series that I once loved. The big question I had to ask myself was, why? The answer was simple: some of the current writing trends just weren’t doing it for me. I like twists and surprises. I like a touch of intrigue. I love characters that reach out, grab me, and pull me into their world. But I have lost my taste for stories that overly complicate just for complication’s sake, and who go out of their way to send their characters (and me) through the emotional wringer… just because. There has also been a growing trend for books billed as “fast-paced”. Now, I enjoy a rollercoaster-of-a-story that pulls you in and keeps you moving just as much as the next person. But nowadays, I find that label often means I am about to read a story with little depth and a whole crew of underdeveloped characters. There is also a lot of telling, not showing. I know, I know! That phrase can be a hot button for some authors, but if you keep telling me a character is badass, or smart, or whatever, then the story should reflect that. In fact, I should have already determined that for myself just by how they handled situations in the story or through their interactions with other characters.

Now, to be fair, as the title above said, this is probably more a me-thing. After all, most of the stories that have the characteristics I just mentioned have 10x the reviews any of the stories I have written have, and review-wise seem to be doing well overall. But they leave me feeling frustrated, so I have told myself that there is no shame in not finishing them. Life is too short and the world too few of bright sparks to make myself read something that I do not enjoy. (Except the news. Now more than ever, I feel it’s important to know what is going on. However, it is okay – No. Not just okay, but essential – to step away and give yourself a break from time to time.)

Speaking of worlds, I often run across authors talking about their worlds and how they write them to reflect the one we live in. I can understand that, and in fact, I am sure there are many good reasons for it. But me, I just can’t bring myself to do it. I like to write the kind of worlds I would want to live in, not the world I do, in the hope that one day the latter will mirror the former.

End of rant, now for some pictures.