[LMB] SciFi vs Fantasy

[Dorian E. Gray]

Mervi said...
>
> Most of the time I don't care for SF (as I said in some earlier post)
> because it's 1, science heavy (I'm a 100% Arts student. Most science
> explanations make as much sense to me as magic.) 2, explanation heavy 
> (bored
> to tears, here) and 3, not friendly to female characters or readers. Of
> course, there are plenty of fantasy that contains point 3 and which I do 
> my
> best to avoid.

Your point 2 is what I call "The Curse of the Thriller Writer" or, "I've 
Suffered For My Art And Now You Will, Too!"

In hard SF it manifests as lengthy explanations of the science.  In 
thrillers, it manifests as lengthy descriptions of the shiny techy toys 
(usually weaponry).  In fantasy (yes, it happens there, too!) it manifests 
as lengthy digressions into the history and/or socio-politics of the world.

In all cases, the author seems to have put a lot of work into research or 
world-building (or sometimes in fantasy, both), and cannot resist the urge 
to shove the results under the nose of the unfortunate reader.

No matter what genre it's in, I consider it bad writing, and generally skip 
it.

(This is one of the reasons I dislike "The Lord of the Rings".  Tolkien was 
a bugger for dumping unnecessary background info into his story.  Maybe he 
learned it from Victor Hugo.)

Until the sky falls on our heads...

Dorian.
--
Dorian E. Gray
israfel at eircom.net
http://dorianegray.livejournal.com

"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
- Napoleon Bonaparte