Have fantasy novels gotten "better" since D&D?

[Felon]

As LoTR is the standard by which all others are judged, anything since is inferior.

I'm not the first to point out that there's a lot in LotR that seems to suffer from pacing problems, as well as presaging to the point of anti-climax.

 

[WayneLigon]

Harper Lee?
J.D. Salinger?

Looking at info about them, it seems both had that one great book in them and that was that. So, they probably did not have anything else worth writing about to say.

 

[T. Foster]

Looking at info about them, it seems both had that one great book in them and that was that. So, they probably did not have anything else worth writing about to say.

But isn't recognizing that and not going ahead and churning out a bunch of mediocre shlock for money anyway pretty much the definition of stopping while you're ahead? (Plus, I'd argue JDS had 4 great books in him -- one novel (The Catcher in the Rye), one quasi-novel that's actually probably better than the novel (Franny and Zooey), and 2 collections of stories which perhaps aren't quite as the other two but are still very much worth reading (Nine Stories and Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters; and Seymour: An Introduction))

 

[Quasqueton]

Have fantasy novels gotten better since D&D?

Yes. Everything has gotten better since D&D.

Quasqueton

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

No.

 

[jdrakeh]

Fantasy novels have dropped off a cliff in quality since TSR published the Dragonlance novels and showed that a good brand was more important for sales than decent writing, original plot, interesting characters or a novel setting.

Today, the market is full of ghastly crap. That we've gotten a few good series like a Song of Ice & Fire is remarkable, and an example of a book escaping the web of garbage that stretches over the industry now, not some sort of product of it.

I have to agree. I find the pre-D&D fantasy fiction of authors like Jack Vance, Vernor Vinge, Fritz Leiber, Lord Dunsany, Robert Howard, and others to be far more engaging and far less formulaic than most fantasy fiction published since the mid-1970s. That said, I occasionally enjoy the guiilty pleasure stylings of Dennis L. McKiernan (whose novels are partially inspired by his Rolemaster campaigns).

 

[Thunderfoot]

Color me confused. Not sure why that was funny. All of the authors I listed wrote until the day they died, or thereabouts. Your point that the best authors quit while they are ahead seems a bit off.

I meant they should, not that they did. Sorry for the confuzzion. Now do you see why I thought that was funny?

 

[Thunderfoot]

He's being snide.

No I wasn't, did I pee in your Wheaties or something?

 

[Thunderfoot]

<SNIP>
Look at R.E. Howard. He was the consumate pulp writer. He wrote reams of material, a lot of it very quickly, and for one reason: money for food and rent. When something didn't sell in one market, he'd re-write it for another one. Need a Conan story for next month? Use the basic plot and some characters from a rejected sea adventure/boxing/western story or file the serial numbers off a Soloman Kane story.

Ah, but therein lies the genius of his writing style, unless you are a devotee of R.E. Howard and read all of his stuff, you'd never know that. /That's sarcasm BTW/

No, I'm not saying that I stop reading an author when they have 'too many books' but, when the quality of what they write no longer inspires me. I loved the original Anne McCaffrey Pern novels, they were somewhat innovative and very evocative mentally, as the series went on, I found myself reading the same story over and over again, so I stopped reading her stuff. I'm with Jordan for the long haul on WoT because 'by God he WILL finish this story!' But I will NEVER pick up another copy of work with his name on it unless it is a single story, not a serial. He can evoke very detailed written images, I just don't want to read 36 volumes to find the story.

I loved the 'Shannara' books when they first were published, the first three were very similar to LotR, but different enough and spanning a few generations that they had their own charm, by the end of the second series I was forcing myself to pick them up and read them, so I never picked up the current one.

I understand how hard it is to be creative and 'on' all the time, a DM is in a very similar position... "OH, this is just like the time that we...." So I can appreciate that a professional writer that has choosen to make their living by be creative must be under constant stress between being 'on' and being fed and clothed. But as a consumer, I feel no sense of imposed loyalty to always buy author X when Y and Z are currently doing something better.

I mentioned "Harry Potter" in an earlier post about being well thought out, and I can use this example to explain - There are a planned six (or is it seven) books in this series covering the life of a child in school, concerning the trials of puberty while fighting evil with magic. (No, I don't read them but anyone can read a syllabus). After that final book, it's over, done, no more Potter, no more Hogwart's, no more Rowling writing about magic. IF she holds to that, she has figured out more than many writer's have, that lightning doesn't strike twice and you can't catch it in a bottle. If she decides to do another story about a little girl that grows a garden and talks to the faeries that inhabit it, that would be fine, if all of those faeries begin to start talking about Harry and Hogwart's - Houston we have disconnect.

I am picky and I have only a set amount of money to spend, I prefer to be entertained by something 'completely different'. If I want a re-hash of LotR, I'll pick-up the original, if I want to read about Pern, I'll read the 'Singer/Song' or 'Riders' series that I already own. If I want to read about Shannara, my copies of the original three eagerly await my page turning and dog-earing, I already own them, why buy them again under a new title? I get the point you are trying to make, I really do, I'm just one that wants something fresh, is that too much to ask, realistically? (Please reply, I really want to know what you think about this?)

 

[Geoffrey]

I've been trying to think of a fantasy novel written post-1974 that I like.

I'm afraid I can't think of any.