Good afternoon, squiders! Hope your week is going well! I finished a new chapter on my edit and the next chapter is rolling along, so I’m feeling pretty good.
WriYe’s April Blog prompt is: What author do you admire the most? Why?
This is an interesting question. What do we consider admiration?
I have authors that I’ll pick up any new book they put out: Donna Andrews, whenever she puts out a new Meg Langslow mystery (normally twice a year). Stuart Turton. TJ Klune.
There’s authors who put out a ton of books, like Lindsay Buroker. Authors who self-published but got picked up by a Big 5 publisher and became bestsellers, like Andy Weir or Travis Baldree.
Then there’s authors who were such powerhouses that we keep reading them all these years later, like Agatha Christie or Jane Austen. Or authors who have the ability to create a world so fantastically real that you understand its rules even though they’re all made-up, like Tolkien.
Each of these authors has skills that I admire. They have the ability to create immersive stories that call you back time and time again, or they weave plot twists that you never see coming, or they have a work ethic that I would kill for half of.
How do you pick just one? How do you look at all the stories out there, all the authors, and say, Yes, this is the one. This is my favorite.
I certainly can’t.
I tend to keep a Top 5 list of my favorite books, which goes through permutations. It’s typically The Phantom Tollboth (Norton Juster), Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen), The Return of the King (JRR Tolkien), Agnes and the Hitman (Jennifer Crusie/Bob Mayer), and then the fifth one varies. Maybe The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (Stuart Turton) right now. Truly impressive plotting on that one.
But yeah–author I must admire? It really depends on the context, and how I’m feeling, and what books I’ve read recently.
And having written several novels myself–kudos to everyone who gets one done and out into the world. It’s not an easy task.
See you next week, squiders!
