Lois’s answer to “I've always wondered what makes a story 'good.' What ways do you think would make a story 'good' (t…” > Likes and Comments
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Indeed, what makes a book good varies from one reader to another, which is why it's hard to find two people with the same list of favourite books. I think what I like in fiction are memorable scenes, appealing characters, and good plots. Particularly good writing skills are nice to have, but not really essential in my experience: I enjoy some novels that are well imagined but not particularly well written. And a 'message' is not at all necessary in fiction; if present, it should be subtle and unobtrusive.
I find it distracting if not well written that I can detect, and useful when I see good writing I can use. This writer can be trusted to provide an outcome for each book that I find believable and comfortable.
None of the novels I read are so badly written that it becomes a problem; but some are better written than others. Some of the older sf writers were quite capable of writing English, it's just that one wouldn't pick out their prose as an example of 'good writing'. It got the job done adequately.
I just want to say, I really, really appreciate being able to pick up any book by Ms. Bujold, secure in the knowledge that it will be well-written. That is becoming a scarcer and scarcer commodity, it seems.
I read an award winner recently (not an LMB of course) and while I'm sure it was "good", I didn't like it at all, so I would agree that "good" just isn't relevant.
I would even note that on more than one occasion I have thought one of Lois's books was comparative weak; but when I later read it a second time I thought it was great. The book does not have different words each time -- the reader is in a different place. "Good" is relative, even for one reader.
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Jonathan
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Mar 11, 2020 06:38AM
Indeed, what makes a book good varies from one reader to another, which is why it's hard to find two people with the same list of favourite books. I think what I like in fiction are memorable scenes, appealing characters, and good plots. Particularly good writing skills are nice to have, but not really essential in my experience: I enjoy some novels that are well imagined but not particularly well written. And a 'message' is not at all necessary in fiction; if present, it should be subtle and unobtrusive.
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I find it distracting if not well written that I can detect, and useful when I see good writing I can use. This writer can be trusted to provide an outcome for each book that I find believable and comfortable.
None of the novels I read are so badly written that it becomes a problem; but some are better written than others. Some of the older sf writers were quite capable of writing English, it's just that one wouldn't pick out their prose as an example of 'good writing'. It got the job done adequately.
I just want to say, I really, really appreciate being able to pick up any book by Ms. Bujold, secure in the knowledge that it will be well-written. That is becoming a scarcer and scarcer commodity, it seems.
I read an award winner recently (not an LMB of course) and while I'm sure it was "good", I didn't like it at all, so I would agree that "good" just isn't relevant.
I would even note that on more than one occasion I have thought one of Lois's books was comparative weak; but when I later read it a second time I thought it was great. The book does not have different words each time -- the reader is in a different place. "Good" is relative, even for one reader.
