I LIKE BIG DRAGONS AND I CANNOT LIE but they have to be interesting, not just HAY THIS UNIVERSE HAS DRAGONS. I like universes where the dragons are circumspect, like Earthsea, or where the author's clearly put some damn thought into how BIG they are so OH MY GOD THEY HAVE TO EAT A LOT and they SMELL FUNNY and DETAIL PEOPLE, DETAIL. Keep 'em at the sidelines or think about them a little, basically.
Other likes: Oh yes, girls passing as boys. Cyberpunk that's more about how people use the technology than the technology itself. Grumpy assholes who are really annoyed when they start caring about the people around them. That One Guy who refuses to act like he's taking this shit seriously (see: Maxwell, Duo). That One Girl who's taking things more seriously than anyone else (see: Sun, Aeryn).
Things I am sick of: Vampires. Quests. Men Who Have Lost Their True Love And Must Emo About It. Aliens who just happen to look humanoid.
Things I HATE: Let's Rape the Heroine or Hero's Girlfriend! Exotic People Put In To Make Things Pretty. (I do give points for effort at diversity, but Window Dressing is a ewww. Basically, if I start flashing back to Old-School Johnny Quest, I bail.) Let Me Describe This Furniture In Great Detail, And Tell You All About My Clothes. (Unless you're like Phedre, in which case the clothes actually matter.)
Oh, and DEAR GOD AM I SICK OF HALF-ELVES especially half-elves who are clearly clumsy and terrible attempts to talk about human race relations without having to bring in those difficult black people. (Or whatever.)
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Other likes: Oh yes, girls passing as boys. Cyberpunk that's more about how people use the technology than the technology itself. Grumpy assholes who are really annoyed when they start caring about the people around them. That One Guy who refuses to act like he's taking this shit seriously (see: Maxwell, Duo). That One Girl who's taking things more seriously than anyone else (see: Sun, Aeryn).
Things I am sick of: Vampires. Quests. Men Who Have Lost Their True Love And Must Emo About It. Aliens who just happen to look humanoid.
Things I HATE: Let's Rape the Heroine or Hero's Girlfriend! Exotic People Put In To Make Things Pretty. (I do give points for effort at diversity, but Window Dressing is a ewww. Basically, if I start flashing back to Old-School Johnny Quest, I bail.) Let Me Describe This Furniture In Great Detail, And Tell You All About My Clothes. (Unless you're like Phedre, in which case the clothes actually matter.)
Oh, and DEAR GOD AM I SICK OF HALF-ELVES especially half-elves who are clearly clumsy and terrible attempts to talk about human race relations without having to bring in those difficult black people. (Or whatever.)