tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2524956602794499164.post4785905653844619313..comments2023-05-28T08:56:00.108-07:00Comments on Specnology: In Defense of Reading Bad WritingAnassahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11554524219883438465noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2524956602794499164.post-90275685551036721132010-10-30T08:45:09.293-07:002010-10-30T08:45:09.293-07:00Cori - I think I can always count on you to play d...Cori - I think I can always count on you to play devil's advocate. :) And I think you've likely got a point. You've got to know at least a little about how to write well in order to improve at a decent rate—about as much knowledge as you'd get out of high school English if you paid attention.<br /><br />Jami - Does it? Cool! I'm looking forward to seeing what you've written.<br /><br />Hannah - I read the first little bit of that link, enough to get the idea. (It was long.) I've seen the books before, and have always thought they didn't look particularly good. Now I know why they don't sell very quickly…Anassahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11554524219883438465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2524956602794499164.post-53987688336626529532010-10-28T07:46:29.393-07:002010-10-28T07:46:29.393-07:00I highly recommend this blog, in which the author ...I highly recommend this blog, in which the author is working his way through and critiquing the Left Behind books:<br /><br />http://slacktivist.typepad.com/slacktivist/left_behind/<br /><br />It's a Christian blog, so he talks a lot about the bad theology of the books, but he also complains about the bad writing. A lot. Basically, this blog is what convinced me to take all the rhetorical questions out of my own work. And he's also hilariously funny.Hannahhttp://hannahbowman.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2524956602794499164.post-24783711117495455912010-10-27T18:30:12.095-07:002010-10-27T18:30:12.095-07:00Great points! This goes along with a thought I...Great points! This goes along with a thought I've had that I've been meaning to post about. I'll link back to this when I get that one done. Thanks! :)Jami Goldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00957122956518765455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2524956602794499164.post-63407827411369582552010-10-27T14:17:55.900-07:002010-10-27T14:17:55.900-07:00While I agree with you in general - reading bad wr...While I agree with you in general - reading bad writing DOES help - I disagree with some of the points. In my humble opinion, reading bad writing is only <i>helpful</i> when you know it's bad writing. Otherwise, it oftentimes does more harm then good.<br /><br />For example, one of my friends loved bad writing for awhile. She fell in love with a certain author (who shall remain nameless) and read it non-stop. It wasn't 'trashy' or whatever, it was simply badly written. But she loved it. <br /><br />So what happened? <i>She wrote just like it</i>. She couldn't see that it was bad writing, she simply figured that if it were published and accepted as 'literature', then it was something to emulate. She (thankfully) got off the phase and is now onto something new, but for awhile it was horrendous editing her work.<br /><br />I have to imagine that this scenario plays itself out over and over again in the world of the 'unexperienced' writers or the 'I don't really care'-type writers.<br /><br />Now, when you go into it <i>knowing</i> you're reading something bad, <i>trying</i> to figure out what's wring, or are experienced and knowledgeable enough to realize something's wrong, then reading 'bad' writing can very much be a positive thing. You can pick out the mistakes that way, work to fix them, and puzzle through 'how I'd do it differently'.<br /><br />But to pick apart a story like you're saying requires thought and brain power and the desire to care that it makes sense rather than simply reading 'for pleasure' or something. A lot of people simply don't care or don't want to think - so the 'bad writing' styles get ingrained into their brains as okay.<br /><br />In other news, I agree with you. :) I love reading bad writing, as it allows me to see what doesn't work and not make that mistake myself. Or, when I DO make the mistake, to know that I did it and appropriately *headdesk* until my brain figures out what an idiot I am. There are lots and lots of things to learn from bad writing - if you're willing to learn them.<br /><br />I'm sure the readers of your blog will completely disagree with me, as your readers are probably the people like the two of us who find some perverse pleasure in picking apart bad stories and finding loopholes and rewriting them in our heads. :) <br /><br />But I like being a devil's advocate every now and then. Spark a debate, listen to people complain and argue... not just go along with the flow like I usually do...<br /><br />Still lovin' the blog. Keep up the awesome postings!<br /><br />-CoriDebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08982511520901203039noreply@blogger.com