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George R. R. Martin doesn't strike me as a trustworthy author, so I've never had any desire to get into the GoT books (or the show). If I'm going to get emotion

George R. R. Martin doesn't strike me as a trustworthy author, so I've never had any desire to get into the GoT books (or the show). If I'm going to get emotionally involved in a story, it matters to me what the author will do with my emotions through it. I had a co-worker who was into GoT. He told me that Martin made a game out of killing characters. Apparently when fans would tell him "I just love so-and-so", he would go home and kill that character. I think he probably just has a cynical view of peoples' connection to the story; perhaps he enjoys abusing his power as the author.

NoPicklez 8y ago
Well, you meet a staggering about of people throughout the series and I mean a lot of people. Many of these people do and don't play key roles, but are killed, but they play a key role in understanding the history of the story. Yes there are key people that are killed, but there are still plenty of main roles that still exist from throughout the entire series. Realistically, do you want a trustworthy author? Where's the fun in trusting and maintaining a connection with a particular main character only to have them come out the other side unscathed, why not have your emotions tormented with not knowing whether or not they will die. The deaths are also not unexplained, they are met with reason. If you like this genre of movies/TV shows, I'd highly recommend that you atleast what a season.
- TimTheTinker 8y ago
  > Realistically, do you want a trustworthy author? Fictional storytelling is an exploration of truth given certain fictional premises. That's what makes it so fascinating. The differences between genres of fiction arise only out of varying the premises of stories. The trustworthiness of the author shows in how faithful they are to tell the truth to the best of their ability given the premises they've chosen for the story. So, yes. It matters to me whether an author is being true to reality through the story. Gratuitous character deaths for the sake of "having a bit of fun" at the expense of readers is a good example of authorial untrustworthiness. Martin's motivation in doing so isn't always to be true to the characters, the setting, the way the world works, the nature of reality, or a conflict. There are lots of excellent and entertaining stories by truthful authors, so why waste time with Martin? > why not have your emotions tormented with not knowing whether or not they will die If that's your intent, Martin would be right up your alley. For my part -- no thanks. Truthful fantasy is so much more enjoyable to me -- Tolkien, Lewis, George MacDonald, etc.

NoPicklez 8y ago

Well, you meet a staggering about of people throughout the series and I mean a lot of people. Many of these people do and don't play key roles, but are killed, but they play a key role in understanding the history of the story. Yes there are key people that are killed, but there are still plenty of main roles that still exist from throughout the entire series. Realistically, do you want a trustworthy author? Where's the fun in trusting and maintaining a connection with a particular main character only to have them come out the other side unscathed, why not have your emotions tormented with not knowing whether or not they will die. The deaths are also not unexplained, they are met with reason. If you like this genre of movies/TV shows, I'd highly recommend that you atleast what a season.

TimTheTinker 8y ago
> Realistically, do you want a trustworthy author? Fictional storytelling is an exploration of truth given certain fictional premises. That's what makes it so fascinating. The differences between genres of fiction arise only out of varying the premises of stories. The trustworthiness of the author shows in how faithful they are to tell the truth to the best of their ability given the premises they've chosen for the story. So, yes. It matters to me whether an author is being true to reality through the story. Gratuitous character deaths for the sake of "having a bit of fun" at the expense of readers is a good example of authorial untrustworthiness. Martin's motivation in doing so isn't always to be true to the characters, the setting, the way the world works, the nature of reality, or a conflict. There are lots of excellent and entertaining stories by truthful authors, so why waste time with Martin? > why not have your emotions tormented with not knowing whether or not they will die If that's your intent, Martin would be right up your alley. For my part -- no thanks. Truthful fantasy is so much more enjoyable to me -- Tolkien, Lewis, George MacDonald, etc.