I just finished Sandman Slim, the first of a popular series by Richard Kadray, which I found wanting, because as a reader I demand a sympathetic viewpoint character and his I just couldn't warm up to. Last night I dipped my toes into Johannes Cabal The Necromancer, and again confronted a main character that I found unappealing. Obviously, I'm missing something here, and I fear that lack of popular sensibilities limits my ability to write popular fiction.
The same problem transcends fantasy. James Ellroy's crime fiction strikes me the same way. I sloughed my way through his 900-page The Cold Six Thousand, waiting to find a character I could care about.
This doesn't mean the mc needs to be a comic-book hero. I was more than willing to walk in Lee Harvey Oswald's shoes in Libra by Don DeLillo. Although I didn't admire the main character, I was able empathize with his journey.
I try very hard to keep current with music, not wanting to be one of those old fogies who refuse to credit any music written since Jimi Hendrix's demise. I make the same effort with science fiction and fantasy, but can't find traction with many of the authors, such as China Mieville (The City & The City excepted) or Kim Stanley Robinson. If I don't enjoy the writing of those who lead the market, how I can expect to write fiction that finds similar success?
This has always been my problem with science fiction. On the other hand, when scifi does have compelling characters, as in the reboot of Battlestar Galactica, it's irresistible.
ReplyDeleteFor crime fiction with an empathetic if not always likeable main character, try When the Sacred Ginmill Closes, by Lawrence Block.
ReplyDeleteOh my my my. I no longer go much more than 100 pages if I can't find a character I can care about. Right now, I am reading Barnaby Rudge and wondering why more people don't LOVE that novel and its characters. But that makes ME sound like an old fogie. I do read contemporary stuff... but yours will probably be the only science fiction. Yours and Lois Bujold's. Ohio Writers. I have such a soft spot for them. Surprised to hear about Hendrix.
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