posted
Today I found an excellent writing podcast (appendixpodcast.com) and the host gave a tip that before seeking to be published in a genre that new writers should be familiar with the essential novels/stories of that genre so that their work is not derivative of the classics.
I thought it might be fun to go through a few genres and see what novels/stories my fellow posters consider essentials for the genre. It would be nice to compile a list of 10 or so works in each genre. Here are a few to start:
Essential Science Fiction: Foundation by Isaac Asimov Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card Neuromancer by William Gibson (subgenre Cyberpunk)
Essential Fantasy: The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
Essential Horror: Carrie by Stephen King The Call of Cthulhu by H.P. Lovecraft
Essential Westerns:
Essential Mysteries:
Essential Romance:
Essential Historical Fiction: The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara The Power and the Glory by Irving Stone
posted
With this crowd, you can pretty safely stick with the scifi/fantasy and everything in between (although I'm sure there are writers of the other genres you mention that remain active).
This list you mention is likely posted in the form of top 100 lists on various blogs. Some additions that come to mind include
Scifi: Dune, Hitchhikers, Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate, 1984
Fantasy: harry potter, song of ice and fire, thomas covenant, wheel of time, dresden files
posted
Terry Pratchett's Discworld series deserves a spot up there in fantasy, along with Robin Hobb's works. For sci-fi David Feintuch's Seafort Saga was a very defining series for the genre, at least to me. At while it may seem cheesy, the X-wing books in the Star Wars universe were for me one of the best sci-fi series I've read, standing out as containing some of the best dogfights and fleet battles in space.
Jim Butcher's Dresden Files definitely deserve a place, as well as his Codex Alera series. And for quite possibly one of the most amazingly complex, breathtaking worlds ever created Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen series.
I could spend a good while listing just the best of the books I've read in sci-fi and fantasy, but those are definitely a good starting point.
posted
The problem with this is that you're not going to assemble a list of "essential" novels/stories, but just get a list of what everyone's favorite novels are. There's nothing wrong with that, just so long as you know they're not "essential."
If you want the "essential" novels and short fiction of a given genre, see if said genre has awards.
If you're writing sf and f, read all the Hugo and Nebula winners. Read the SF Hall of Fame. Read Dangerous Visions. There, I've just given it to you. Do that, and you'll have an understanding of the genre most writers don't.
Mystery fiction has it's set of awards, as does horror fiction.
With mainstream, you can always read the Pulitzer Prizes and National Book Award Winners, as well as the PEN/Faulkner Awards and the other short fiction awards.
And finally, if your goal is to write bestselling fiction (an admirable goal, I do believe), then find a list of the best-selling novels over the past 10 years.
posted
With SF I would go back to the beginning. E.E.Doc Smith and a couple of others I can't think of right now. Or maybe a bit forward in time to Robert Heinlien and his contemporaries.
I think Lord of the Rings is a good choice for Fantasy but there are others. And that's not just because I like it. But because it is used as an example and has inspired other writers.
For western I would put in Zane Grey and Louis L'amour .
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I think you should be well-read in the types of books that you want to write. It only makes sense that you would write a book similar to the ones you enjoy reading. Posts: 1102 | Registered: May 2009
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posted
I agree with Jeff that asking for what's at the top of people's heads will produce favorites rather than essentials.
Someone named Laurie Mann compiled most of the winners and nominees of the Hugos, Nebulas, Stokers (for Horror), and World Fantasy awards on a site called AwardWeb.
posted
SF: Start with what are called Robert A. Heinlein's "juveniles"---a series he wrote for Scribners (largely) in the 1950s. Some of 'em are "real creaky," as is said---the very first one deals with going to the moon for the first time---but they, by and large, influenced nearly all the writers who came afterwards, me included.
Fantasy: The Lord of the Rings is pretty much the Alpha and Omega of modern fantasy---in some way everything that came after is either a homage to it, an imitation of it, or a reaction to it.
Nobody's brought up the Essential Mysteries: I'll bring up a couple---Agatha Christie, particularly Murder on the Orient Express and The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. On the American side, try Ellery Queen, particularly Calamity Town and Cat of Many Tails.
Historical Fiction: Gone With the Wind.
There are other works in all the categories, that I see as essential...I'll probably bring them up as things develop...
posted
I would have to say everyone's essential is probably going to be different in a lot of cases. For me, essential novels are what I would think define's the genre, which may come down to what you like or in my case inspired me to write.
Sci-fi
Edgar Rice Burroughs-Tarzan/John Carter of Mars(movie coming out sometime)For me growing up he was it. And today I still want to write stories that make young people read, lose themselves in a story.
Western
Louis L'Amour - Read them all, Came on them late into my life early twenties. Hard to choose my favorite, but I think - Riley's Luck.
Zane Gray - Older but still classic, and has the time period down and the language, god, how i love the language back then.
There are other books that set genres, In western I would say Lonesome Dove saga was a new defining series. Sci-Fi-everyone I knows recommends Ender's Game, You have Dune.
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When I said THE SF HALL OF FAME, I meant the three books.
**The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume I: The Greatest Science Fiction Stories of All Time, Chosen by the Members of the Science Fiction Writers of America.
**The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two B: The Greatest Science Fiction Novellas of All Time Chosen by the Members of the Science Fiction Writers of America (SF Hall of Fame)
**The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two A: The Greatest Science Fiction Novellas of All Time Chosen by the Members of The Science Fiction Writers of America (Sf Hall of Fame)
posted
Thanks for all the replies everyone. I think we could probably assemble a pretty good target goal if a list was assembled that gave weighted rankings dependent on both award winners and popular opinion.
The site Metacritic.com does something similar with movies and TV shows where both professional and amateur reviewers can offer reviews that rank the film/show. Professional reviewers can give ratings between 1-100 while amateurs can rank between 1-10 and the work itself is rated based on the aggregated vote.
posted
Also the Science Fiction Hall of Fame volumes were put together by a vote of the SFWA writers circa 1970---but deliberately excluding everything published after the Nebula Awards were established. (Yeah, the volumes were formative in my formation, too---though, really, I didn't "get" some of the stories in them until I was much older.)
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posted
If the first SF/F I'd read was Dangerous Visions, I probably would never have read any more of it.
"Essential" to my mind means "definitive" in the sense of literally defining the territory. Which would include a lot of work that I don't particularly like, but which in its day was necessary to the growth and scope of the genre, to building the foundation that we all take for granted today.
Such works may not really be suitable for novice readers of a genre, tho -- as they're often just not all that interesting to someone from a later era. Frex, Jules Verne is both "essential" and "definitive" but to most modern readers, would probably seem rather quaint and not all that interesting, thus not really a good recommendation in a starter list.
[This message has been edited by Reziac (edited June 01, 2011).]
posted
Essential stories/novels is not enough. I received rejections based on what I considered esoteric pieces from non-mainstream writers. When reading those other works afterwords, I can see some elements that might be considered derivative. (What I saw was that the other author did fair justice where I barely tapped the surface to accumulated a bunch of scenes into novelette length.)
Any story that has a mission to Mars could be considered derivative - but if you have a good story based on conflict of characters and interesting plot it may be considered.
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In SF, ya can't unnnerstand where yer goin' unless ya know where ya been. Any story about Man's first landing on the moon, from before it was done for real, are utterly obsolete---yet some of these form the core of what is science fiction. If you haven't read some of them, you might not even realize what it is you're imitating...
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posted
I might suggest that 'essential' would be defined first by author, then by novel. I do not mean to knock the awards-based approach, but I have selected reading by looking at an award list before, and have found myself disappointed.
So, instead, I'd suggest that you instead identify consistently award-winning, prolific authors who have helped define the genre or sub-genre. Then determine which of their novels sold the most copies and won the most acclaim.
When I think of it in these terms, these authors come to mind:
SF/F Arthur C. Clark Isaac Asimov William Gibson Ben Bova Ray Bradbury Robert Heinlen Frank Herbert Douglass Adams Orson Scott Card Phillip K. Dick
FANTASY
J.R.R. Tolkien C.S. Lewis Ursula K. LeGuin Piers Anthony
[This message has been edited by Osiris (edited June 02, 2011).]
posted
Point of order: a couple of you have posted Arthur C. "Clark." It's "Clarke," with an "e" at the end.
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