Overrated and underrated authors?

[bombermick]

Staying away from genres and styles I don't like, I'd list them like so:

Overrated:
Tim Winton - Great description, but overwrought and doesn't tell a story well.
Cristos Tsiolkas - Writing about important issues doesn't make you a great writer. The Slap has about 1,000 mentions of the word ''*'' too many.

Underrated:
Stephen King: He has some written some average ones, but when he gets it right, no - one spins a yarn better. Not a great writer, but an amazing storyteller. Writing is about getting an emotional response; he's the master at eliciting one.

 

[Max Rockatansky]

Good call

Tsiolkas is one of the worst writers I have ever had the misfortune to read but the arty farty crowd seem to think he walks on water.

Steven King was consistently great up to around the point he stopped drinking. I think he used to write a lot of his stuff in a booze fuelled frenzy, but when he went teetotal he kinda lost his way. Still has the good book or story here and there though.

 

[bombermick]

Good call

Tsiolkas is one of the worst writers I have ever had the misfortune to read but the arty farty crowd seem to think he walks on water.

Steven King was consistently great up to around the point he stopped drinking. I think he used to write a lot of his stuff in a booze fuelled frenzy, but when he went teetotal he kinda lost his way. Still has the good book or story here and there though.

Yep, don't understand the Tsiolkas love. I loved 'The Slap' on TV, but the book was jarring. King is best when he stays away from horror or fantasy, or at least as much as possible IMO.

 

[Andre]

King is best when he stays away from horror or fantasy, or at least as much as possible IMO.

King's horror and fantasy there have been plenty of good reads. Some duds as well, but with that many they can't all hit the target.

I'd say though it's been that his best movies have been from shorter stories (Shawshank, Stand by me, etc.) as they didn't get butchered to fit into the time frame of a 90 - 180 minute movie. As a general one I'm always torn when a book I've read and liked gets made into a movie / TV show, the pleasure of seeing what I've only been able to imagine 'come to life' versus the constraints of a fixed time (for movies), budgets and interpretation. Usually I end up watching them twice - the first time I can't help, but pick out the differences, the second time I can generally just enjoy.

 

[sydney eagle]

Overrated George Turner, Stanislaus Lem. Underrated Terry Dowling, Leigh Brackett.

 

[chugginon]

Staying away from genres and styles I don't like, I'd list them like so:

Overrated:
Tim Winton - Great description, but overwrought and doesn't tell a story well.
Cristos Tsiolkas - Writing about important issues doesn't make you a great writer. The Slap has about 1,000 mentions of the word ''****'' too many.

Underrated:
Stephen King: He has some written some average ones, but when he gets it right, no - one spins a yarn better. Not a great writer, but an amazing storyteller. Writing is about getting an emotional response; he's the master at eliciting one.

Glad to read this re Tim Winton and "The slap" Didn't like either, although didn't read The Slap, just browsed through it and put it back on the shelf. Tim Winton gets a lot of hype, but won't be reading his books . Went to a book club that had his book for the read. Didn't go back to any of his books