(I know this could be a hot subject, so read with care...
)
I recently began studying someone much beloved by my professors, and also someone who seems greatly hailed here: Raymond Carver. But I kind of have to admit....I don't see what all the fuss is about.
Perhaps his subject matter is interesting and revolutionary and detailed. I've read "The Errand" and found it much better written than his short story/ies, the unedited and edited versions of "A Small, Good Thing"/"The Bath".
All in all, especially in the 20-page original before Lish got a hold of it, I find his writing style painfully simplistic, and in "The Bath" Lish's addition of the continuous "he said" "she said" dialogue tags so jarring and excessive that I don't even want to continue with the story. I know the fact that Lish cut so much of his stories is also quite bit of a contraversy (and no matter how much the dialogue tags annoyed me, good for him).
So, anyway, I'm waiting for someone to change my mind...what am I missing? Did I read the wrong stories? If I wrote something like this, the details be damned, they wouldn't let me graduate with my Creative Writing degree. What's the difference between minimalism and bad writing?
)I recently began studying someone much beloved by my professors, and also someone who seems greatly hailed here: Raymond Carver. But I kind of have to admit....I don't see what all the fuss is about.
Perhaps his subject matter is interesting and revolutionary and detailed. I've read "The Errand" and found it much better written than his short story/ies, the unedited and edited versions of "A Small, Good Thing"/"The Bath".
All in all, especially in the 20-page original before Lish got a hold of it, I find his writing style painfully simplistic, and in "The Bath" Lish's addition of the continuous "he said" "she said" dialogue tags so jarring and excessive that I don't even want to continue with the story. I know the fact that Lish cut so much of his stories is also quite bit of a contraversy (and no matter how much the dialogue tags annoyed me, good for him).
So, anyway, I'm waiting for someone to change my mind...what am I missing? Did I read the wrong stories? If I wrote something like this, the details be damned, they wouldn't let me graduate with my Creative Writing degree. What's the difference between minimalism and bad writing?
