Recent comments in /f/books
StrawberryFields_ t1_jcmq2nf wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
When I'm reading classics, no. Because they're most probably Nazis or colonizers or misogynists.
Lamamaster234 t1_jcmpyom wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Definitely, for example Dazai’s No Longer Human has a ton of parallels to his personal life. Same thing with Kafka’s works, you often get to see the author’s personality seep into their writing. Oftentimes it puts their books into a better perspective.
hatsuseno t1_jcmppp8 wrote
Reply to comment by deezkeys098 in Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Classic "You have a face for radio!" moment.
hatsuseno t1_jcmplvu wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
As a 'death of the author' kind of person, I'd rather not. Or, at least, I feel no desire to.
jessicagraceuk t1_jcmox33 wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Sometimes! It can give context to the mind that created the world you've immersed yourself in.
It's more interesting to read the works of friends who write fiction. Recognising the pieces of their world which create a backdrop for their characters is fascinating, and seeing parts of them in those characters... such a peculiar yet special know to know a friend on a deeper level.
It can definitely be a dice roll though, as some of the comments have shown!
deezkeys098 t1_jcmnpiv wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
I used to dabble in uhm… spicy audiobooks piece of advice don’t look up narrators if you think they have a sexy voice you will be disappointed
_ChipWhitley_ t1_jcmno82 wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
All the time
minimalist_coach t1_jcmnadt wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
I'm finding the less I know about authors the better I like them. It seems so many authors and other "celebrities" have said or done horrible things.
MS1947 t1_jcmmxcq wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Long ago, I learned to ignore the real lives of actors whose work I admired. They so often turn out to be jerks that it affects my ability to continue enjoying that work. I’d hate for that to happen to me with writers.
AstronautPowerful670 t1_jcmmp8w wrote
I actually threw the final Eragon book across the room when it came out. The whole make the final villain feel feelings so he offs himself just pissed me off.
Hoth9K1 t1_jcmm9q4 wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Last time I looked up an author I found out they were a horrible person and no longer enjoy their franchise.
[deleted] t1_jcmjxn0 wrote
Athragio t1_jcmjtcz wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Only as much as I should know but often many times, looking up the lives of artists only lead to disappointment for their morals and values, and in severe cases their crimes.
Honestly the most I like to go now is the time period and location. Get to know the values of society at the time and the trends in fiction so I get context behind the work. This doesn't necessitate getting to know an author with a shady past.
nearlyFried t1_jcmiiqr wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
I do find Philip K Dick's life rather interesting and fun to read about.
kahiru_ t1_jcmihbd wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Not really. Sometimes enough of author's own past seeps through into the books they've written and I kinda like when it happens (looking at you Remarque), but I don't really go out of my way to look them up myself.
GaryBuseyAirlines t1_jcmh4yw wrote
Reply to comment by UnfallenAdventure in What was one book you wanted to throw across the room- and why? by UnfallenAdventure
The part with the War Games chapters. I was freaking out times 10.
Julieann1970 t1_jcmgu3h wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
No I don’t, but I might now following an afternoon at a literary festival where I listened to Alistair McCall Smith, an author that I had written off without reading his books. It turned out that he is hugely entertaining and if I had researched him, I might have given him a chance. How many other authors have I ignored because I have prejudged with incorrect assumptions?
bravetailor t1_jcmgilu wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Sometimes. Usually moreso for centuries-old authors than current ones though. I went down quite a rabbit hole for Jane Austen, and she's STILL an enigma to me.
Merle8888 t1_jcmg95a wrote
Reply to comment by BulbasaurusThe7th in Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
English has some androgynous names, but often what you see is initially male names being colonized for women. Robin is one of those, a more and more female name as time goes by.
In the case of this author though it is a pen name (real name Megan Lindholm) and I am sure she chose it deliberately. She started using it at a time when women writing epic fantasy got little traction, and the first trilogy she wrote with it was in the first person from a male protagonist to boot. Her books with the pseudonym did far better than the ones published under her real name.
UniqueVast592 t1_jcmf133 wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
John Irving.
I love his work have been to so many of his readings, have read everything he has written, and have researched the hell out of him. Even met him a few times.
Embarrassingly to the point of practically being a stalker because (and this is purely coincidence, honest) at one point we lived close to each other. I would sometimes see him on the subway or at the market. I'm not crazy nor was I in any way infatuated with him, although I did name my son Owen after Owen Meany.
Ok TMI, I am out. LMAO! You asked!
eschuylerhamilton t1_jcmewmt wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Not at all, no.
bethpete3031 t1_jcmd8ah wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Neil Gaiman! I was surprised by references to Wisconsin in American Gods (I’ve lived in Wisconsin all my life and nobody talks about it-ever) and found out he lived here when his children were young.
UnfallenAdventure OP t1_jcmcj3n wrote
Reply to comment by GaryBuseyAirlines in What was one book you wanted to throw across the room- and why? by UnfallenAdventure
Oh? How so?
lucia-pacciola t1_jcmcbc8 wrote
Reply to comment by Feisty_Incident_3405 in What was one book you wanted to throw across the room- and why? by UnfallenAdventure
> Actually a genius postmodern technique
Yes, exactly!
> that illustrates how the stories never actually end. We'll carry them on in our minds and speculate our own ideas of what the ideal ending could've or should've been.
Oh. Never mind.
Toadstool_Lilium293 t1_jcmqqch wrote
Reply to Do you ever look up the authors you're reading to get to know them better? by justkeepbreathing94
Clive Barker has a pretty harrowing backstory, but he uses his past in an achingly beautiful way in his horror/fantasy novels. Learning his past made me love his books all the more. You can tell how healing writing is for him.