Serials: When Good Stories Don't End.

As I’ve said before I’m an avid reader; have been most of my life.  I read constantly, and there are always books waiting for me when I’m done.  I read across genres and mediums.  This of course doesn’t make me an expert, but I do have very strong opinions on what I like and don’t like.  This post will be the first in a series where I talk directly to those of you writing…not as a writer myself, but as a reader.

Today’s topic:  The End…WTF, it’s not over.  Series and serials.

I love a series.  If the writing is good or the characters and the world are compelling I’m hooked.  I have followed series to their natural end, and have even roughed through some that should have ended books earlier.  But I’ve noticed a trend, at least in the romance and YA genres, which really pisses me off:  Serials billed as Series.

So what’s the difference?

In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous (typically chronological) installments -Wikipedia

A book series is a sequence of books having certain characteristics in common that are formally identified together as a group. -Wikipedia

Series will often have a continuing plot and characters that are present in all of the books, building up to a thrilling (hopefully) conclusion.  Serials are the continuation of the same story through a number of books.  It might be a small distinction, but it’s crucial to me.

 

I want my stories to end.  I need that satisfying “aha” at the end of a novel.  The non-endings of serials are incredibly frustrating to me, especially when I don’t see them coming.  I’ve hopped out of my bed at two in the morning livid at an author for essentially telling me “…to be continued.” , instead of “The End.”  This is the fastest way to get me to tell my friends, “don’t read that book, you’ll be disappointed.”

I realize the draw of serials for publishers and author; they can draw in readers and create a fan base that will follow you from book one to five to twenty five, but know your definition before you bill your story as a series.  If you’re book ends without a climax, but instead has a ‘hook’ then you’re writing a serial.

I crave the rise and fall of traditional storytelling.  Don’t get me wrong.  I love a continuing mystery in a series a thread that works its way through the stories, but each novel needs to have its own story, its own mystery, its own rise and fall.    Without this,  all you have is a extraordinarily long novel that would put George RR Martin to shame. 

So tell me a story.  Give me a start and an0 ending.  Don’t leave me hanging!!

Gina Drayer

Raising the Next Generation of Geek Girls

I mustache you a question, but I'm shaving it for later.

My daughter is almost ten and is well on her way to full-fledged Geekhood. She’s a Whovian. Buffy is her hero. She has an emerging love of comic books. She’s a maker and an artist. I love this for my daughter, but I’m also worried. 

Being a Geek Girls wasn’t always easy for me. Most of my friends never understood my obsessions. They didn’t get my references and joke. Being a geek has been almost as isolating as it has been rewarding. 

I see this changing. My daughter has girl friends that not just tolerate her quirks, but embrace them. They play “Don’t Blink” on the playground and have fun dressing like super heroes. She invites them over for Doctor Who marathons and shares her comics. They spend hours creating contraptions and inventions. Her enthusiasm is infectious and she’s well on her way to creating her own Geekdom. I only hope this continues. Shows like Big Bang Theory, Mythbusters and the ever popular comic book movie franchise have made all things geeky cool. People who’ve never cracked a comic book are now heading to Comic-Con in droves. So perhaps there is hope!

Right now it would seem, geek is chic.

Being the odd girl out isn’t the only thing a geek mom has to worry about for her daughter. Young girls are bombarded by images from the media telling them they aren’t pretty enough, sexy enough, or skinny enough. And sadly the same thing can be said for my beloved Geek Culture. Sexism abounds in the SciFi/Fantasy world. Comics are filled with scantily clad, overly sexualize women. Games are no better. Tall, big busted and a small waist seem to be the norm. Women with curves are discouraged from CosPlay, for fear of being ridiculed and harassed. Even in books there is an attack of women. High fantasy is filled with rape and forced sex. Science fiction and fantasy books that have strong female characters who engage in consensual sex are labeled ‘Chick Lit’ or Paranormal Romance.

 

Now I’m not saying Geek Culture is bad for our young girls. Not at all. But we do need to be prepared to combat these issues and find positive messages for our girls. They’re out there. We just need to make sure that our daughters see the good as well as the bad

I love that my daughter has embraced Geek Culture, and will continue to support her in any way I can. But I believe as the elders in the Geek community, we need to ensure the next generation of Geek Girls can proclaim their Geekdom without fear or rejection. There is a culture shift happening out there right now. Let's continue to support our young girls. Refuse to let cyber bullying, harassment and sexism keep them silent. Stand beside them and Let their Geek Flag fly.

Some of my favorite women/girls in books, movies and TV:

Meg Murray from a Wrinkle in Time.  Emily from The Amulet comics.  Miyazaki’s Kiki from Kiki’s delivery service.   Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  River Song from Doctor Who.   Agatha Heterodyne, from the web comic Girl Genius.  Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series.  Kaylee from Firefly. 

Why I read Erotica

I’m an extremely eclectic reader.  I love Chicks that kick ass and self-deprecating wizards.  Young kids discovering love or the strength inside themselves.  I love zombies and science thrillers.  Heart stopping adventures.  Achingly sweet love stories.  Every genre has something for me to love. 

But there’s one genre that doesn’t get enough love from the writing community.  Erotica.
 

 

I love reading erotica.  I’m not ashamed to say it.  I don’t hide my books from friends and family.  My sex life isn’t lacking.  I read erotica because it’s good fiction.  It’s one of the best genres to showcase true writing talent. 

Bullshit you say?  Most erotica is thinly veiled porn.   

Alas, you are right dear reader.  The genre, so often maligned, is filled with authors with little skill that rush to the sex and leave behind the foreplay.  Erotica, true erotica is NOT PORN.  It really gets my panties in a bunch that it’s acceptable for women to read grocery store romance novels with virginal teenage girls, but the minute you toss in adults who like sex and get wild in the bed it's somehow distasteful.  

It’s not just about the sex; I’ve read hotter sex scenes in Urban Fantasy (thank you Butcher and Harrison for that).  Good erotica is about characters and growth.  It's self discovery and growth rolled up into a hot sexy burrito of passion. (Wow that sounded less pervy in my head…)   Erotica is good reads!

What is good you ask… Well that’s not easy to quantify.  Like any genre, everyone has an opinion.

To start with let’s define what I mean by erotica:

Erotica is any artistic work that deals substantively with erotically stimulating or sexually arousing subject matter. All forms of art may depict erotic content, including painting, sculpture, photography, drama, film, music or literature. Erotica has high-art aspirations, differentiating it from commercial pornography.  (Wikipedia Entry for Erotica)

 For me, like other books it read, there has to be compelling characters, an intriguing plot and most importantly perfect pacing.  Don’t get me wrong… hot sex is a must, but if the writing is off then the whole thing doesn’t work.  One wrong sentence and the illusion is broken.  The scene fails.

This is why I believe any writer can benefit from reading a well written erotic novel. The author not only has to spin a character centric tale about two people falling in love (or lust… depending on the story), but they also have to choreograph sex scenes that are complicated and fraught with tension.    Pacing, stage direction, character building… it’s all there.  Don’t get me wrong, erotica isn’t literary fiction and will never win the Nobel prize for literature… but I don’t care.   I read fiction for fun and erotica is one of my go to genres.

Here are a few I've enjoyed:

 

If you have any suggestions, I’m always looking for new books to add to my reading list :)

Gina Drayer

photo credit: Chris Blakeley via photopin cc

Not Your Everyday Zombie Apocalypse

So I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump.  My focus has been on finishing my first draft, all other things be damned!  But I needed a break, before my brain melted, and took some books off my reading list.  I was looking for something fun.  Something that would be a quick read, so I picked up Ex-Heroes by Peter Clines.

My first impression was:  REALLY?  Just when I thought I’d read every imaginable zombie book out there, here comes Ex-Heroes.  I was expecting it to be campy and funny… I mean zombies and super heroes, but I was wrong.  Ex-Heroes had everything you’d expect from a good post-apocalyptic zombie novel just with capes and battle armor!

The book was better than I expected.  The main characters, the super heroes, had all the things I love from a good comic book; dark beginnings, murky pasts and complicated relationships.  Clines managed to build a dark and complex story around these characters while setting up a rich world and traditional zombie plot.

The book is told in alternating time lines, THEN and NOW.  This type of storytelling isn’t for everyone, but I enjoyed hearing about the back stories of the Heroes…even the Ex-Heroes.  To be honest I wish Clines would have made these two separate books.  I found the THEN parts far more compelling and wanted to learn more about the outbreak and the Heroes. 

A word of warning about format.  I started Ex-Heroes as an audiobook.  I almost stopped listening because the dual male/female narrators were so horrid it totally ruined the story for me.   It wasn’t the voice talent, it was the fact they insisted the female narrator say all the female dialog… DON'T LISTEN TO THE AUDIOBOOK!

 

I decided to give the book another chance and downloaded the ebook.  I’m glad I did.

Over all I’d recommend it for a fun summer read.   It was entertaining and defiantly not your average zombie book.  I will be checking out the next in this series… I need to know what happens next!!

The End

So after putting it off for weeks I finally picked up Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris.  I'll admit, I've been a fan of the Sookie novels.  I've read each one and enjoyed the cast of character, so when I heard that this was the end of the series, I hesitated to read it.   I hate when my favorite series ends.  I hate endings in general. 

But before I get to my review I just want to give three cheers to Charlaine Harris.    Charlaine was terribly bulled over this book, and I don't think it's right.  So let me just say, THANK YOU! for hours of entertainment.  And on behalf of fans everywhere, I want to apologize for the horrible way you've been treated. There come a point where fandom just turns ugly and I think we've reached that point.  Someone grab the fire hose!  People all over the internet cried foul and threaten her, threaten to hurt themselves and even cancel book orders if the book didn't end they way the fans wanted.  (most notable with Sookie and Eric together)

I honestly think Neil Gaiman's wisdom can be applied here when I say "Charlaine Harris is not your Bitch."

Get over it.  When you give your free time over to an author and their characters, you start to develop a strong attachment to them.  (I still have hopes that K. Harrison will find a way to bring back Kisten... but that's another series and another post.)  But it's particularly sad to see people take fandom to this nasty place.  Charlaine even canceled her book tour.  It's sad when an authors feel the need not to engage with fans because they're scared.  Seriously people... take a good long look at where you belong in the whole creative process.

With all that said...Now on to the review. 

 

Unfortunately, I have to say I was grateful for 'The End'.  I really feel she didn't give her most beloved series a fitting farewell.  Sure it seemed like she managed to drag out or at least mention every character that ever appeared in one of the previous book, but the story line was forced.  Furthermore, the story lacked all the things that made the other books work.  The wit.  The danger.  The hot sex. 

 Poor Sookie seemed to be right back where we started in the first book.  Taking care of the house, going to church and working at the town bar.  The whole twelve book series just seemed to be about Sookie sowing her supernatural wild oats, and now she's ready to resume life in her small town.

If you hare a fan of the series... well she does wrap everything up with an nice little bow, but if you are a lover of the written word.... it will be hard to get through.    I'm glad I read it.  I'm also glad it's over.  I can tell Charlaine Harris has grown tired of Bon Temps and her inhabitants.