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Hands down I need to know!

AlphaOmegaX

AlphaOmegaX

New Member
Who is the best fantasy writer in all of your opinions. When I say best I mean will keep my attention reading and actually make me want to continue reading and miss dinner.

~Josh
 
Diana Gabaldon and Margaret Atwood are my favourite (I know that Atwood writes more SF books, but I had to mention her ;) :D )
 
MonkeyCatcher
I never know how to classify Gabaldon's books. But Fantasy would not have been my first choice. I remember reading on her (neato) website that when she first started being published, everyone had trouble classifying her.
Historical Romance sounds waayyy too gushy and not like her books, but thats what they are in a way. They certainly are romantic. Yay Jamie!, and the history is basically true to life.
I suppose the stones would in themselves partially put it in the Fantasy genre though. Gellis certainly would. Man, what a character she is! :D
 
I think Martin is the best epic fantasy author IMHO, which perhaps puts him in the top 25 overalll curently IMHO. If we are talking current author's, here are the 20 who I think are the best:

Jefrey Ford
Lucius Shepard
Jeff Vandermeer
Michael Chabon
China Mieville
Graham Joyce
Hal Duncan
Kelly Link
M. John Harrison
Michael Moorcock
Zoran Zivkovic
Jonathan Carroll
Brooks Hansen
Charles de Lint
Tim Powers
J.G. Ballard
Geoff Ryman
Michael Cisco
Catherynne M. Valente
Sean Stewart
 
I don't read enough Fantasy to formulate a fair opinion but I do know a handful of devout fantasy readers who mention the following names often:

George R.R. Martin
Stephen Donaldson
Guy Gavriel Kay
Jack Whyte
 
David Eddings, Terry Goodkind, Robert Jordan, and Raymond Fiest are utter geniuses. Without them, we would never have the fantasy genre ;).
 
It's really hard to say, because there are so many genres within the fantasygenre. Some of my favourites are:

J.V. Jones
Charles de Lint
Neil Gaiman
J.R.R Tolkien
 
Ainulindale said:
I think Martin is the best epic fantasy author IMHO, which perhaps puts him in the top 25 overalll curently IMHO. If we are talking current author's, here are the 20 who I think are the best:

Jefrey Ford
...
Sean Stewart
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What, no Mervyn Peake?

He may not still be writing, but any list of the best fantasy authors must include Mervyn Peake - though I understand that you're hugely limiting it to just 20 authors (all of whom I've read I'd rate equally highly).

Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Salman Rushdie, Italo Calvino, R Scott Bakker, Steven Erikson, Roger Zelazny and Gene Wolfe are all excellent as well.

If you're looking for one author, I'd say try Steven Erikson - IMO he's not quite as good as Peake, but he's much more likely to keep you enthralled and reading, managing to be very original while using a number of common fantasy themes. Bakker also does this, but some seem to find the first novel of the series slow-paced.

, Terry Goodkind, ... are utter geniuses. Without them, we would never have the fantasy genre .
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Oh, I'd agree Goodkind's a genius. Probably for a completely different reason - Goodkind's provided more hilarity in the fantasy genre than any other single author, and he manages to keep it up consistently, from some of the writing in his novels (paths on cliffaces at near mid-height always crack me up), to his interviews. Even Pratchett really struggles to compete here - Pratchett's humour doesn't go beyond the novels.
I'm not so sure on that next statement though - why wouldn't we have the fantasy genre without them? If we're looking for a "creator" of the fantasy genre, in the publishing sense, it would be Terry Brooks, who wrote his "Shannara" series in 1977, which opened the way for publishers to see it as profitable to form a fantasy genre. There have been fantasy novels for much longer, though, and many other important authors, like Tolkien, Moorcock, Howard and others contributed to creating a fantasy genre. Goodkind started writing too late to have any effect on creating it, and his significance is really overshadowed by that of Robert Jordan's, who started his series a few years earlier.
 
I'm not so sure on that next statement though - why wouldn't we have the fantasy genre without them? If we're looking for a "creator" of the fantasy genre, in the publishing sense, it would be Terry Brooks, who wrote his "Shannara" series in 1977, which opened the way for publishers to see it as profitable to form a fantasy genre. There have been fantasy novels for much longer, though, and many other important authors, like Tolkien, Moorcock, Howard and others contributed to creating a fantasy genre. Goodkind started writing too late to have any effect on creating it, and his significance is really overshadowed by that of Robert Jordan's, who started his series a few years earlier.
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Relax, Brys :). I was only joking. I like Goodkind's novels, but I'll be the first to admit they're not highbrow material. The stilted writing, the characters' constant speeches about living your own life... he's no Tolkien. Or a George RR Martin for that matter. I know I've never even read David Eddings and Raymond Fiest, to tell you the truth.
 
Oops - missed that sentence. Peake is king! I just wish he'd been able to complete the series. On a sidenote, that new JG Ballard book, Kingdom Come, looks very interesting. That's the problem with the internet - I keep finding out about books I want to read, and I can't keep up with the recommendations.
 
Wow thanks guys! Now I must start yet another thread! What a waste of space I am becoming! I love you all for the advice.

~Josh
 
My current favorite is Robin Hobb. Depending on how the rest of Ice & Fire go GRR Martin might capture the #2 spot.

The rest of my list tends to include the authors elitist fantasy folks make fun of. Raymond Feist, R.A. Salvatore, etc.
 
Besides the oft mentioned GRRM, my favourite author is the incredible Guy Gavriel Kay. If you haven't read him, do yourself a favour and read him.

I sound like a fanboy. Or someone expecting a cheque based on advertising wordcount.

ds
 
StillILearn said:
I took (and take) your word for it, ds. :) I trust you!
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Ah... then, Still, I have another author for you. Lois McMaster Bujold. Her fantasy, not scifi, although that's very good too.

Trust me. I know what I'm doing. [accidentally pokes eye while gesturing these very words]

ds
 
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