# Brilliant/Awful Writing



## jen5079 (Nov 16, 2008)

I was hoping that any of you could give me an idea about any short story/poem/book or basically any writing you thought had just great writing and books/poems/short stories or anything that had really, really bad writing. It would help me out a lot. I'm sure that something is burning in your mind to unleash. I would really appreciate it.


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## WriterDude (Nov 16, 2008)

Bad writing? The Golden Compass. I gave up reading that book. The story is decent enough, but the writing was aweful.

Great writing? Lovecraft.


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## SevenWritez (Nov 16, 2008)

"The Great Gatsby" is a compact novel of brilliant writing.

If you'd prefer a short story that includes in its narrative many great ideas I'd recommend Ernest Hemingway's short story, "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," which can be found in the short story collection of the same name.

If you're looking for more of a conversational tone in writing, try Junot Diaz's short story collection, "Drown." 

A novel much longer than Great Gatsby - and one that was a finalist for the Man Booker Award- is David Mitchell's "Number9Dream," one of my personal favorite novels. The writing is, to say the least, trippy, but tap dances in all directions without stumbling once.

These are all examples I can recall of superb writing. Hope one of them suits what you're looking for.


EDIT: For bad writing, pick up a suspense novel. That or Twilight.


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## jen5079 (Nov 16, 2008)

*Gatsby*

I'm glad that some thought that that book had great writing. I love the Great Gatsby and people look at me like I'm stupid for liking it because it's a "classic". 
I liked the Golden Compass. I guess I am a hit or miss kind of reader. 
I've read Twilight. I can't believe that so many people like it. I'm 21 and I think that it's immature writing. I don't understand the love of the series, but to each his own.


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## SevenWritez (Nov 16, 2008)

There really is no nice way to put it: if one thinks Gatsby is bad, said one must be an idiot.

EDIT: I meant the writing. If someone thinks the writing is bad, they're an idiot. If their gripe is with the plot, characterization, whatever, then that's their beef.


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## jen5079 (Nov 16, 2008)

Glad I'm not an idiot.


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## WriterDude (Nov 16, 2008)

I don't even know that Gatsby book and have no idea what it's about or who wrote it...


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## SevenWritez (Nov 16, 2008)

WriterDude said:


> I don't even know that Gatsby book and have no idea what it's about or who wrote it...


 
It's one of the most highly regarded novels from an American writer; if you skim through a few of those absurd "100 greatest books of all time" lists, you'll see Gatsby pop up in the top ten for most of them. 

I'm not sure of its fame outside America (you're from...uh, somewhere not America, right?) but it is a very good book. I'd suggest you go look it up at your library and give it a read.

EDIT: Part of its brilliance outside the obvious prose is how much Fitzgerald manages to put in it in so short a book. The novel is shorter than what you'd expect of a classic (in my school, you're made to believe anything with such a label is a gargantuan tome) and can be read in a day if you're free. I don't mean to say long means bad, but if you can cut out the excess and drive straight to the point, then do so, and in Gatsby, Fitzgerlad does.

 The novel truly does deserve the eminence it has.


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## jen5079 (Nov 16, 2008)

It's called The Great Gatsby and it's written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It was a requirement in high school AP English Lit for me.


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## Dr. Malone (Nov 16, 2008)

Writerdude: Read Gatsby!  It's one of the greatest novels ever written.  Even Fitzgerald's editor had barely anything to say when he received the manuscript.  An editor with nothing to say!  Just think about how good the book must be.

I've never heard of anyone not liking Gatsby.  That's insane.  There's nothing not to like.


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## Dr. Malone (Nov 16, 2008)

On topic, check out Kafka and Camus.  They're both foreign writers (German and French, respectively) but their stories and styles are amazing even through the translations.


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## Dr. Malone (Nov 16, 2008)

Oh, and Steppenwolf.


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## SevenWritez (Nov 16, 2008)

It's a shame Fitzgerald never wrote anything near Gatsby's level. I remember reading Tender is the Night and enjoying it, but it never quite reached the same exuberance of life.

Gatsby was Fitzgerald's greatest achievement and also his grave. Bum bum buuuuuuum.


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## Non Serviam (Nov 16, 2008)

In terms of style, I think the best American writer alive today is Bill Bryson, and the best British one is Terry Pratchett.  Although that may tell you more about Non Serviam than it does about good style, because I've selected for readability and humour.


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## Dr. Malone (Nov 16, 2008)

The only work of Pratchett's I've read is the anti-christ book he co-wrote with Gaiman, and I don't know if it's Pratchett or Gaiman or both, but someone is just completely ripping of Douglas Adams' style.


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## Sunny Rabbiera (Nov 16, 2008)

Malone said:


> Writerdude: Read Gatsby!  It's one of the greatest novels ever written.  Even Fitzgerald's editor had barely anything to say when he received the manuscript.  An editor with nothing to say!  Just think about how good the book must be.
> 
> I've never heard of anyone not liking Gatsby.  That's insane.  There's nothing not to like.



I dunno I always thought Gatsby was boring, I mean its wonderfully written yes but like Catcher in the Rye that is also highly regarded I thought both were snore fests.


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## Dr. Malone (Nov 16, 2008)

Gatsby: a wonderful narrator, murder, sacrifice, romance, crushing disapointment, organized crime, an undercurrent of dread and mystery.
Catcher: he gets in a fight with a hooker, drinks and hits on women.

None of those things bore me.


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## JosephB (Nov 16, 2008)

> It's a shame Fitzgerald never wrote anything near Gatsby's level. I remember reading Tender is the Night and enjoying it, but it never quite reached the same exuberance of life.


You may have already, but if you need more Fitzgerald, you have to read his short stories. They vary in quality, but even the lesser ones are good, by most standards. 

In my opinion, _Bernice Bobs Her Hair_ (here it is online) may be one of the best short stories ever written. If you aspire to write short stories, they are a must read. Whenever I'm in a slump or need inspiration I reread them. Some truly brilliant writing.


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## Foxee (Nov 16, 2008)

Pratchett has been compared to Douglas Adams and I can see where the correlation might be made but I find Pratchett to be tons wittier and much more fun to read. His stories make sense (eventually) where Douglas Adams seemed to rely more on the the idea of a mad world where not everything had to make sense.


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## Angel101 (Nov 16, 2008)

While I enjoy classics, I'd like to suggest some more recent pieces, since everyone has already suggested what I was going to suggest. ^^ _White Oleander _and _Paint it Black _by Janet Fitch are both excellent. This is just my opinion, of course, but I just love her style. It's entralling and clever.

Worst books ever written: anything by Stephanie Meyer.


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## Sunny Rabbiera (Nov 16, 2008)

Malone said:


> Gatsby: a wonderful narrator, murder, sacrifice, romance, crushing disapointment, organized crime, an undercurrent of dread and mystery.
> Catcher: he gets in a fight with a hooker, drinks and hits on women.
> 
> None of those things bore me.




Well its all on taste, my tastes have always been action/adventure, sci fi and some fantasy.
Its not like I dont like what Catcher and Gatsby were aiming at, I just never liked reading them in high school.
Catcher has to be one of the most dull homework assignments I have ever done and as for Gatsby I hated writing my turn paper for it.
Give me Tolkein, give me Clarke but keep me away from the catcher or Gatsby 



Foxee said:


> Pratchett has been compared to Douglas Adams and I can see where the correlation might be made but I find Pratchett to be tons wittier and much more fun to read. His stories make sense (eventually) where Douglas Adams seemed to rely more on the the idea of a mad world where not everything had to make sense.



Well then again that is why I liked Adams, his work was nonsense but very fun.
I liked Adams irrelevant humor


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## Katastrof (Nov 16, 2008)

Kurt Vonnegut's _The Siren's of Titan_. Ya _Slaughterhouse Five_ is a classic (and the ending is just amazing) but I think _Sirens_ is the most fun I've ever had reading a book.


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## Dr. Malone (Nov 16, 2008)

I started Breakfast of Champions last night.  It kind of reminds me of a American Douglas Adams.

Sirens of Titan is the one with the guy and his dog who form an army on Mars?


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## Foxee (Nov 16, 2008)

Sunny Rabbiera said:


> Well then again that is why I liked Adams, his work was nonsense but very fun.
> I liked Adams irrelevant humor


I guess you go for irrelevant...I go for irreverent. Thankfully there is writing for every taste.


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## Katastrof (Nov 17, 2008)

Malone said:


> I started Breakfast of Champions last night.  It kind of reminds me of a American Douglas Adams.
> 
> Sirens of Titan is the one with the guy and his dog who form an army on Mars?



Ya, that's the one.

Haven't read Breakfast of Champions yet, but I heard it was really good.


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## Wintermute (Nov 17, 2008)

Thomas Mann's _Death in Venice_ contains some very excellent writing. Bad writing? Dunno. Probably any crap from that Paollini kid.


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## spider8 (Nov 18, 2008)

Of the ones mentioned so far I found Gatsby ok only. Pratchett unreadable. Read the first 100 pages of The Trial by Kafka- monotonous, had to stop when I realised my eyes were going over the words but my mind was on football. Amber Spyglass (Golden Compass) ok. Catcher in the Rye, great little book. 

Sometimes I can go back to a book I've found boring before and love it second time around. Maybe I'd love Gatsby after a second perusal, I just lack the motivation to pick it up.

I'm a fan of most Ian McEwan, Nick Hornby books.


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## silentmockery (Nov 18, 2008)

I can't believe the phrase "best living American author" was used without including some of the true geniuses living among us today - Don DeLillo, Cormac McCarthy and Philip Roth for example?


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## C.Gholy (Nov 18, 2008)

Thank you guys for making me feel so much better. I've almost finished Twilight and I've found it really unoriginal. I mean I was expecting something original but it was just a typical romance/vampire tale. 

Gatsby sounds wicked.


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## Sunny Rabbiera (Nov 18, 2008)

Foxee said:


> I guess you go for irrelevant...I go for irreverent. Thankfully there is writing for every taste.



Actually you can say Adams is both, but because I am nuts and he was nuts then irrelevant is the correct word here


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## bryndavis (Nov 19, 2008)

Ahh yay, lots of Gatsby love in here!  Someone more contemporary who I think's pretty damn good is Neil Gaiman, I even love his stories for children.  Twilight - Ach!  I read half of the first book and it was painful.  I mean, at least even Harry Potter is <i>fun</i>.


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## SevenWritez (Nov 20, 2008)

silentmockery said:


> I can't believe the phrase "best living American author" was used without including some of the true geniuses living among us today - Don DeLillo, Cormac McCarthy and Philip Roth for example?


 
The problem is that these old guys aren't on the same level as the _other _old guys. My opinion, of course (and I haven't read Philip Roth, so I'll withhold my opinion on him).

I've read DeLillo and McCarthy; I like them, but they in no ways compare to Hemingway, Fitzgerald or Salinger. Their novels never reach the same level of brilliance that works from their older counterparts did. Or maybe I'm just reading them the wrong way. Who knows.


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## Swamp Thing (Dec 1, 2008)

Good -

Kafka's The Trial, Hemmingway's The Sun Also Rises.  Agree on Gatsby.  Dante's Inferno.  Wolf's To the Lighthouse. Current writers - Olmstead's The Coal Black Horse.  Poetry - Eileen Tabios' Reproductions of the Empty Flagpole.  

The book that turned me into a reader ages ago - L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time.

Bad -

Life's too short to read crap.  Mulch it and move on.


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## C.Gholy (Dec 2, 2008)

Ana Kata said:


> Twilight is an excellent book for horrendous writing.


Obviously that girl in my college class enjoys horrendous writing. I could not understand the whole thing at all. 

I must admit, I like Justin Somper. (He wrote vampirates) Very interesting plot ideas and something to understand. It's a good read for the on-the-go, then again I am quite a quick reader.


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## Dragonsoul (Dec 2, 2008)

Awful writing? I really couldn't stand Old Man and the Sea. I think it was mainly because it was extremely dull. I'm a person who enjoys far more feverish pace, with multi-layered storylines and this didn't appeal to me at all.

Good writing? I rather enjoyed Chosen of the Gods for Dragonlance. A bit much at times, but the characters are real enough (to a point) and the storyline's interesting.


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## SevenWritez (Dec 4, 2008)

I've always felt that Old Man and the Sea and A Farewell to Arms were overrated.

Garden of Eden and Islands in the Stream are both great Hemingway novels, but they don't get any love.

And For Whom The Bell Tolls was epic.


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## A. Mann (Dec 9, 2008)

For great writing with simple, crystal clarity and the least slight-of-hand I recommend Raymond Carver, Hemingway, Capote and Chekhov.


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