(no subject)

[icarus]

I got my books for school today. My World Literature professor looks to be a twisted sort, reading list:

Heart of Darkness
God of Small Things
One Hundred Years of Solitude
The Bone People
... and one other I can't recall.

This is gonna be cheery.

Comments

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

I read an excerpt of Heart of Darkness. I find myself Beta-reading -- and mentally eliminating a lot of commas. Geeze, this author does what I've trained myself not to do. Conrad got away with this.


Icarus

[lyricalnights.livejournal.com]

Big Authors can do those kind of things. *Attention, JK Rowling, will you please return all of the adverbs to the modifier aisle. Put the adverbs down. Thank you*

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

*splutters with laughter*

Actually, I went down 'nitpick lane' with someone once, and finally realised that if you do that -- well, it's sort of like over-working a painting. At a certain point you have to recognise when you're killing the story's charm. The adverbs and 'he said, they said' in JKR's book is what gives it that 'children's book' feel.

Icarus

[lyricalnights.livejournal.com]

Very true.

'nitpick lane' That way lies madness, I've found, even if I do suppress the urge to whip out a pen and correct every sign I see with a misplaced apostrophe.

I think Stephen King was probably right in his review of OotP when he said JRK really, REALLY wants us to like her characters, wants us to feel like we're a part of the story, and so the adverbs come out in excess. Rather sweet, really.