I don't read a lot of fiction, much less female authored. I previously thought this was mostly due to my more technical mindset driving me towards non-fiction, but with the discovery of a few select works I've come to think it has more to do with a lack of interest or investment in understanding the characters or using them as a surrogate for myself. My favorite work of fiction is not a book or even a movie but the a game, Metal Gear Solid V, I think in large part because of the way the characters are developed.
I thought that Frozen was merely a terrible movie. It is but now it actually makes sense!
Note how same dynamic plays with the princess and her two suitors but in this case it’s subverted with the Alpha Prince revealing himself as a Gamma and the Princess settling for the clueless ‘fixer upper’ Delta who becomes little more than her sidekick. I’m guessing this reveals a lot about Jennifer Lee’s relationship history.
Ah, so this is why I like those Japanese harem animes where my autistic small pp Japanese self-insert gets all the girls and even their moms throw themselves at him too. I think I am ascending from gammitude to enlightenment now. Acksually, I'm having an enlightengasm.
I know it is advised not to do so, but I cannot help but ask *why* the female psyche is like you described. In what manner that capacity for self-deception is helpful? Why does it exist? Is it a feature, or a bug?
Female authors seem to show a bias for changing men through magic wands, potions, spells, or other literary substitutes for drugs. Even Eve’s apple was a magical botanical. This tendency goes way back.
I found some old notes from a fantasy story I was working on with some friends back in high school (a long time ago). I discoved that the characters, although still in development, were pretty solid, the diagloge that we had worked on was decent (for high school age). The overal arc of the story was okay, but we got stuck on how to drive the storyline forward in a compelling manner. The young man in the group gave us some ideas, but the girls wanted a romance and we got stuck. Makes sense now why we got stuck. Hopefully if I start working on it again I can avoid some of the pitfalls mentioned. Very useful feedback!
The logical needs of a mystery addresses much of the needs for a plot, so mysteries and related stories seem to compensate and do well for female authors.
In many longer series the characters do not change or grow. Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series for example, has great characters, many very funny incidents, and individual stories have reasonable plots. Stephanie is torn between two Alpha’s, both of whom put up with her, and as the series continues she never finally picks one. You expect to someday see Sixty Five Retirement Drive, with all the characters in their sixties, and a childless Stephanie still bouncing between Morelli and Ranger.
In contrast, Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series has Mercedes make a choice, get married, and the series continues with successful stories in Mercedes’ early married life, including her husband’s daughter from his previous marriage. The very literal “Alpha wolf” metaphor makes showing an Alpha character easier. Mercedes is protected by two Alphas, but one is her adoptive father and the other is her husband, so their motivations are clear. If Patricia Briggs can effectively continue the series through Mercedes raising children, folding in Mercedes caring for a young child or more, that would be a real artistic achievement.
Perhaps some female fantasy authors use a male pseudonym, just as some romance novelists, you know porn for women are written by pseudnymous male authors. For better sales apparently. So who knows sometimes?
I tended to read female fantasy authors who were clairvoyant, I didn't know it at the time, I've a type of ESP too.
I've known my entire adult life that I don't enjoy books written by females°° To the point I'd be at the library, read the back cover, think a book sounds interesting (say a steampunk adventure in 1900's Cascadia, that could be cool…) But if there were initials for the author, I'd flip to the pic on the sleeve, see a chick, and put it back on the shelf.
Why because I already knew it would either be entirely predictable and/or about a girl lusting after Mr. Unobitainium and convincing him to be her man.
Until now I never thought about why. You are precisely correct; every single novel ends up being identical (cute, brainy chick somehow gets the alpha) due to lack of understanding how males work which makes the novel seem fake to men.
°° although I later made exceptions for some fun, but not deep, YA fiction which I read to my kids (namely JK Rowling and Cressidia Cowell).
Female R&B and love song singers often include self-inserts, especially when singing about the protagonist they love. On the other hand, male singers in the same genre tend to pedestalize the woman excessively, which can come across as creepy and make them seem weak in comparison.
Therefore, do the opposite of what the man sings and be the man that the woman pedestalizes.
The Good: I really only recall one good female Author I really Enjoyed. She wrote Sunglasses after Dark by Nancy A. Collins. I read the second book in the series too and liked it as well, and I see now there are 2 more in the series I wasn't aware of.
The Bad: Anne Rice, Anne McCaffrey - These women take three pages to describe a leaf falling to let you know it's autumn. You know who writes well and sets the scene so hard it punches you in the face, as does most of the rest of what he writes? Pete Dexter. So if you want to see how these two women describe a season or really anything, good luck. Pete would do it like this: Winter. And in case this makes you want to read Pete Dexter.... don't do it if you have any vague depression or possible suicidal thoughts. The guy is an awesome writer, but it's a bit like drinking a full bottle of Jack Daniels while in the bathtub, with a toaster on the edge of it and a razor blade in the other hand, while you recall every error you made in life.
The unreadable: Whoever wrote 50 shades of Grey. Seriously I picked it up three times and and opened it at random and I could not get to the end of a single paragraph each time before my eyes glazed over and I became quasi-catatonic.
I borrowed e-copies of 50 SHADES from the local library free to read ... and still felt ripped off.
I cannot imagine how such retardedry and lame sex scenes sold so many books, except to think as cynical as I am about females, many are far more retarded than I already think.
Three books about "sex" and only one sex scene sparked anything resembling a reaction (car scene, 3rd book).
I can and have written hotter text messages to women than anything in that boring, retarded trash. Both the "twist" of the villain in the 3rd book and why Grey liked the braud in the first place ("you look just like my dead crack-whore mother" !!!!!!!!!!) literally made me laugh out loud. Only a woman could write something so retarded and think it "sexy".
"The guy is an awesome writer, but it's a bit like drinking a full bottle of Jack Daniels while in the bathtub, with a toaster on the edge of it and a razor blade in the other hand, while you recall every error you made in life."
Hahahah! I'm sold. I laughed too much reading this.
I take no responsibility for your eventual demise by your own hand!
While I can write harsh things myself, my general trend is for at least hopeful if not downright happy ending kind of guy, but Pete Dexter is kind of like kick the buried body after it's decomposed kind of guy.
I remember this. I thought Twilight was written by a Mormon and the 50 shades author thought it should be spicier. I never read either but I paced the pop culture references.
I remember a local radio show reading excerpts on 50 shades and joking about how the most descriptive parts were describing the furniture so we know it's for women.
Haha...When I was teaching chess to a great many young students, I observed to one of the most experienced teachers that the girls certainly love those bad boys...He looked at me and said, "Oh yeah! " I was completely unaware of the SSH at that time....
But what results from the process of having both? For me, there is a wonderful synergy. Two of my favourite series in sff are by couples—the Liaden universe by Miller and Lee (just Lee now, sadly), and Kate Daniels by Ilona Andrews.
Tanith Lee was the best.
I don't read a lot of fiction, much less female authored. I previously thought this was mostly due to my more technical mindset driving me towards non-fiction, but with the discovery of a few select works I've come to think it has more to do with a lack of interest or investment in understanding the characters or using them as a surrogate for myself. My favorite work of fiction is not a book or even a movie but the a game, Metal Gear Solid V, I think in large part because of the way the characters are developed.
I thought that Frozen was merely a terrible movie. It is but now it actually makes sense!
Note how same dynamic plays with the princess and her two suitors but in this case it’s subverted with the Alpha Prince revealing himself as a Gamma and the Princess settling for the clueless ‘fixer upper’ Delta who becomes little more than her sidekick. I’m guessing this reveals a lot about Jennifer Lee’s relationship history.
Ah, so this is why I like those Japanese harem animes where my autistic small pp Japanese self-insert gets all the girls and even their moms throw themselves at him too. I think I am ascending from gammitude to enlightenment now. Acksually, I'm having an enlightengasm.
I know it is advised not to do so, but I cannot help but ask *why* the female psyche is like you described. In what manner that capacity for self-deception is helpful? Why does it exist? Is it a feature, or a bug?
Stop. Just stop. Who cares why? What good would that knowledge do you?
Get your inner gamma under control.
You're right, of course. Thanks.
Female authors seem to show a bias for changing men through magic wands, potions, spells, or other literary substitutes for drugs. Even Eve’s apple was a magical botanical. This tendency goes way back.
The moment where Harry, to his horror, finds out that his dad was an Alpha and a bully at school was a small stroke of genius.
Female authorship at its finest. https://youtube.com/shorts/hWtIRQ-AvJE?si=jWaq6Wy0hbo6r8Cv
I found some old notes from a fantasy story I was working on with some friends back in high school (a long time ago). I discoved that the characters, although still in development, were pretty solid, the diagloge that we had worked on was decent (for high school age). The overal arc of the story was okay, but we got stuck on how to drive the storyline forward in a compelling manner. The young man in the group gave us some ideas, but the girls wanted a romance and we got stuck. Makes sense now why we got stuck. Hopefully if I start working on it again I can avoid some of the pitfalls mentioned. Very useful feedback!
The logical needs of a mystery addresses much of the needs for a plot, so mysteries and related stories seem to compensate and do well for female authors.
In many longer series the characters do not change or grow. Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series for example, has great characters, many very funny incidents, and individual stories have reasonable plots. Stephanie is torn between two Alpha’s, both of whom put up with her, and as the series continues she never finally picks one. You expect to someday see Sixty Five Retirement Drive, with all the characters in their sixties, and a childless Stephanie still bouncing between Morelli and Ranger.
In contrast, Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series has Mercedes make a choice, get married, and the series continues with successful stories in Mercedes’ early married life, including her husband’s daughter from his previous marriage. The very literal “Alpha wolf” metaphor makes showing an Alpha character easier. Mercedes is protected by two Alphas, but one is her adoptive father and the other is her husband, so their motivations are clear. If Patricia Briggs can effectively continue the series through Mercedes raising children, folding in Mercedes caring for a young child or more, that would be a real artistic achievement.
Perhaps some female fantasy authors use a male pseudonym, just as some romance novelists, you know porn for women are written by pseudnymous male authors. For better sales apparently. So who knows sometimes?
I tended to read female fantasy authors who were clairvoyant, I didn't know it at the time, I've a type of ESP too.
I've known my entire adult life that I don't enjoy books written by females°° To the point I'd be at the library, read the back cover, think a book sounds interesting (say a steampunk adventure in 1900's Cascadia, that could be cool…) But if there were initials for the author, I'd flip to the pic on the sleeve, see a chick, and put it back on the shelf.
Why because I already knew it would either be entirely predictable and/or about a girl lusting after Mr. Unobitainium and convincing him to be her man.
Until now I never thought about why. You are precisely correct; every single novel ends up being identical (cute, brainy chick somehow gets the alpha) due to lack of understanding how males work which makes the novel seem fake to men.
°° although I later made exceptions for some fun, but not deep, YA fiction which I read to my kids (namely JK Rowling and Cressidia Cowell).
Yep, the initials are a good tell.
Female R&B and love song singers often include self-inserts, especially when singing about the protagonist they love. On the other hand, male singers in the same genre tend to pedestalize the woman excessively, which can come across as creepy and make them seem weak in comparison.
Therefore, do the opposite of what the man sings and be the man that the woman pedestalizes.
The Good: I really only recall one good female Author I really Enjoyed. She wrote Sunglasses after Dark by Nancy A. Collins. I read the second book in the series too and liked it as well, and I see now there are 2 more in the series I wasn't aware of.
The Bad: Anne Rice, Anne McCaffrey - These women take three pages to describe a leaf falling to let you know it's autumn. You know who writes well and sets the scene so hard it punches you in the face, as does most of the rest of what he writes? Pete Dexter. So if you want to see how these two women describe a season or really anything, good luck. Pete would do it like this: Winter. And in case this makes you want to read Pete Dexter.... don't do it if you have any vague depression or possible suicidal thoughts. The guy is an awesome writer, but it's a bit like drinking a full bottle of Jack Daniels while in the bathtub, with a toaster on the edge of it and a razor blade in the other hand, while you recall every error you made in life.
The unreadable: Whoever wrote 50 shades of Grey. Seriously I picked it up three times and and opened it at random and I could not get to the end of a single paragraph each time before my eyes glazed over and I became quasi-catatonic.
I borrowed e-copies of 50 SHADES from the local library free to read ... and still felt ripped off.
I cannot imagine how such retardedry and lame sex scenes sold so many books, except to think as cynical as I am about females, many are far more retarded than I already think.
Three books about "sex" and only one sex scene sparked anything resembling a reaction (car scene, 3rd book).
I can and have written hotter text messages to women than anything in that boring, retarded trash. Both the "twist" of the villain in the 3rd book and why Grey liked the braud in the first place ("you look just like my dead crack-whore mother" !!!!!!!!!!) literally made me laugh out loud. Only a woman could write something so retarded and think it "sexy".
I skimmed a copy and every time I started reading a sex scene I burst out laughing.
"The guy is an awesome writer, but it's a bit like drinking a full bottle of Jack Daniels while in the bathtub, with a toaster on the edge of it and a razor blade in the other hand, while you recall every error you made in life."
Hahahah! I'm sold. I laughed too much reading this.
I take no responsibility for your eventual demise by your own hand!
While I can write harsh things myself, my general trend is for at least hopeful if not downright happy ending kind of guy, but Pete Dexter is kind of like kick the buried body after it's decomposed kind of guy.
I remember this. I thought Twilight was written by a Mormon and the 50 shades author thought it should be spicier. I never read either but I paced the pop culture references.
I remember a local radio show reading excerpts on 50 shades and joking about how the most descriptive parts were describing the furniture so we know it's for women.
More evidence that Hell is a very real place.
Haha...When I was teaching chess to a great many young students, I observed to one of the most experienced teachers that the girls certainly love those bad boys...He looked at me and said, "Oh yeah! " I was completely unaware of the SSH at that time....
But what results from the process of having both? For me, there is a wonderful synergy. Two of my favourite series in sff are by couples—the Liaden universe by Miller and Lee (just Lee now, sadly), and Kate Daniels by Ilona Andrews.