What novel or short story do you wish you'd written?
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Borges and I by Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges. In less than a page, it describes perfectly the antagonistic relationship between the writer and his work.
Jackie
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The Confederacy of Dunces.
The sentences are so great, the descriptions so beautiful and unexpected, the plot so rich, the characters so exposed. And it's funny, funny, funny.
The sentences are so great, the descriptions so beautiful and unexpected, the plot so rich, the characters so exposed. And it's funny, funny, funny.
There are a lot of novels I wish I'd written, usually based on the nature of the plot or characters.
But, I always figure in the end it's better I didn't, because then I wouldn't enjoy reading them as much as I do.
But, I always figure in the end it's better I didn't, because then I wouldn't enjoy reading them as much as I do.
Five novels:
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
The Inheritors (William Golding)
A Separate Peace (John Knowles)
The Ox-Bow Incident (Walter Van Tilburg Clark)
Mildred Pierce (James M. Cain)
Five short stories:
The Lottery (Shirley Jackson)
Afterward (Edith Wharton)
The Open Window (Saki)
The Dwarf (Ray Bradbury)
The Nine Billion Names of God (Arthur C. Clarke)
there are others . . .
bird
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
The Inheritors (William Golding)
A Separate Peace (John Knowles)
The Ox-Bow Incident (Walter Van Tilburg Clark)
Mildred Pierce (James M. Cain)
Five short stories:
The Lottery (Shirley Jackson)
Afterward (Edith Wharton)
The Open Window (Saki)
The Dwarf (Ray Bradbury)
The Nine Billion Names of God (Arthur C. Clarke)
there are others . . .
bird
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? [not a short story or novel, but ...]
Hyperion, by Dan Simmons [If only my mind were only that complex!]
Cruddy, by Lynda Barry [although as fiction, not my autobiography]
Alice in Wonderland
Watership Down
I chose the above because I can imagine having the mind set to write them, if I were appropriately talented and inspired. There are a lot of fine novels out there that I just can't see being the fruit of my thoughts. But there's something about each of these that clicks in my head.
Hyperion, by Dan Simmons [If only my mind were only that complex!]
Cruddy, by Lynda Barry [although as fiction, not my autobiography]
Alice in Wonderland
Watership Down
I chose the above because I can imagine having the mind set to write them, if I were appropriately talented and inspired. There are a lot of fine novels out there that I just can't see being the fruit of my thoughts. But there's something about each of these that clicks in my head.
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Catcher in the Rye - I just love the voice...it's probably my favorite novel. I wish I could capture a narrators voice the way Salinger did.
and
The Stand - King was a genius with this book. I don't think I could ever write something that epic and still have every single character so...individual. I think it's an amazing piece of work.
(and if egam is around here...I'm not debating why either!
)
and
The Stand - King was a genius with this book. I don't think I could ever write something that epic and still have every single character so...individual. I think it's an amazing piece of work.
(and if egam is around here...I'm not debating why either!
)
Wish I'd written
Great thread.
Cities of the Plain (novel) by Cormac McCarthy--the only book that's ever made me tear up a bit.
Animal Farm (novella) by George Orwell--it's a good read for multiple audiences on multiple levels.
To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) by Harper Lee--simply a great book.
That Old Ace in the Hole (novel) by Annie Proulx--she masters the dialect and culture of the Texas Panhandle...very funny and well-written book.
"The Cask of Amontillado" (short story) by Edgar A. Poe--in my opinion, the most chilling of Poe's works. By far, my favorite short story to teach.
Great thread.
Cities of the Plain (novel) by Cormac McCarthy--the only book that's ever made me tear up a bit.
Animal Farm (novella) by George Orwell--it's a good read for multiple audiences on multiple levels.
To Kill a Mockingbird (novel) by Harper Lee--simply a great book.
That Old Ace in the Hole (novel) by Annie Proulx--she masters the dialect and culture of the Texas Panhandle...very funny and well-written book.
"The Cask of Amontillado" (short story) by Edgar A. Poe--in my opinion, the most chilling of Poe's works. By far, my favorite short story to teach.
Yup, a great thread.
Gone With The Wind - the progression of Scarlett's character is amazing. A friend told me to read the book every five years and I would get something new out of it every time. Only five years? I can't wait that long!
The Secret History - Extremely creepy...I love the fact you know the whodunnit at the start of the book, and are gradually told the why. However, the character names are just daft. Judy Poovey? And who would call the twins Charles and Camilla?
I'm with kristie911 on Catcher In The Rye - the perfect portrait of a teenage breakdown.
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - purely because it made a difficult childhood magical. Books really do make the world a better place.
I'll stop there, or I'll go on forever. I'm the person who keeps a list of her favourite books to email to friends - everyone whom I add to my address book gets this sent to them when we start exchanging emails!
Gone With The Wind - the progression of Scarlett's character is amazing. A friend told me to read the book every five years and I would get something new out of it every time. Only five years? I can't wait that long!
The Secret History - Extremely creepy...I love the fact you know the whodunnit at the start of the book, and are gradually told the why. However, the character names are just daft. Judy Poovey? And who would call the twins Charles and Camilla?
I'm with kristie911 on Catcher In The Rye - the perfect portrait of a teenage breakdown.
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - purely because it made a difficult childhood magical. Books really do make the world a better place.
I'll stop there, or I'll go on forever. I'm the person who keeps a list of her favourite books to email to friends - everyone whom I add to my address book gets this sent to them when we start exchanging emails!
The ones I did write, except that I wish that I hadn't made the dumb mistakes I did in getting them published.
There are so many stories/novels I wish I'd written. What immediately comes to mind are two stories by Raymond Carver: "Cathedral" and "A Small, Good Thing." I love how he handles characters and dialogue. Another that comes to mind is Upton Sinclair's The Jungle. Oh, to have had so much impact with one novel. Another: The Great Gatsby. I love the characterizations, especially Nick's narration. Also, the symbolism.
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There are many books and stories I've read that made me think, "I wish I wrote that."
But, anything by Michael Chabon. Such a brilliant writer. His prose is delectable.
But, anything by Michael Chabon. Such a brilliant writer. His prose is delectable.
Mythago Woods by Robert Holdstock.
I know, it's not a classic. But I just marvel at that book. I actually sat clutching it while I read it, and thought about when I wasn't.
-chris
I know, it's not a classic. But I just marvel at that book. I actually sat clutching it while I read it, and thought about when I wasn't.
-chris
Diana Hignutt said:
I wrote a short story which I had, many years ago, planned on making into a novel entitled Starliner. I put it on the shelf too long, and someone else got a similar idea, (Terry Jones) and that author got it published under the title Starship 'Titanic'.
Now, I can't write Starliner at all, because it'd be looked at as too close or even plagiaristic of Starship 'Titanic'.
That's really the one novel I wish I had written.
There is a short story I wish I would have written. That short story would be Saint Dragon and the George (By Gordon R. Dickson). It was eventually turned into one of my favorite Fantasy Novels, entitled The Dragon and the George.
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None. I can only imagine writing my own stories. If I wrote someone else's, it wouldn't be the same story anymore.
I would have said Confederacy of Dunces, but it was taken. No biggy, there's tons on my list. I wish I wrote MOTHERLESS BROOKLYN by JONATHAN LETHEM. Why, because I love the trip, man. It takes you away and messes you up. I love the turrets syndrome narrator. Amazing job. I wish I could be as innovative as Lethem. He kicks azz. Also, I would love to have written WONDER BOYS by MICHAEL CHABON. It's the perfect novel, that's why I would love to have it under my belt.
In fiction, Tolkien and Mark Twain both inspire me, and the blend of the two would be the perfect author IMO. I don't really want to be either one though, though I'd like to split the difference.
Mark Twain was able to pen every man novels. Prince and Pauper, Huck Finn, Tom Sawyer. Tolkien had brilliant thoughts, some awesome prose, and imagination, and IMO the best story - the Silmarillion- but his writing style is more difficult than Twain.
Until this thread I never realized that might be what I'm shooting for, a Tolkien scale Epic in a Mark Twain voice? My protagonist is a fifteen year old lovable free spirit, who is confident in his abilities, but finds himself way in over his head when he goes on an adventure, and seemingly the forest is out to kill him, preventing him from going home.
His mother- though he doesn't know she is a Princess who ran away from home- is a pauper, forced to disclose her long held secret when her son never returns, and she is without any leverage to convince the lord of the land to help her find him.
Throw in countless new creatures, a civil war in another realm, and- why didn't I think of this when writing my Query Letters? (Well, this is book two, which I didn't shop yet)
Mark Twain was able to pen every man novels. Prince and Pauper, Huck Finn, Tom Sawyer. Tolkien had brilliant thoughts, some awesome prose, and imagination, and IMO the best story - the Silmarillion- but his writing style is more difficult than Twain.
Until this thread I never realized that might be what I'm shooting for, a Tolkien scale Epic in a Mark Twain voice? My protagonist is a fifteen year old lovable free spirit, who is confident in his abilities, but finds himself way in over his head when he goes on an adventure, and seemingly the forest is out to kill him, preventing him from going home.
His mother- though he doesn't know she is a Princess who ran away from home- is a pauper, forced to disclose her long held secret when her son never returns, and she is without any leverage to convince the lord of the land to help her find him.
Throw in countless new creatures, a civil war in another realm, and- why didn't I think of this when writing my Query Letters? (Well, this is book two, which I didn't shop yet)
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Tamora Pierce's The Song Of The Lioness Quartet. Middlemarch. Brave New World. The Piano Teacher. Tuck Everlasting. Peter And Wendy. The Silence Of The Lambs. Flowers In The Attic. Tess Of The D'Urbervilles. A Time To Kill. Flander's Point. If we could name plays, most of Tennessee Williams' and Arthur Miller's works (but especially A Streetcar Named Desire).
I was going to say The Mists Of Avalon...but then I realized that I actually like my Arthurian plot better and could never have written it that way. XD
I was going to say The Mists Of Avalon...but then I realized that I actually like my Arthurian plot better and could never have written it that way. XD
F. Scott Fitzgerald's, "The Great Gatsby"
I like that moment in Time ...
Proverbs and the Psalms are nice too.
Hail to Stephen King's, "On Writing," for if I have written it, I would already be a sucessful money making author.
By the way, good question!
I like that moment in Time ...
Proverbs and the Psalms are nice too.
Hail to Stephen King's, "On Writing," for if I have written it, I would already be a sucessful money making author. By the way, good question!
If I HAD to say a book I'd have liked to write Harry potter comes high on the list...money, fans, films...sounds good to me!
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