Good morning and happy Tuesday! Today I’m going to be participaiting in the weekly meme called Top Ten Tuesday. It’s hosted by The Broke and Bookish. This week we’re supposed to talk about our Top Ten Book Turn-offs. Without further preamble, here is my Top Ten Tuesday.
Thankfully, I don’t come across this too much. But it one of the things that will make me toss a book across the room and never look back. Abuse is not something to be glorified, nor is it something to be condoned. I can’t stomach it in reality, I’m not going to tolerate it in my books.
Here I’m talking about prose that is so purple it’s got can trace it’s noble heritage. I’ve never understood the concept of using a six point vocabulary word when a word normally found in everyday vernacular is acceptable. (see what I did there?)
Telling me rather than showing me drives me absolutely crazy as a reader. I like to come up with my own mental pictures, some guidance is nice, but I don’t like to have to read every single detail.
This is another one that really should be higher up if I gave any weight to the ordering system. Costume porn, down to the minute detail. I don’t mind talking about outfits, or fancy dresses, but telling me how many holes for shoe laces the main character’s shoes have is a little much.
I’m all for bending and breaking the rules. However, I also think that an author should research and have knowledge of their subject before they break all the rules. Because if research isn’t done properly it can cast a culture/subculture/way of life into an unflattering light.
Every book needs a villain, or someone who simply is a pain in the rear to the protagonist. But I have honestly thrown a book simply because a character was bitchy for no reason. She had no motive, not even simply NOT liking the protagonist. This character was just a bitch without a reason. Irritates me every time.
This is something that I encountered first in fan fiction, where the author would insert massive paragraphs of prose in another language (mainly Japanese) for no reason, and without translation. I’ve seen it creeping in more and more into books and it drives me nuts.
This one is pretty self explanatory, and a trope used that I feel only makes the main character look like even more of a special snowflake that’s the best at everything.
Even Dragon Ball Z characters had to work for their level ups. They have limits, they have flaws. Show me your character working hard, failing, and continuing to strive toward better. Don’t make them someone who can’t lift a ten pound weight without working at it, and then being able to bench press a mini-van.
I will not read something with insta-love. Love to me doesn’t work that way. I like the slow build, the slow burn. Most things that are passed off as love at first sight I consider Lust at first sight. It’s at trope that drives me nuts, and I’ve not so calmly put books back on the shelf after reading the synopsis.
Thanks for stopping by and checking my list out. Let’s talk more! What’s the one thing that makes you put a book down? Go ahead and leave a comment, and if you’ve done a TTT feel free to leave your link. 🙂
Have a great day!
Shelly.
books and writing 
Fantastic list!!! (And I agree on so many levels…) I loathe the bumbling sidekick! (That’s the one that really jumps at me!)
Jac @ For Life, Love and Books
The bumbling sidekick is one that sticks in my craw so hard, because I tend to favor the support cast sometimes more than the actual main characters. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
YES! to Instalove and accepted abuse. I’m not sure I’ve come across many books with abuse like that but it seems every second book I read is instalove – I love the journey and excitement that comes with falling in love and when it happens in an instant – I feel ripped off! Babblefish translations aren’t one I notice very much as I only really speak English but when I read translations that even my poor 2 years of high school Italian can pick up – that’s pretty terrible! Great list!
Thankfully the abuse one isn’t something I come across super often, but I read something that was glorifying sexual abuse in a rather disturbing way and it’s just stuck with me. The things of nightmares, man. I try so hard to avoid instalove, but it seems like it’s gaining popularity. I like seeing the characters work for it, and fall in love. It’s a journey not a destination.
What a brilliant list! I love your reasons for choosing them too. Boo to Insta-Love!
Insta-love is so contrived, I can’t stand it. 🙂
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Lol great list! Especially the one on too much detail on what a character is wearing. Also why is it always described by the character looking at themselves in the mirror?
Thanks! Or when they’re shopping, “I bought blah blah blah blah blah.” I mean I tend to do polyvore collections for my characters as inspiration, but the costume porn doesn’t make it into the text.
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I biggest book turn off is cheating
heres mine http://caitstruelife.wordpress.com/2013/09/30/top-ten-tuesday-top-ten-book-turn-offs/
I haven’t read any books that really do that thankfully.
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That’s lucky I’ve been noticing It a lot lately so it’s really getting me mad. I think they should include it on the back if there’s heavy cheating in books. The author seems to always be sneaky about it yet its a main story in the book tho.
YES! Different language without translation drives me insane! I actually completely agree with all of these, great list 🙂
It drives me crazy! I don’t understand why anyone would think that it’s a good idea.
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Love your list. Insta-love is making it onto a ton of lists this week. I guess it happens from time to time, but I sure have never had it happen. And I’m not too impressed when a writer is showing us how extensive his vocabulary is either.
Thanks for stopping by The Book Connection.
Yeah, I noticed a theme for sure this week. 🙂 You’re lucky, I keep coming across it for some reason.
This is a great list. I agree with everything, especially 5&6. I didn’t know about 4, that is an absurd thing to do. I’m glad I haven’t encountered it.
5 +6 make me rage so hard. Those are two of the surest reasons that I don’t purchase/finish a book.
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This is a great list! Sometimes the details with clothes is far too much. I totally have rolled my eyes a time or two over that factor in a book.
My TTT List
Thank you! Yeah, my example is pretty extreme, but it’s one that I’ve actually read, and it’s stuck with me. It’s ridiculous.
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Love this list! Yes yes yes (or rather, no no no!) to glorfiying abuse, insta-love, and lack of research. And thesaurus abuse (great term) drives me nuts, too.
Thanks for visiting my blog so I could “meet” you. You have a wonderful sense of humor — I’ll be back!
Fantastic! I agree with them all, but love the bitch without reason one the most! The “mean girl” character has become so standard, especially in YA, and it’s just irritating at this point.
Thank you for #5!!! It’s like Rumplestiltskin on “Once Upon a Time” always says, “Evil isn’t born, it’s made dearie.” Too true and I hate caricaturized villains! When you can have a mental picture of them twirling a moustache and tying someone to train tracks, enough is enough. Just because is NOT a reason for villainy! Great list! Thanks for stopping by my TTT! 🙂
I love your list!! And I agree with everything one it! Especially number 6 – in this day and age of free wifi and Google how hard is it to do a simple search to see if that big thing you have in your book is true or not…like when using a real town and then transporting it 60 miles away from where its really located. No…just…no.
My TTT is here.
I love your take on the turnoffs – my favorite one was Thesaurus Abuse, LOL. thanks for checking out my list this week!
What a great list! I can’t help but agree with all of them — particularly the bumbling sidekick one. It irritates me when authors do that — when the best friend is stupid or immature or crazy, etc. just to make the protagonist look like a Greek God in comparison. Ugh.
Thanks for stopping by my blog! You have a great list here, and I love the snarky way you write 😉 Insta-love is another turn-off for me (even though it didn’t make it onto my list). Characters need AT LEAST 3/4 of the book to fall in love, not 3/4 of a page 😉