tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post3232195566025659232..comments2024-03-14T18:09:09.667-05:00Comments on Do Some Damage: Labor DazeUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-11098843532508446482010-09-07T11:58:20.626-05:002010-09-07T11:58:20.626-05:00The Dragon Tatoo did take forever to get going (Gi...The Dragon Tatoo did take forever to get going (Girl Who Played with Fire is even worse) but I just kept reading until I was done.<br /><br />Talk about savoring the moment. Old Larsson dropped dead proactically immediately after finishing the triology and delivering the manuscripts--three of them!Travenerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05160810997837674165noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-15071107623128663112010-09-06T17:36:23.088-05:002010-09-06T17:36:23.088-05:00I do chuck a book now and then and always feel ann...I do chuck a book now and then and always feel annoyed that I've had to. Sometimes it's a book that somebody else has raved about, then I feel really cheated. I always remember what I was told by a teacher, 'It's not the book that's at fault; it is you.' So I do try to struggle on but sometimes it just doesn't seem worth the effort, which is sad.<br />mcdrollAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-21701553286620120842010-09-06T14:51:13.717-05:002010-09-06T14:51:13.717-05:00I know the feeling of being less patient with book...I know the feeling of being less patient with books the older you get, but I'm thinking that, for me, it gets to be kinda the opposite.<br /><br />At 20, I would have given up on DRAGON TATTOO on page one. At 40, I decided to be a little more patient. Not the greatest book I've ever read, probably not in the top 100, but I'm glad to have read it.<br /><br />As I get older, I'm more likely to kick back with a drink and watch the sunset, too. <br /><br />But there has to be something to make me want to stay with it. Character. Plot. Setting. Mystery. Some hint of beauty, even if it's that I saw a really great sunset last week about this time and want to stick with this one as long as I can, hoping that the magic is repeated.Steve Weddlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03876211586767139613noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-10449369266055898072010-09-06T11:18:24.266-05:002010-09-06T11:18:24.266-05:00I'll give up on a story quickly when I realize...I'll give up on a story quickly when I realize the idea just doesn't work. If the core idea is good, if it sounds like an interesting story in a two-sentence description, I'll keep pressing and revising until my eyes bleed. (Though, uh, they haven't actually bled yet. I've heard that when that happens, you become a real writer.)Chris Rhatiganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05769089157184374652noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-25577058294310238742010-09-06T10:33:48.809-05:002010-09-06T10:33:48.809-05:00Like many people have said, as I get older I give ...Like many people have said, as I get older I give up on books a lot sooner than I used to. For me it's now when I get the feeling the writer is trying too hard to impress or please someone else, those slightly awkward moments that don't feel quite real. <br /><br />When I'm writing there's always a point in the middle of the book when I feel it's just a mess and can't be pulled together. Often I write scenes out of order just to avoid this so that when I get to the middle I have some scenes already written to plug in at that point.John McFetridgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09442198820998606682noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-86378388528144796372010-09-06T10:03:18.348-05:002010-09-06T10:03:18.348-05:00I used to make myself read everything all the way ...I used to make myself read everything all the way through. No more. As Nigel said, life's too short.<br /><br />How long until I give up? It depends. I may stick with a book for 100 pages if the writing doesn't offend me until my disinterest in the plot and characters finally does me in. Or it can be less than a chapter for certain styleless, soulless writing.Dana Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-69106214304729349282010-09-06T09:49:45.522-05:002010-09-06T09:49:45.522-05:00There are a couple of books that I've read tha...There are a couple of books that I've read that feel like work. Most of them involved school assignments, but there have been a few "award winning" books that I read to see what the fuss was about. Yeah - a couple of those took a lot of work to get through.<br /><br />For me, I always find the book I'm writing feels like work around page 100. I've gotten through the fun opening, I'm still far away from the end and I have to push for 100 pages to get to the real fun again. It's the same with every book so I no longer sweat it. I know there will be a couple of weeks of grinding through my writing and then the fun will begin again. Funny, but when I reread, those pages are often the most fun to edit. I have no idea why.Joelle Charbonneauhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13608552691748018256noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-60049865797914151722010-09-06T09:33:16.404-05:002010-09-06T09:33:16.404-05:00I agree about the opening 100 of 'Dragon Tatto...I agree about the opening 100 of 'Dragon Tattoo' and think the author does as well. He even said so on p22 of my copy, that the story had better get started or some such. I was glad I stuck with it, though, as I thoroughly enjoyed the remainder (it's like he learned how to write as he went on). I'm also inclined to leave books now at the point of real boredome - life's way too short.Nigel Birdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05529578665251906089noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-64314193576576733992010-09-06T08:29:13.142-05:002010-09-06T08:29:13.142-05:00I toss both my own work and the work of others at ...I toss both my own work and the work of others at any point I become bored. I have given up on a story after a page or two--or at twenty pages before the end. I have many stories where the ending just doesn't cut it.pattinase (abbott)https://www.blogger.com/profile/02916037185235335846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-48521019283933977372010-09-06T08:08:22.517-05:002010-09-06T08:08:22.517-05:00Labor Day is set aside for reading Chris F. Holms ...Labor Day is set aside for reading Chris F. Holms "The Hitter."David Cranmerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04749857752139212888noreply@blogger.com