[Gothos]

I haven't tried many (I'm not a major bookworm, not enough time for all them hobbies with pathethically short 24-hour days), but the few I did try out, you could really tell. Among the ones I ran into was Patricia McKillip (effing terrible), C. S. Friedman (pretty interesting, if predictable and shallow) and Robert Jordan (ok, so he probably had a penis, but the style is hillariously girly). They tend to be focused on different things than male authors, have different style and characters, and it's not te everyone's liking, I guess.

[Ulrik]

caladanbrood, on 16 February 2010 - 09:04 PM, said:

Gem Windcaster, on 15 February 2010 - 02:51 AM, said:

I dunno man, I guess you'll have to do a little research and find a female writer you like, then you can conquer your prejudice.

Woah there. There's a prejudice that needs conquering? Personally, none of the genre authors I consistently enjoy are female. Doesn't mean I'm some sort of degenerate pig who needs educating...

It isn´t:) I have same "problem". From my wide spectre of favourite authors is really a little part women. Thats not prejudice, thats not chauvinism. Simply men usually offers me more themes and motives I like to read. I enjoyed LeGuin, McCaffrey, Cherryh... But none hooked me like Erikson, Gemmell, Bakker, Abercrombie, Martin... C´est la vie. And second problem is of course in that many from czech fantasy writers has today tendency to write about beautiful knightnesess who got beautifull man, are smart, perfect, brave... jesus, it looks like teen wet dream and I wont buy it if it writes man of woman. But sales are great and so there is more and more of this rubbish...

[Puck]

I'm a girl and I extremely rarely raed female writers. I guess it's true that it depends on personal preferences of themes adressed in the books and such stuff. I mean, love and romance are okay, but if I read on the back of a book 'princess a of ancient family b tries to safe the world aided by knight c' or 'tough necromancer/witch/sreving girl a meets demon/vampire b' [and I really tried to read urban fantasy by female writer, but most I didn't even finish and only finished the first Sookie Stackhouse or whatever because I didn't have anything else with me to read] I'm just not impressed. Female writers just write different, and have different emphases than male writers. And the latter is more my playing field. Of course, there ARE good female writers, but they're so rare that if I had to name really all authors I somehow like, they would be male up to 99%.

This post has been edited by Puck: 17 February 2010 - 04:27 PM

[Dolorous Menhir]

Werthead, on 17 February 2010 - 01:53 AM, said:

Dolorous Menhir, on 16 February 2010 - 09:59 PM, said:

KJ Parker is excellent. Maybe not to everyone's taste. Do you enjoy stories where medieval swordsmen ride carts across wartorn countryside while discussing the finer detail of a blacksmith's work at great length?

Surely a better question is if people enjoy reading books where lawyers sort out their legal disagreements by trying to cut each others heads off whilst a barbarian horde launches a massive artillery assault on the walls of a city that makes Minas Tirith look like a rude country village?

I have no idea if the ENGINEER or SHADOW trilogies are any good or not, but the FENCER trilogy is pretty much kickass and not dull in the least.

They are good - I'm a fan. But when you've read all three series (almost have), it's really striking what her themes are. Sieges of major cities are only a minor one, fencers-at-law don't register.

[Abyss]

Illuyankas, on 16 February 2010 - 08:54 PM, said:

The Collected Works of Anne McCaffrey

...

I do so love Book-a-minute.


I don't know if it's fair to say there's a sweeping difference of approach between gender genre generators but it really does seem that way at times.

CS Friedman blew me away with Coldfire and the first nine of LK Hamilton's Anita Blake series are awesome, but both of those writers self-destructed as far as my tastes went and I realy haven't found any other femals writers that i like. Parker is on the radar but opinions of her are so varied i haven't quite managed to try her work yet. Ditto Bujold.

I outgrew Rawn and McCafferty, JV Jones semi-had me and then lost me with the upteenth chapter of trekking through the snowy wastes, Harris and her supernatural urban fantasy pron writing ilk give me hives (and i've tried, i've really tried)...

Hey, what about Naomi Novik??? Anyone, anyone?

- Abyss, wants to embrace the other side... wait, that sounds dirty...

[Aptorian]

I've read the first 3 in Naomi Noviks dragon series and I really liked it. It's basically the Napoleonic era with dragons added, written in the style of Jane Austin'ish literature, Naval officer meets Anti-establishment dragon, and cool air battles/sword and gun fights ensue.

The books are relatively short and they're as easily devoured as the Dresden books.

[HoosierDaddy]

Naomi Novak's Temeraire books are very entertaining. They aren't epic, despite being set in an epic time, but they are certainly fun and easy reads. The plots are very similar in each book, but the settings and action sequences are enough to make them different enough to not really care about that point.

I'm through 5 and will read the next when it comes out, but it's not an immediate hard-back purchase, for sure.

[Use Of Weapons]

Lots of love for Naomi Novik here. Temeraire struck a perfect chord with me.

I really can't understand the ambivalence toward Bujold, though. It's possibly the result of trying out her fantasy before her SF, which is (IMO) much stronger. Nothing, literally nothing, is as good as a new Vorkosigan novel. And I do include Butcher in that. _A Civil Campaign_ is quite possibly the best book I've read in the last decade.

I recommend checking out (if you can find them) Sheri S. Tepper's novels of the True Game; Elizabeth Moon's Serrano series and _Speed of Dark_, written from the POV of an autistic savant; Katherine Kurtz's Deryni series; Janny Wurts's Cycle of Fire and any SF by C J Cherryh (though her fantasy leaves me cold, strangely) -- her aliens are stunningly well-realised and convincing.

[Salt-Man Z]

jitsukerr, on 18 February 2010 - 12:49 PM, said:

any SF by C J Cherryh -- her aliens are stunningly well-realised and convincing.

THIS.

[Abyss]

Salt-Man Z, on 18 February 2010 - 04:25 PM, said:

jitsukerr, on 18 February 2010 - 12:49 PM, said:

any SF by C J Cherryh -- her aliens are stunningly well-realised and convincing.

THIS.

Her MORGAINE trilogy made me want to self-harm.

- Abyss, cuttingly.

[Use Of Weapons]

Abyss, on 18 February 2010 - 04:39 PM, said:

Her MORGAINE trilogy made me want to self-harm.

I'd class the Morgaine trilogy as fantasy, though it has SF trappings. It reads like fantasy. I couldn't find the first book, so started with Gate of Ivrel. Got about 10 pages in before giving up.

But, seriously, her SF is just miles and miles better than her fantasy, including Morgaine. Try _40,000 in Gehenna_ or the classics _Downbelow Station_ and _Cyteen_. Her best aliens appear in the Foreigner series (http://en.wikipedia....eigner_universe), the militant atevi, a race without any concept of compassion or love, who hold loyalty as the supreme virtue; and the mri of the Faded Sun trilogy, a rigidly caste-bound race of mercenary fighters. (NB. Have never read the Chanur series, featuring the cat-like Chanur race, so can't comment on them.)

[murphy72]

Abyss, on 18 February 2010 - 04:39 PM, said:

Salt-Man Z, on 18 February 2010 - 04:25 PM, said:

jitsukerr, on 18 February 2010 - 12:49 PM, said:

any SF by C J Cherryh -- her aliens are stunningly well-realised and convincing.

THIS.

Her MORGAINE trilogy made me want to self-harm.

- Abyss, cuttingly.

Another C. J. Cherryh fan here. I have practically all her books in hardback. Her SF is much better, IMO, than her fantasy. As far as the Morgaine books go, I don't really like them, but the Chanur books blew me away. Great fun and adventure. The main characters are cat people.

[Salt-Man Z]

The best part about the Chanur books is there are, what? like 7 different alien species, and they all think completely differently from each other and from humans, and Cherryh completely pulls it all off flawlessly. I was walking around thinking in Mahendo'sat pidgin while I was reading the books, that's how convincing it is.

[Pig Iron]

Downbelow Station must be one of the best SF-novels ever. The space battles are so real it hurts, scary stuff.

[Gem Windcaster]

Ulrik, on 17 February 2010 - 12:02 PM, said:

caladanbrood, on 16 February 2010 - 09:04 PM, said:

Gem Windcaster, on 15 February 2010 - 02:51 AM, said:

I dunno man, I guess you'll have to do a little research and find a female writer you like, then you can conquer your prejudice.

Woah there. There's a prejudice that needs conquering? Personally, none of the genre authors I consistently enjoy are female. Doesn't mean I'm some sort of degenerate pig who needs educating...

It isn´t:) I have same "problem". From my wide spectre of favourite authors is really a little part women. Thats not prejudice, thats not chauvinism. Simply men usually offers me more themes and motives I like to read. I enjoyed LeGuin, McCaffrey, Cherryh... But none hooked me like Erikson, Gemmell, Bakker, Abercrombie, Martin... C´est la vie. And second problem is of course in that many from czech fantasy writers has today tendency to write about beautiful knightnesess who got beautifull man, are smart, perfect, brave... jesus, it looks like teen wet dream and I wont buy it if it writes man of woman. But sales are great and so there is more and more of this rubbish...

I didn't mean it like that guys. But the threat creator clearly expressed he in his mind has a prejudice against female writers - as he said he was avoiding 'female writers' not 'bad female writers'.
Personally I haven't liked any of the female fantasy writers I've read, can't even think of a sci-fi writer I've read that is female even. But I don't see them as 'female writers', only as 'bad writers'. Imagine people judging the male fantasy writers - as male writers - from reading Goodkind *shudder*. That most fantasy writers I like are men is statistics, not prejudice. Also, clearly those women I read didn't take the job seriously.

[Imperial Historian]

Quote

Nothing, literally nothing, is as good as a new Vorkosigan novel. And I do include Butcher in that. _A Civil Campaign_ is quite possibly the best book I've read in the last decade.

I'm completely agree, I'm not a huge fan of her fantasy (I find myself reluctant to pick them up, even though I do enjoy them when I do). A Civil Campaign ranks very highly on my favourite books of all time list. Really looking forward to the new vorkosigan book later this year.

Re women fantasy authors, I think the reluctance probably stems from the minority of women fantasy authors who write thing like 'my little pony with dragons', similarly to the minority of male authors who write 'man with sword kills things and runs off with hot women', often they are very popular like Anne McCaffrey and RA Salvatore, but aren't really to my taste, but I find it's easier to spot the male authors who write bad fiction, whislt there seems to be a tendancy to tar all female writers with the same brush.

Though not many of my favourite authors are women (bujold aside), there are a large number who I find very talented, Robin Hobb writes very good long form fantasy, CJ Cherryths coldfire trilogy is amazing, K J Parker is very good (I especially like the scavenger series) and I have enjoyed kim wilkins, janny wurts, elizabeth moon, naiomi novaks and a number of others. On writing this list I find that a large number of the female fantasy authors I have enjoyed have ambiguous names... coincidence or a deliberate attempt by publishers to sell fiction that they know will appeal to men to men without explicitly revealing the writer is a woman?

[ansible]

I just purchased Devices and Desires, so I hope it's not as bad as I'm reading here. I enjoyed Robin Hobb's Farseer/Liveship/Tawny Man trilogies, but it has been some years since I read them.

IH: Yes, many authors/publishers decide on names like C.S. Friedman, J.K. Rowling, and K.J. Parker because fantasy that sounds feminine doesn't always sell. Even Robin Hobb is a pen name.

This post has been edited by ansible: 19 February 2010 - 12:39 AM

[Tiste Simeon]

Stephanie Mey- *kills self*

[murphy72]

Imperial Historian, on 18 February 2010 - 11:31 PM, said:

Quote

Nothing, literally nothing, is as good as a new Vorkosigan novel. And I do include Butcher in that. _A Civil Campaign_ is quite possibly the best book I've read in the last decade.

I'm completely agree, I'm not a huge fan of her fantasy (I find myself reluctant to pick them up, even though I do enjoy them when I do). A Civil Campaign ranks very highly on my favourite books of all time list. Really looking forward to the new vorkosigan book later this year.

Re women fantasy authors, I think the reluctance probably stems from the minority of women fantasy authors who write thing like 'my little pony with dragons', similarly to the minority of male authors who write 'man with sword kills things and runs off with hot women', often they are very popular like Anne McCaffrey and RA Salvatore, but aren't really to my taste, but I find it's easier to spot the male authors who write bad fiction, whislt there seems to be a tendancy to tar all female writers with the same brush.

Though not many of my favourite authors are women (bujold aside), there are a large number who I find very talented, Robin Hobb writes very good long form fantasy, CJ Cherryths coldfire trilogy is amazing, K J Parker is very good (I especially like the scavenger series) and I have enjoyed kim wilkins, janny wurts, elizabeth moon, naiomi novaks and a number of others. On writing this list I find that a large number of the female fantasy authors I have enjoyed have ambiguous names... coincidence or a deliberate attempt by publishers to sell fiction that they know will appeal to men to men without explicitly revealing the writer is a woman?

That's C. S. Friedman's Coldfire trilogy. C. J. Cherryhs latest foray into fantasy was the Fortress series.

[Use Of Weapons]

Yes, for every CJ Cherryh there are probably ten Mercedes Lackey clones out there. Not that I'm knocking Lackey, but she does write novels that appear designed to appeal to 10-year-old girls. I love the Valdemar series, but there's only so much you can do with the 'abused-child-is-found-by-magic-horse-and-saves-kingdom' plot before it starts to get tired. My inner 10-year-old girl wants a Companion (or a Firecat, I'm not fussy), but adult-me would like a bit more variety, please. (Being fair, 'By The Sword' was a departure from this, as was the original Valdemar trilogy, the 'Last Herald-Mage' trilogy.)