The Writing of Warcraft.

I will begin this by saying right off that I have never read any of the warcraft books.  I've read some excerpts from a few but never a full book.  Now to what the topic is about.  I've been reading a lot criticizing the writing of the people that write the books and from reading the criticism of them I can tell you exactly what the problem is based on my own personal experience writing.

The books are written for children, by children's standards.  Yes, I know these are adults that write them but they are writing them from a wild imagination of a childish mind.  There is nothing wrong with that really but that explains why they get cut up so much from the adults and young adults that read them.

I started writing when I was 9 years old.  Many years have passed since then and I am a published author now.  I write mostly high fantasy or epic fantasy. What I write now however is not what this is about.  It is about what I wrote when I was 9.

When I was 9 years old I started with this great idea for a book and even now many years later I still think the idea is pretty damn awesome.  It was about a post apocalyptic world where society basically was broken down into three parts.  The haves, the have nots and the mutants.  There was a battle for power of course as is standard with anything like that but it was sort of a complex task for a 9 year old to try to take to writing.

It took me roughly 4 years to finish it but when all was said and done it was about 210 pages and it was a complete masterpiece.  At least that is what I thought when I was 13 years old.  I worked on it some for the next 2 years cleaning it up and adding or removing as I saw fit.  At a certain point I lost interest in it and stopped writing.  I put it away and never touched it again.

When I was about 25 I started to write again.  Shortly after I had my first published work.  Remembering how awesome that story was when I was younger I dug it up and dusted it off.  I figured I would rework it now and maybe try to get that published as well.

I sat down one night with a cup of tea with a splash of canadian club in it for taste of course and put my feet up on the table and started to read the story.  Oh my god.  I was a horrible writer.  What the hell was I even trying to say here?  What is that word supposed to be?  Why does every sentence begin with the?  Is it really possible to have one sentence go on for a whole chapter?

You get the idea.  I was a horrible writer when I was 9 years old but from all my memories offered me it was an amazing story and it was very well written.  I thought I was going to go back and just have to expand the vocabulary some and that was it.  I remembered it being so great.

That is where the problem is.  Over the years my writing ability got better but so did my taste in things I liked.  That is not just me, that is everyone.  I talked to a friend that had read it back when I wrote it and told him about how horrible it was.  Do you know what he said?  You have to be kidding me, that was one of the best things I think I have ever read.  He went on to even recall certain scenes that he liked, the characters he connected to, events that happened, all with the awe of someone talking about the newest, lastest, greatest thing.

You see, he remembered it with a 9 year old mind.  He remembered it as he saw it back then and back then it really was good. Now, not so much really.  As you get older your tastes change but not only that but your wealth of experience changes as well.  If you have never read much then your expectations are lower. 

That is where I think these warcraft book writers are coming from.  They are writing with the heart that a 9 year old me had.  The wide eyed excitement of everything being fantastic.  Like one of those criticized things I see is the raptor army.  It seems rather stupid to me and many because it is so unbelievable but in the eyes of a 9 year old that is the greatest fucking thing ever.

That is who those books are aimed at I believe.  The people without a wealth of reading experience and knowledge of the genre. Not saying they are meant for 9 year olds or written by people that have the skills of a 9 year old.  What I am saying is that to someone out there those are the greatest books ever written and that is who it is aimed it.  The people who will really enjoy it.

As long as it is written well, even if it is completely unbelievable and utterly ridiculous, you can still enjoy it.  Let yourself relax and not take things so serious and you can enjoy them just like you would have enjoyed them when you were 9 years old.

Believe it or not, some adults still read the Goosebumps books and lets get real, once you are reading King and other horror mavens the Goosebump books are pretty darn lame.  The reason otherwise intelligent adults like these lesser books is because they are brainless fun and allow yourself to just let go and enjoy.

Next time someone blasts these warcraft book writers for things like the raptor army remember that out there are some kids, and adults that like to suspend belief, that think that is amazing and love it.  The books are written for the lowest common denominator.  Anyone can read them.  Adults just need to relax and not be so cynical and pick apart all those stupid things in the books.  Remember, they are not written for you alone.

Open your mind and enjoy them and if you are incapable of doing that just do not read them and understand that they were not written for you, they were written for everyone and everyone includes that 9 year old in all of us.  Release your inner child and enjoy.