4 Replies to “First Cup of Coffee – August 5, 2019”
Poor pack rat. Foiled again!
I think you strike a good balance between spelling things out and leaving elements for readers to piece together for themselves. While I’m sure authors always think about things they wish they could improve with their own books, Talon of the Hawk is one of my favorite books ever. But you already know I think we will never have enough about Ursula and Harlan so I am totally biased.
If it’s any comfort, I would have probably reacted the same way with disappointment at seeing who authored the book.
I have mixed feelings about children of deceased authors continuing to produce content in existing series. Everyone brings their own agendas into the writing. The Berenstain Bears went more Christian after the son took over with titles like “The Berenstain Bears: God Loves You.”
I may have read one Todd book and didn’t care for it enough to seek out more. I sometimes toy with the idea of reading the rest but I know it won’t be the same. And I’ve moved away from male authors in recent years in general.
To be so defensive is interesting. Did he think he would be regarded as good as him mother in her literary playground? You risk being compared even more so than if you had just written your own stuff. You’re setting yourself up to get hurt but maybe he felt he couldn’t make it as a writer without piggy-backing on his mother’s success.
Bringing in Sanderson to wrap up Jordan’s Wheel of Time made sense because the finish line was in sight and his widow had notes. Sanderson has his own series to occupy him.
Yeah – I stand by my disappointment, though I wouldn’t have said as much to his face, had I realized. His defensiveness though… Yeah. Why keep writing in your mother’s world? A few folks have told me that his own stuff is really quite good. Not that I’m motivated to check it out now. It would be terribly difficult, I think, to feel all your success depends on piggybacking on someone else. Still, I respect creatives like Nicolas Cage who deliberately changed their names (in his case, from Nicolas Coppola) to avoid coat-tailing family members. I dunno. I haven’t had to face that choice, so hard to say what I would do – but I think writing your own thing is best.
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Poor pack rat. Foiled again!
I think you strike a good balance between spelling things out and leaving elements for readers to piece together for themselves. While I’m sure authors always think about things they wish they could improve with their own books, Talon of the Hawk is one of my favorite books ever. But you already know I think we will never have enough about Ursula and Harlan so I am totally biased.
Heh, which is totally fair – and part of why I wouldn’t change it, even if I could 🙂 Thank you!!
If it’s any comfort, I would have probably reacted the same way with disappointment at seeing who authored the book.
I have mixed feelings about children of deceased authors continuing to produce content in existing series. Everyone brings their own agendas into the writing. The Berenstain Bears went more Christian after the son took over with titles like “The Berenstain Bears: God Loves You.”
I may have read one Todd book and didn’t care for it enough to seek out more. I sometimes toy with the idea of reading the rest but I know it won’t be the same. And I’ve moved away from male authors in recent years in general.
To be so defensive is interesting. Did he think he would be regarded as good as him mother in her literary playground? You risk being compared even more so than if you had just written your own stuff. You’re setting yourself up to get hurt but maybe he felt he couldn’t make it as a writer without piggy-backing on his mother’s success.
Bringing in Sanderson to wrap up Jordan’s Wheel of Time made sense because the finish line was in sight and his widow had notes. Sanderson has his own series to occupy him.
Yeah – I stand by my disappointment, though I wouldn’t have said as much to his face, had I realized. His defensiveness though… Yeah. Why keep writing in your mother’s world? A few folks have told me that his own stuff is really quite good. Not that I’m motivated to check it out now. It would be terribly difficult, I think, to feel all your success depends on piggybacking on someone else. Still, I respect creatives like Nicolas Cage who deliberately changed their names (in his case, from Nicolas Coppola) to avoid coat-tailing family members. I dunno. I haven’t had to face that choice, so hard to say what I would do – but I think writing your own thing is best.