One of the stranger experiences for me as a reader is when I find myself mentally editing the novel I’m reading. I think I may do this more after NaNoWriMos, when my brain is in writing mode, but either way it’s happened to me on multiple occasions.
Last week I read The Sin Eater’s Daughter by Melinda Salisbury, which is a YA fantasy following young Twylla, the embodiment of a mythic figure in her kingdom. Her special powers? She can kill with her touch, which lends itself to a role as the queen’s executioner.
The opening chapter was a bit lackluster. Obviously we need some introduction to the mythology of the country, and also an opportunity to see Twylla use her powers, but as I was reading, I felt several parts should be rearranged, and I realized I knew exactly how I would do it.
As I got more into the book, my inner editor got much quieter. There were some big twists, and characters that felt nearly realistic (and a stupid love triangle). I read the whole thing straight through. The ending indicates that (duh) there will be more books. I probably won’t read them. The pieces were all there, they just weren’t quite put together perfectly.
Last year in my fit of YA dystopian readings, I came across the Maze Runner series by James Dashner. This trilogy was so well plotted and paced I just had to keep reading. The problem? The prose. When it was good it was fine, but when it was bad…I found myself re-writing it in my head.
This one really messed with my head, because there were times when I thought, That sounds like something I would write. And then I proceeded to tear it apart and make it better. My driving need to edit my own writing is one reason I fail at NaNoWriMo; I just cannot stop my editing. One more symptom of my perfectionist personality.
Tl;dr
The Sin Eater’s Daughter (Melinda Salisbury)–2.5/5 stars
The Maze Runner/The Scorch Trials/The Death Cure (James Dashner)–3/5 stars
The Kill Order (James Dashner)–2/5 stars, skip this prequel!
I do that all the time.. Must be the writer’s in us.. lol
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Sometimes you just can’t turn it off lol
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I’ve been thinking about reading The Maze Runner, too.
When I read Stardust, I was surprised by how much I wanted to write my own version. Glad to know I’m not alone 🙂 .
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When I read Stardust, I had just seen the movie first, so I spent the whole time comparing the two lol. Love both, but quite different.
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I didn’t really notice how being a writer affects how I read things. The other day my friend was filling out a dating site and read her description of herself and I said, “well, if you want to phrase it like *that*” and she just died laughing and said, “DID I JUST GET EDITED?”
But the real question is is The Maze Runner worth reading? I read the first book and it was okay and I kind of want to know what happens, but if the writing isn’t good I’ll be just as fulfilled if I read the Wikipedia page :p
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I guess it really depends on how much you liked the first book, and that genre in general. I found them fun and thought they all had good action and suspense. If you couldn’t really get into the first book or care about the characters, just read Wikipedia ~_^
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