tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post3286897543532637006..comments2023-10-25T03:45:03.077-04:00Comments on Confessions of a Watery Tart: Naughty or Nice?Hart Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17599570189253229318noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-91309145865279579302009-12-12T19:56:19.556-05:002009-12-12T19:56:19.556-05:00Elizabeth-GREAT point! Making the murderer sympat...Elizabeth-GREAT point! Making the murderer sympathetic is totally tricky, I'm sure--I mean other than the self-defense cases... but now I want to read that! (I haven't)<br /><br />Marjorie-I stopped because it would have been too sweeping, I know... it is the 'three strikes' set I think I really refer too--hard on crime, minimum sentence standards REGARDLESS of the story behind it... THAT group. And I am totally with you on DD--love him all the more for his flaws, but I sensed them even early--a man THAT into love isn't alone without having made some grave errors...Hart Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17599570189253229318noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-15518861312017010182009-12-12T14:52:12.647-05:002009-12-12T14:52:12.647-05:00I think it was very good of you not to give the bl...I think it was very good of you not to give the black and whiters a political affiliation, because you would be wrong Tarty-Tart. Completely wrong, in my case at least. I enjoy stories that involve various shades of gray. Take Dumbledore for example. Was everything he did exactly the right thing to do? Perhaps not, but he believed he was doing the right thing at the time. I end up loving Dumbledore even more for his flaws than for Dumbledore when he was a brilliant Christ-like figure to Harry. What I mean to say is the more human a character the better the writer and the story.Marjoriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09958530958484080973noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-66617563754398179602009-12-11T16:33:22.859-05:002009-12-11T16:33:22.859-05:00Love murder mysteries where I end up wanting the m...Love murder mysteries where I end up wanting the murderer(s) to go free. ("Murder on the Orient Express" was a well-known example.)<br /><br />Elizabeth<br /><a href="http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow"> Mystery Writing is Murder</a>Elizabeth Spann Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15625595247828274405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-49650068106965077202009-12-11T13:44:24.322-05:002009-12-11T13:44:24.322-05:00Kevin, I LOVE stories with interwoven subplots lik...Kevin, I LOVE stories with interwoven subplots like that--in fact I like them for character growth--a character who does something with a 'justification we can understand' and then the consequences to someone else are much graver than he's forseen, thereby causing the character to reevaluate... Also very nice in tragic circumstances tales... it's a zero sum gain--if you eat, someone starves... who should get to play god?<br /><br />Galen-absolutely--VERY difficult. I aspire to it anyway! (I've recently pulled off a brainwashing, so I am feeling up to it)<br /><br />Jan-I can still enjoy a melodrama, so long as it recognizes itself for what it is, but yes... not much patience for the perfectly good versus perfectly bad.<br /><br />Kevin, did you just growl at me? *snort* sorry... will have to check out those authors! (and yes, you're atypical)Hart Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17599570189253229318noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-65459492169626926472009-12-11T13:28:02.001-05:002009-12-11T13:28:02.001-05:00Fair point, Galen. Which is why, unfortunately, S....Fair point, Galen. Which is why, unfortunately, S.Erikson and GRR.Martin have ruined a handful of authors for me. <br /><br />There seems to be a rising trend in popular fiction to blur the lines of ethos, leaving everyone as a shade of gray and the judgment of the character at the discretion of the reader, as opposed to the typical fare in which the author decides what is good and evil and diametrically opposes them.<br /><br />It also seems that novels that do this are hailed for their craftsmanship. So it seems the distinction between an author that can visualize and work it into the story without dragging the plot and one who can't has a close correlation (IMO) to the skill of the author.<br /><br />Of course, I may be a less than typical reader who prefers epic stories blended with realistic and nuanced characters. <br /><br />@Jan: Yes. :-)Kevin Morganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06080522825979195022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-52952089234897653572009-12-11T12:58:12.764-05:002009-12-11T12:58:12.764-05:00ah, yes. The difference between melodramas and nua...ah, yes. The difference between melodramas and nuanced fiction in the gradation of motive and chance.Jan Morrisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01771180344305042855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-41959525792400342092009-12-11T12:50:11.835-05:002009-12-11T12:50:11.835-05:00Making well rounded and shades-of-grey characters ...Making well rounded and shades-of-grey characters is not an easy task. Even if you know what the shades of grey are, working them into the story without dragging out the plot is a challenge. <br /><br />Best, Galen.<br /><a href="http://www.galenkindley.com/blog.htm" rel="nofollow">Imagineering Fiction Blog</a>joe doaks-Authorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05283066862112820202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-44773210425685439352009-12-11T11:06:28.002-05:002009-12-11T11:06:28.002-05:00There are many many people who see it as completel...There are many many people who see it as completely wrong whatever the circumstance, and not viewing it in shades of grey is in my opinion quite silly.<br /><br />One thing that's often overlooked when casting our judgements as readers is the victim of the theft in certain situations. I.E. The man feeding his hungry family, or similar.<br /><br />In the stories I read you see side-stories that may not forward the plot but enhance it by showing how cruel the world is, or the alternative perspective, blurring the line between evil and good.<br /><br />I think more writing needs to explore that. It makes for an interesting read when you become sympathetic to the plight of that starving man and thus condone his actions, only to realize that his actions caused worse plights for others. <br /><br />I've seen some stories do this on a minor scale, but only a few have pushed this to the point of making me become enamored with what one might typically assume an evil character, or making the typically good characters leave a foul taste in my mouth.Kevin Morganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06080522825979195022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-19955005544702081372009-12-11T09:14:05.577-05:002009-12-11T09:14:05.577-05:00Mark--totally with you--I actually LOVE that task....Mark--totally with you--I actually LOVE that task... making a terrible-seeming person suddenly understandable by revealing a piece of history or some such thing. Most of us get through life 'trying our best' so it isn't so hard.Hart Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17599570189253229318noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7127677169344207651.post-46658526940444930442009-12-11T09:11:03.289-05:002009-12-11T09:11:03.289-05:00Cause and effect is crucial for creating a well-ro...Cause and effect is crucial for creating a well-rounded character, mefeels. We can still love the unpleasant ones if we understand their motivations, methinks.<br /><br />I'm working on making my protag more sympathetic towards her melodramatic mother. Defining actions and motivations is crucial, mebelieves.M.J. Nichollshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12972190103986599079noreply@blogger.com