the thing about ideas is that i don't have very many of them. people don't believe me when i say that. they laugh, the way you do when someone is pretending to be modest and you aren't buying it. but it's the truth: the number of ideas i've had is exactly equal to the number of stories i've published. there are no trunks full of drafts, no notes apps overflowing with inspiration, no unwritten books rustling in the wings. there's just whatever i'm working on right now, followed by a blindingly blank page.
I'm not good at parsing everything you write, to find the cleverest and the popular (or unpopular) references. I don't remember all the details exactly (which makes it so much more enjoyable to go back and re-read). I don't know enough about the literary world to understand which authors are good at communicating beyond what they've written for books, magazines, interviews, and the like. Perhaps what you do write is so easy to immerse oneself in because you haven't stewed on it for years, allowing it to percolate and mature and become aged. Maybe that's what makes your writing so approachable to those of us who aren't really looking for much more than a great story to lose ourselves in—the fact that it's still young. And fresh. And bursting with possibilities. Maybe it hasn't been rehashed a thousand times before its presentation to us (not to diminish your editing process).
or maybe you're just a Genius.
But you're also kind and real and relatable in your public persona, and I feel like that carries into what you write. I never feel like I'm being written "at." Maybe having grown up with the Neverending Story makes it so I feel (unjustifiably) like a participant in your books, without ever having to agonize over the writing. It's kinda magical. I wish you many more magic years to come, and look forward to my (and my library) reaping the rewards.
If you love Moira Quirk (who narrates the Locked Tomb) and you haven't listened to her read Gail Carriger's Finishing School series, HIGHLY recommend. She is a narrative genius.
I'm not good at parsing everything you write, to find the cleverest and the popular (or unpopular) references. I don't remember all the details exactly (which makes it so much more enjoyable to go back and re-read). I don't know enough about the literary world to understand which authors are good at communicating beyond what they've written for books, magazines, interviews, and the like. Perhaps what you do write is so easy to immerse oneself in because you haven't stewed on it for years, allowing it to percolate and mature and become aged. Maybe that's what makes your writing so approachable to those of us who aren't really looking for much more than a great story to lose ourselves in—the fact that it's still young. And fresh. And bursting with possibilities. Maybe it hasn't been rehashed a thousand times before its presentation to us (not to diminish your editing process).
or maybe you're just a Genius.
But you're also kind and real and relatable in your public persona, and I feel like that carries into what you write. I never feel like I'm being written "at." Maybe having grown up with the Neverending Story makes it so I feel (unjustifiably) like a participant in your books, without ever having to agonize over the writing. It's kinda magical. I wish you many more magic years to come, and look forward to my (and my library) reaping the rewards.
If you love Moira Quirk (who narrates the Locked Tomb) and you haven't listened to her read Gail Carriger's Finishing School series, HIGHLY recommend. She is a narrative genius.
Lovelovelove the honesty and authenticity in this post.