...

[zodiacal_light]

I really, really wish authors would just butt out of conversations about their works. Especially when they get overly-defensive and throw out random, never-before-heard "canon" about the things people are criticizing.

It really, really stifles discussion.

(Yes, Tamora Pierce, I'm looking at you.)

Comments

[carmarthen]

...oh great. What's it about this time?

[zodiacal_light]

You know that Mark Oshiro, the guy who does the whole "Mark Reads/Watches/Does Stuff" blog thing, is reading through her stuff, right? Well, since somewhere in the middle of SotL she's been actively responding to stuff - including engaging with fans who are critiquing her works. Like, some of us really, really don't like Daine/Numair, and there was a long and interesting discussion about the text, how people read texts, what counts as legit interpretations, and how some people see D/N as problematic given canon - and she wades in and starts throwing around stuff. Or like she just responded to me when I said I find tauroses problematic and rapey with "well, they're born of a woman's nightmare of rape, didn't I ever say that?" as if that makes things okay. Or she got really nasty and defensive with Mark when he called out her line in Alanna about wanting to change your gender as silly.

It just really, really stifles discussion to know the author's reading, and to know that if she feels too defensive she'll wade in and throw new quasi-canon into the mix, as if that makes things all okay. It is starting to seriously piss me off, so I had to vent a bit. >.>

How are you doing?

[carmarthen]

...oh good lord noooo, that's the worst. Argh, I really feel like authors should know better than to wade into reader discussions. It's totally stifling.

I'm doing okay! Still kind of overwhelmed by Life Stuff, but good things are happening and I'm slowly figuring out what to do. I think.

[zodiacal_light]

Especially because I'm very into the idea that there's not one true interpretation - but having the author wade in to throw out her opinion, what she meant when writing a scene, or new "canon" (that frankly often completely undermines the point of actual canon) creates this sense that there is one right way to view canon, and if you wait a sec the author will dictate to you how to read it.

good things are happening and I'm slowly figuring out what to do.

Yay! I hope you're less overwhelmed soon. That's never fun.