With the caveat that you don't introduce technology just as it's needed to get the MC out of a scrape, i.e. "Bob jumped into the teleporter (which has never been mentioned anywhere up until now) and escaped."
What truly ANNOYS you in books? And not in a good way.
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With the caveat that you don't introduce technology just as it's needed to get the MC out of a scrape, i.e. "Bob jumped into the teleporter (which has never been mentioned anywhere up until now) and escaped."
In Christian fiction, one plot device that absolutely drives me up the wall is when the MC is down to their last crumb, then suddenly, a basket of food appears on their doorstep . . . and there is no idea of where it came from. The implication is that it is "manna from heaven". No one ever claims responsibility for the "basket" and the writer never tells where the food came from.
There are two books where this is used, and both authors should know better: Janette Oke, in The Calling of Emily Evans (a good book, otherwise) and Robin Jones Gunn, in Secrets. Both are good writers, but this particular plot device is annoying when they use it.
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There are two books where this is used, and both authors should know better: Janette Oke, in The Calling of Emily Evans (a good book, otherwise) and Robin Jones Gunn, in Secrets. Both are good writers, but this particular plot device is annoying when they use it.
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I actually like that sort of thing at times, but I'm a nineties kid so the cheese is strong with me. Is a bit of a cliche in Christian fiction, to be sure.
Um, I hate it when writers are so in love with one of their own characters that they ruin their own story just to keep that person safe, or keep randomly describing how "sexy" they are. I'm reading some official Starcraft fiction right now, and every other reference to the FMC is something like "her lithe body" or "her dark, silky hair" or "she sprang into action with catlike grace."
*hurls*
I hear "huffed a laugh" as a sort of breathy, short laugh. Kind of like "huh" or "ha," uttered once and not repeated. So I think it works, but it calls attention to itself, so once or twice in a book would be sufficient. Using it over and over...no.
When the writer takes too much time to describe an otherwise ordinary situation. I remember reading in one of my friend's draft something like: Then, as he got up on his feet, he walked to the door and quickly reached his hand to its handle. His fingers wrapped around the silver sphere and, careful not awaken his wife, he opened it. I can picture how he opened the door, myself-- no need for so many words.
Oh god, the 'I'm too sexy for this novel' character who the author is so enchanted by, they can't let pass any opportunity to praise their super charming sexy awesomeness. More prominent in romance novels, in my experience, but certainly not uncommon in other genres.
*mutual hurlage*
Using this as a stepping stone...
when a character is superficial and has to notice every piece of sexyness about the opposite gender around him/her. I read a book recently where the female MC literately judged every male in the story based on his body/face/good lookies/biceps. Even the delivery guy got a good mention of his strong chin. xD
It was so blatant, it made me wonder if the author does this is real life! Every. Single. Male had some piece of hunkiness noted by the MC. No one was spared.
Oh my gosh, yes. It's the same thing but genderswapped in A Spell for Chameleon. There the author has a male character who describes each female he meets in terms of her sexiness and intelligence. And then he gropes a female centaur, but she doesn't beat the crap out of him because it was "an accident." Pssht.
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A Spell For Chameleon has some really disturbing stuff going on re: sexiness and intelligence.
I remember reading A Spell For Chameleon and a few more of his early books (mainly for the mythical creatures and puns) when I was twelve and wondering why he was so fixated on underwear.
Yup, I remember pre-teen me asking my ma what was so magical about my underwear after reading that one. It wasn't the best talk in the world.
There was another part in his novel 'But What Of Earth?' were a girl does farmwork for a long period of time to build up her chest muscles so her breasts look bigger to win the love of the main guy. I just..I don't remember anything but that scene really, just because of how random and off putting it was to me as a teen
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To piggyback off of this, when the writer feels the need to point out that every one of their characters is drop dead gorgeous it's really annoying. I mean, unless this is a story about models or something that contributes to the plot, is the over-sexualization really necessary?
I think in romance novels, since one of the plot points is sex a lot of the time, it might be. Sometimes we don't read for realism.
Just for info: None of my characters is ever "drop dead gorgeous" or ever will be. For me, as reader, such characters tend to be as interesting as dried mud on a tractor tire. The first-person narrator of my currently evolving novel-intention is a mute hunchback.
caw
Oooh, I like that idea. The reader gets to hear the hunchback's voice, but no one else does.
Ewwwwwwwwww!!! I've read series that had that kind of thing in it, and it was so bad I gave up a tenth of the way into the second book of it. I just can't handle that kind of thing without wanting to either slap the author silly, or projectile vomit on their shoes!
You know, a character can be drop dead gorgeous. If it's her wedding and she spent hundreds of dollars on make up artists and hair designers and went to the gym for five months solid and is wearing a designer dress, you bet she's going to be drop dead gorgeous! But when she wakes up a year later and the baby is crying and she only got four hours of sleep and her clothes don't fit anymore and she's gained weight...well...she ain't so gorgeous anymore.
My point being, characters can be beautiful if the setting calls for it. If they're gorgeous 24/7 without a flaw to be seen anywhere? Nope, don't believe it. You're right, Magicalwhatever, it's especially annoying if the author continually points it out because it starts to seem like the character is a static porcelain doll. And as blacbird said, that's boring.
I'm of the pov that even the most pretty vampire has a bad hair day sometimes. But it would be nice if handsome male characters were shown in the same light now and again. It bugs me sometimes how things that would make female characters 'ugly' to most are said to make a male character more handsome and just make their features 'shine through' the grime and what have you
That's definitely true. There are always circumstances when it comes to these things!
Oooh that is fantastic! Like BethS said, you're hearing what no one else gets to! I loooooooove that!!
I 100% agree with you. Characters that happen to be good looking don't bother me as much as the author's obsession with mentioning it every chapter. I mean, unless the MC is obsessed and/or in love with the person, someones appearance usually wouldn't come up too often unless there's a change to it. There's always exceptions of course.
It bugs me sometimes how things that would make female characters 'ugly' to most are said to make a male character more handsome and just make their features 'shine through' the grime and what have you
That's actually a really interesting point! I've never thought of it like that before.
I absolutely hate it when characters simply don't speak like real people. This was why I didn't like The Fault In Our Stars. I don't care how well read and wise you are thanks to your illness. You don't have ready made philosophical dialogs that elaborate at your ages. Stop it.
The second one is when everyone just loves the main character for no real reason and we're constantly told how loveable they are.
The second one is when everyone just loves the main character for no real reason and we're constantly told how loveable they are.
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I recently finished a book where the MC finds out she's half-elf. She's been living as a human for about 27 years and many of her elven memories have been suppressed. Her husband tracks her down because he needs her help in usurping the throne from his father. After wheeling and dealing with others in the paranormal realm(s), they go to the elven kingdom and after much lead-in and build-up on THERE MIGHT BE THIS HUGE BATTLE WE HAVE TO PREPARE FOR, several chapters spent on her re-learning how to fight using her elven instinct, several characters introduced to help them but doing very little except arranging meeting with each other, THE HOUR OF THE REALLY HUGE BATTLE HAPPENS!
And it's over in less than two pages.
(The last time this happened, A REALLY HUGE BATTLE was supposed to happen and the characters camp for the night on page 134. On page 135, they're exclaiming BOY, THAT REALLY WAS A HUGE BATTLE WE FOUGHT! and by page 136, I'd quit reading.)
Then all of these characters who may be friend or foe that have been introduced, especially one Really Important Character who's introduced in the next to the last chapter and the MC may or may not recognize him, but her elven instincts tell her she does and all of these repressed memories she needs to recover to help her husband?
We have to wait for the sequel.
If it weren't on my Barnes & Noble nook, I would have thrown this book across the room with such force, it would have sent a shock through the very time/space continuum and canceled the rest of the series.
And it's over in less than two pages.
(The last time this happened, A REALLY HUGE BATTLE was supposed to happen and the characters camp for the night on page 134. On page 135, they're exclaiming BOY, THAT REALLY WAS A HUGE BATTLE WE FOUGHT! and by page 136, I'd quit reading.)
Then all of these characters who may be friend or foe that have been introduced, especially one Really Important Character who's introduced in the next to the last chapter and the MC may or may not recognize him, but her elven instincts tell her she does and all of these repressed memories she needs to recover to help her husband?
We have to wait for the sequel.
If it weren't on my Barnes & Noble nook, I would have thrown this book across the room with such force, it would have sent a shock through the very time/space continuum and canceled the rest of the series.
Lack of pay off can be awful. Most of all if it was a great story until the ending. I think sometimes writers are told they have to make something epic to make it readable and so they try that and fail, when really, the story wasn't best suited to be told as an epic to start with. There's nothing wrong with a small scale story written well to
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