Odd title. Aren’t authors and writers synonymous? Or if I mean authors are published, then it should be the other way around with all authors being writers but not visa versa. But no, that’s not a typo. I’m going to dig into those “techno authors” like John Grisham and Robin Cook who produce thrillers adorned with details of their main professions.
Criticizing John Grisham? I can hear readers out there already asking, “What have you done to give you the right to pass judgement on one of the most prolific and successful of American authors?” Well, if I was judging the production and marketing of his works, I’d have to answer “Not much”. But on the structure and style of writing, I can say I’ve got a dozen published works under my belt (successful) and nearly that number completed but never published (unsuccessful). That qualifies me to pass judgement on anyone who puts word to paper; though it certainly invites them to pass judgement on me as well.
Grisham has some really wonderful works for which he is rightfully praised. A Time to Kill and Sycamore Row are right at the top of that list, though it’s significant both books deal with the same setting and characters. There are other books like The Summons that do a nice job of entertaining and move along at a nice pace, even if they aren’t going to be listed as memorable. Then the process descends to works like Gray Mountain that has a good plot but just doesn’t take off (I suspect this is due in part to the main character being female), and it goes down another bumbling step with The Brethren (which has nothing to do with the Supreme Court). The list finally crashes and burns with The Reckoning that offers an interesting first chapter and proceeds to bore the reader through the next 350 pages.
Yes, all prolific published authors such as Stephen King and David Baldacci offer a wide range of quality in their works, and that range can be jarring; just compare The Stand to The Tommyknockers. The difference is that King and Baldacci are novelists, not just authors. Their strength is their command of language and style, of their ability to produce and grow characters, to drive a narrative even when the plot thins. They know how to write fiction.
By contrast, John Grisham is first and foremost a lawyer, and Robin Cook is a surgeon. Certainly intelligent, well-spoken professionals but their backgrounds are primarily non-fiction; indeed, a surgeon’s training is to be as precise and accurate as possible with a minimum of embellishments. This all works well when they are dealing with a strong plot line that drives the story by itself, and their professional details add a powerful sense of realism that can help establishing the setting. But when the plot lags or stops, like Grisham’s Reckoning or Cook’s Foreign Bodies, they flounder because they are not adept at enticing readers with their style and language alone (Foreign Bodies should never have left Cook’s computer, let alone made it onto the book shelves).
A practical side of these distinctions is that when I see a book by David Baldacci, I grab it with only a glance at the description in the sleeve (though I am getting tired of variations on the powerful female karate expert with flawless aim who can kick any male @ss stupid enough to confront them). With Grisham, I’ve learned to be a little more cautious, reading a few pages as well as the blurb, and I’ve put a couple back on the shelf. With Cook, I’m even more discriminating. I need at least an indication of a strong story line to take a chance on him, and even then, I’m hoping to see some excellent reviews by credible sources in the editorial pages.
Now, all this leads me to a little self-serving promotion. If techno-thrillers (and the subset of bio-thrillers) are driven by strong technical plots but hindered by authors who are not really novelists, then the best situation is somebody who is an expert in a technical field but also an experienced writer of fiction. This is why many consider The Conductor to be my best novel and why Reader’s View gave it 5 stars and a rating of 100 out of a possible 100. It relies on my 45 years of experience as a process engineer at a tungsten carbide company (that included extensive exposure to coal mining) to offer a compelling and powerful plotline. And it was my 7th novel, so I had a strong literary background to exploit. Add the fact that I polished the work for nearly 20 years – incorporating suggestions from agents and professional readers alike – and you can see why this is the gem in my collection. My magnum opus as I claim in the Author section.
It’s worth a read. You can check it out at:
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