[ChrisW]

Her sales figures would seem to disagree with you.

[Arkmam]

quote:

And a side note, the poster had the nerve to compare Erikson's popularity to Britney Spears and I quote "Saying Erikson is popular becasue of his writing is like saying Britney Spears is popular for her singing"!!!!!

I for one only read Erikson because of the way he looks

[Fist Gamet]

Mind you , I would say that having read of several well informed texts on Fighting and Warfare (particularly Sword Fighting), and where a few of those were translations of actual texts written in th 12th and 13th century etc, it was more than simply the massive social barriers that stopped women from fighting.
All these books detail what is required for a good swordsman (skill, endurance, quick feet, balance, nerve, courage, strength) and as such preclude women from fighting. NOW BEFORE YOU LYNCH ME! Read on, because this is not sexist!
...Still with me? Good. You must not make the mistake of comparing modern day values of what a woman can achieve physically (athletics and so on) because they simply did not have the chance to do so in the medieval years. Also, the concept would have been largely unimagined.

Now, having said that, there are always exceptions and if anyone can prove me wrong then I would like to know because this is to the best of my knowledge.

My point? Erm, whilst I do not agree that the standard use of women in the Malazan armies seems unrealistic (I have them in my story), I do take issue with the sheer numbers of them, though I have wondered if this is more an issue of running out of soldiers in the traditional empire recruitment grounds and having to cast the net wider.

(The propensity of Mercenaries in the latter Roman Empire contributed largely to its downfall)

Phew!

------------------------------
The dead are like a silent, conquering army.
With every battle their ranks grow,
Marching, inexhaustible, each and every one,
Beneath crumbling stone banners. - The Call of Hurgana

[Murrin]

On the subject of Karsa vs. the Deragoth:

quote:

Steven Erikson wrote:
How did Karsa do so well against the Deragoth, and was it in some way due to the fact that the two Hounds of Shadow are 'dead'?
Hmm. I think one tends to view the quintessential barbarian as someone with little more than strength and blind courage as assets, in the Conan style. I suppose in many ways Karsa was modelled on that, so that, outwardly, he comes across as big, mean and somewhat unwitting. Alas, lots of characters who encounter him think the same way, and pay for it later. I loved Howard's Conan, and Kull, and Bran, but at the same time a lot has changed in the genre, and with Karsa I wanted to riff on the original archetype, while at the same time keeping him appropriately non-verbal, often inarticulate. Which makes him easily under-estimated, whereas someone like Anomander Rake, with all his intellect and mystery, can be over-estimated (in comparison). Karsa killed the Deragoth because he was meaner, and far mroe stubborn than they were. It was a battle of wills, both bestial, perhaps, but the intent was for something primal, where the reader could witness (as did Kalam and QB) the sheer relentlessness of Karsa Orlong. The linkage to the 'dead' Hounds of Shadow is less clear, and did not relate in any way to the vulnerability of the Deragoth.

[Svaran]

Fanderay,


I agree, those aspects add to the feeling of antiquity one gets when the characters are wandering the wastes of Rarakau over the bones of previous civilisations. I suppose a parallel could be drawn with the earthsea trilogy, the books despite their very small size give the world an impression of cultural depth despite the absence of over verbose descriptive narrative. It wasn't until years later that I was told that both the parents ofUrala Le Guin were reknowned anthropologists! Go figger!

[McLovin]

quote:

Originally posted by caladanbrood:
He thought you were Erikson At least, thats what I assumed he thought

Yeah that's what I thought What can I say, it was early and I didn't get any coffee...

[caladanbrood]

dd - maybe, but martin is too far the other way, imho... too much family politics... its nice to have a refreshingly simlified view of a story, as given by the mostly soldier PoVs of the malazan books

¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬
O xein angellein Lakedaimoniois hoti tede,
keimentha tois keinon rhemasi peithomenoi.
Unaligned - Obelisk - Friend of Asterisk.
"How would you feel if you were a Spurs fan and
had to carry around a damn hammer all day?"

[Paran]

Duiker, most of what you said can be atributed to environment rather than genetics (hunting, etc). If a grild grows up thinking she's a he, then it's not like she'll have an afinity for sewing - monkey see, monkey do. As for the romance, I don't think being in the middle of a war is conducive to courtship! Again, these aren't Lords and Ladies at the King's Court, or farmers who haven't to ask Mr. Plough's permission to see his daughter Snow, etc. I think with the romances shown, it's more what's between the lines than the usual descriptions that accompany these types of scenes in fantasy books. The romance doesn't exactly come from the moment itself, but more from reflecting on those moments (e.g. Korlat waiting for Whiskeyjack in Maurik). These moments are tender in a different kind of way. Atypical though.

************************************************************
Never argue with idiots. They bring you down to their level and then beat you with experience.

[McLovin]

@WriterNotViking - are you...?

Nah, couldn't be.

Could it?

[Malaclypse]

'An army that waits is soon at war with itself' (paraphrased)

Emperor Kellanved