Discussion of Writing Style
- Brenda Creech
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Re: Discussion of Writing Style
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> While reading this novel, I was quite taken by the writing style of the
> author. It seemed to me to not quite fit a usual "fantasy" style,
> but it also wasn't quite as alluring as a thriller or mystery.
>
> The closest thing I think I could compare it to, as strange as it sounds,
> is an Interactive Fiction game... one of those Text Adventures where you
> type the directions and the narration moves you through the game :lol2:.
> And I have to say, once I reached the realization that that is what it
> reminded me of, I loved it! I've never read a novel before that felt that
> way to me.
>
> I would love to hear everyone's thoughts on how they felt about the writing
> style, what they would compare it to, and if you think I'm crazy for my
> comparison! :techie-reference: :tiphat:
Well articulated. I especially enjoyed the mystery around it. The book is very uniquely written.
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> While reading this novel, I was quite taken by the writing style of the
> author. It seemed to me to not quite fit a usual "fantasy" style,
> but it also wasn't quite as alluring as a thriller or mystery.
>
> The closest thing I think I could compare it to, as strange as it sounds,
> is an Interactive Fiction game... one of those Text Adventures where you
> type the directions and the narration moves you through the game :lol2:.
> And I have to say, once I reached the realization that that is what it
> reminded me of, I loved it! I've never read a novel before that felt that
> way to me.
>
> I would love to hear everyone's thoughts on how they felt about the writing
> style, what they would compare it to, and if you think I'm crazy for my
> comparison!
I did appreciate the first-person perspective. I do not find it is particularly common in fantasy books, they tend towards the omniscient third person (which is generally my preferred actually). I find that often the 1st person books very easily be kind of awkward to read.
Baker’s choice of first person narration paired with his concise but effective descriptions did make for a very immersive book, as if you yourself were Grant. So, I think the comparison to an RPG is pretty accurate. There is an obvious level of separation between you and the character, yet a level of familiarity and immersion.
I think this style of lightly descriptive, narrative writing is most common in mystery novels (eg. Janet Evanovich novels, as leafs some of Jeffery Archers novels, a couple of the Jack Reacher books). I also recall it to be pretty prevalent in youth-fiction books I’ve read (eg. [i]The Hunger Games[/i], [i]Percy Jackson and the Olympians[/i]...). Classic books, such as [i]The Great Gatsby[/i] and [i]Catcher in the Rye[/i] (highly recommend this one if you also enjoyed some of the humanity in [i]Zona[/i]) often use a narrative style, but often I find them to be more descriptive or driven by dialogue.
If you wanted to try another narrative fantasy writer, maybe try Robin Hobb. I hear a lot of good things, and from what I know he writes exclusively first person. He more high-fantasy (elves and castles and dragons) though, so not quite the verging sci-fi/thriller that [i]Zona[/i] is.
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One of my favourite author's writes stories with a mix of a comic book feel to them and I love the style. I cannot say the same about this writer's style.
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