This was brought back to my mind by a post by BookBint.
Now - I have a former colleague (pretty decent as a colleague, too) who writes science fiction. Mind, I write science fiction too, I am not pointing my finger on him because of this.
Well, about one year after we both quit the job we had met at, we met by chance in the city centre and got to talk. In the meanwhile we had both gotten married, his wife was pregnant, a lot of nice news.
And a great one - he had published his first novel!
Wow, happiness!
Yes, ok, he has actually *printed* it rather than publishing it. You know, one of those small companies that would print pretty much anything you pay them to publish (but assigning an ISBN to the book and putting it on sale on Amazon and Play.com).
Anyway.
I tell him that I want to read it, he directs me to Amazon. I buy it.
The language.
Oh my [insert divinity of choice], the language.
Not that it was rude, vulgar or anything.
But it was SO bad that it spoiled (most of) the story. Which objectively is quite good per se.
To add insult to injury... he replies to any review he sees online complaining about the bad treatment his novel got, "only because of the language". In a seriously broken English.
I quote.
"They finished the breakfast at 9.30 and boys managed to beg their mother to clean up the table so [butler] would be freed to give them a sightseeing of the house."
"Estate has also several outbuildings: Stable, which is empty, Barn at the fields a bit further away and lake house. Then there is that big barn over there which is modified to hold your step dads laboratory."
"Now the suns [note that it is science fiction, there are TWO suns, so this one is NOT an error] were already getting ready for the night. [girl] turned to see the sunset when boys heard the scream that seized the blood rushing in their arteries"
Now - I have a former colleague (pretty decent as a colleague, too) who writes science fiction. Mind, I write science fiction too, I am not pointing my finger on him because of this.
Well, about one year after we both quit the job we had met at, we met by chance in the city centre and got to talk. In the meanwhile we had both gotten married, his wife was pregnant, a lot of nice news.
And a great one - he had published his first novel!
Wow, happiness!
Yes, ok, he has actually *printed* it rather than publishing it. You know, one of those small companies that would print pretty much anything you pay them to publish (but assigning an ISBN to the book and putting it on sale on Amazon and Play.com).
Anyway.
I tell him that I want to read it, he directs me to Amazon. I buy it.
The language.
Oh my [insert divinity of choice], the language.
Not that it was rude, vulgar or anything.
But it was SO bad that it spoiled (most of) the story. Which objectively is quite good per se.
To add insult to injury... he replies to any review he sees online complaining about the bad treatment his novel got, "only because of the language". In a seriously broken English.
I quote.
"They finished the breakfast at 9.30 and boys managed to beg their mother to clean up the table so [butler] would be freed to give them a sightseeing of the house."
"Estate has also several outbuildings: Stable, which is empty, Barn at the fields a bit further away and lake house. Then there is that big barn over there which is modified to hold your step dads laboratory."
"Now the suns [note that it is science fiction, there are TWO suns, so this one is NOT an error] were already getting ready for the night. [girl] turned to see the sunset when boys heard the scream that seized the blood rushing in their arteries"
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