Comments on: Cormac McCarthy v. Epic Novel

By: Ed Werbley

Ed Werbley — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 19:27:16 +0000

Do a search on literary agents and find out how many of them will even look at a 1000-page manuscript and there is your answer. It’s not good, but that’s it. These agents, these editors (who famously don’t even really “edit” anymore), these publishers, the whole system is all messed up. They’ve gone bad and as a result nothing good is getting in and they’re taking the whole thing down with them. For shame.

By: Sadako

Sadako — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 23:44:29 +0000

I think it depends on the writer. If the book is really that good, I’ll read it for 1,000 pages. That said, most books really aren’t all that great, and I think the majority of really long ones could be pared down…Just a bit!

By: tom

tom — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 17:45:38 +0000

it’s not really more expensive to publish a 1000 page novel vs. a 200 pager but i can say with certainty that publishers are wary of putting out a huge book. the reasons for that are many and varied. it comes down to a delicious combination of a publishing industry that is, necessarily so, concerned with selling as many books as possible, a readership that simply doesn’t spend as much time reading as it used to, and, as a result of that, a culture of writers (americans. world literature does not adhere to this and is producing epic after epic) who don’t have the literary context to write most anything except memoirs. the contemporary novel in a lot of ways has become a pastiche of what the novel used to be. it’s just not the way we tell stories anymore so a lot of contemporary american novels end up being hyper self aware. this acute self awareness is a symptom of our culture and mirrors pretty damn well the way most westerners view their own lives. it makes perfect sense that the literature of our place and time would veer away from the epic.

By: Joe

Joe — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 01:53:06 +0000

I can understand that, Nikki. Perhaps it’s not a matter of attention span and more a matter of life getting in the way. Hell, I’m sure a lot of us wouldn’t mind spending our entire days reading… but there are other responsibilities to which we must attend. I’ve found a new place to read recently — the bus! Usually when I’m on public transit I just listen to music; I’ve never thought I could be the person who simultaneously listens to music and reads, but that is who I’ve become. I forced myself to do it and it’s added an hour of reading to my day. This new development is actually persuading me to look into e-readers. I’m weighing my options, and the Barnes & Noble Nook is really piquing my interest. Regardless, maybe there’s a place in your life you never thought you would be able to read in and discovering that place could help you tackle a big book you’ve been waiting to jump on. I’m really happy I discovered the bus as a place to read. My morning commute is much better now and I’m flying through books.

By: nikki

nikki — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 19:32:51 +0000

I want to read longer novels. But at this point in my life with a career and a child, it’s just an impossibility. I actually look forward to the day when my son goes off to school and I’ll have longer then twenty minute stretches to read and possibly actually be able to finish a lengthy novel in less than three months.