[Bardos]

No, I'm not refering to Chtulhu Mythology! http://www.sffworld.com/ubb/smile.gif

I opened this topic so we can swap opinions about the style of the old writers and the new writers. Which do you prefer? Which of the two you think is best? And, do you think that fantasy letterature today has deteriotated or advanced?

I await your opinions eagerly. http://www.sffworld.com/ubb/smile.gif

[Alucard]

I think it's advanced as a whole. For starters, there's a lot more variety, which is definitely a good thing. Also, there is a bit more flexibility in terms of writing styles, which is also something I really like.

But on the whole, I'm much more interested in a lot of the modern wiritng. Call me contemporary or whatever you like, but many of the classics I don't find all that appealing. As far as classics are concerned, I've read a small amount in my life that I really enjoyed. I enjoyed to kill a mocking bird, call of the wild, farenheit 451, and a few more, but you get the point. I have read many many more, both from school and reccomendations, but most were mediocre at best (some, such as the scarlet letter, were what i consider a form of cruel torture).

I must say, with classics, you have a much higher standard in the actual writing. Usually the vocabulary is much more advanced and it's what I'd call "well written". But, for me, I don't care how well a book is written, if the story isn't interesting, I'm not going to enjoy it. And that's my fault with a lot of the "older" authors. Hemmingway, Hawthorne, Fitzgerald, etc. were talented authors when looking at their command of language, but I wasn't interested by their stories. Many more of the modern authors do a much better job at captivating me.

It also must be said, I'm more impressed by an authors characters and ideas than I am their actual writing. Not to say that I like to read poorly written books, but it's not foremost on my mind while reading. I'm more interested in what the words are telling me than the actual words themselves. So it could be said that I'm just much more interested in the modern author's subject matter.

So, as for old versus new, I'll take new.

[cassandra]

I HATE the Scarlett Letter. One of Hawthorne's friends should have put us all out of our misery and told him not to write novels. Ever.
On the flipside, have you ever read his short story Young Goodman Brown? Excellent work. Feathertop isn't too bad, either.
I think if you're looking for good sci-fi/fantasy written by authors before the 50s, you're better off heading for short stories. Almost universally short stories are better written than novels. You can do more with a short story, impact your audience better. But novels sell, and all writers like to eat. I'll see if I can't think of some other stories I've read over the years that you might enjoy.

[Erebus]

Well, I believe there's a raft of new and exciting authors in both the SF and Fantasy genres,and I for one applaud that. Sure, you'll always have your masters, but maybe some of those are just a tad jaded now, especially some of the more wordier Fantasy authors! http://www.sffworld.com/ubb/smile.gif

[Bardos]

Well, I wasn't refering to authors like Hemmingway, Hawthorne, Fitzgerald, and Shakespear. I was refering to author like R.E. Howards, H.P. Lovecraft, Tolkien, Fritz Leiber, etc --you get what I mean.

I'll wait for more answer, before I tell you my opinion about the matter. (it's a bit coplicated http://www.sffworld.com/ubb/wink.gif