I would imagine that it is a bizarre feeling to see people admire so deeply characters that you created, but hate your guts.
I don’t see this with JK Rowling. She pretty much ended the love affair people had with the Potter universe. At least that is true in circles that I hang in. 20 years ago my friends were in love with Harry Potter. They had merchandise everywhere. Now it’s nearly a total boycott.
With Card though, people just can’t let go of those characters. They’re able to separate them so much from him that they can hold onto their love.
Maybe it’s because he doesn’t go out of his way to push his bullshit beliefs down people’s throats whereas Rowling really loves being in the spotlight, pissing people off. Well, that and people just tend to feel a deeper connection to the Ender/Bean characters.
I’ve read all of them but one, and it was the one that came out way later to cover what happens with Ender between Game/Speaker. I bought it, I just never got around to it. Those books gave me a feeling I never got anywhere else. I need to read them again with that newer one in the proper place.
The whole ‘death of the author’ thing is my preferred brand of copium for this.
Writing talent is not reserved for people who aren’t complete shitbags - it’s just that often, shitbags write to their shitbag interests and that comes over clearly in the work or with very basic analysis. Sometimes they don’t. It’s best to consider the work on its own merits without too much emphasis on authorial intent, as much as is possible.
Ender’s Game and Ender’s Shadow were the very first things that popped to mind when I heard this phrase. It’s the kind of thing that makes me say “Don’t avoid reading if you want to, but maybe avoid buying new printings and opt for second-hand/library copies instead”.
Truth, and it invokes fond memories of some of my favorite Bean books, although Orson Scott Card can go fuck himself.
I would imagine that it is a bizarre feeling to see people admire so deeply characters that you created, but hate your guts.
I don’t see this with JK Rowling. She pretty much ended the love affair people had with the Potter universe. At least that is true in circles that I hang in. 20 years ago my friends were in love with Harry Potter. They had merchandise everywhere. Now it’s nearly a total boycott.
With Card though, people just can’t let go of those characters. They’re able to separate them so much from him that they can hold onto their love.
Maybe it’s because he doesn’t go out of his way to push his bullshit beliefs down people’s throats whereas Rowling really loves being in the spotlight, pissing people off. Well, that and people just tend to feel a deeper connection to the Ender/Bean characters.
I’ve read all of them but one, and it was the one that came out way later to cover what happens with Ender between Game/Speaker. I bought it, I just never got around to it. Those books gave me a feeling I never got anywhere else. I need to read them again with that newer one in the proper place.
Sorry, you just got me thinking.
The whole ‘death of the author’ thing is my preferred brand of copium for this.
Writing talent is not reserved for people who aren’t complete shitbags - it’s just that often, shitbags write to their shitbag interests and that comes over clearly in the work or with very basic analysis. Sometimes they don’t. It’s best to consider the work on its own merits without too much emphasis on authorial intent, as much as is possible.
Ender’s Game and Ender’s Shadow were the very first things that popped to mind when I heard this phrase. It’s the kind of thing that makes me say “Don’t avoid reading if you want to, but maybe avoid buying new printings and opt for second-hand/library copies instead”.