A brief note on plot
I'm coming to really dislike plots that hinge too much on stupidity. Whether it's the momentary stupidity of a character (I should tell everyone that there's a demon who looks exactly like me and is trying to kill me... oh, I just don't feel like it...) or the determined stupidity of everyone around the main character (wow, you saved all our asses, so we're going to throw you in jail/put you to death and try to stop you from doing it again...), I'm just getting tired of it.
I've seen this done by authors I enjoy. In fact, it seems like a repeated theme in every book by certain authors. And... it's lazy. And frustrating.
I tend to like my conflict more varied than "everyone is stupid and against the good guy" and I prefer my characters, when they make plot changing decisions, to make those out of honest places. If a character does something stupid, I don't want it to be a momentary aberration that has nothing to do with that character's personality.
It seems to me that the books I've really loved, that I come back to and reread, don't fall back on these crutches. Miles Vorkosigan may make stupid decisions, but you completely see where he's coming from when he talks himself into way too big a problem in an effort to protect someone he loves. And you understand why Harry Crewe has to go haring off to the Outlander outpost to warn them that the northern army is coming. And, for that matter, you get why Edmund lets the White Witch seduce him away by making him feel special.
Those moments make sense and feel natural. Sure, you may rail at the character not to do it, but you buy it. Okay, I buy it. And I don't buy the other moments, where it's all about idiocy.
I've seen this done by authors I enjoy. In fact, it seems like a repeated theme in every book by certain authors. And... it's lazy. And frustrating.
I tend to like my conflict more varied than "everyone is stupid and against the good guy" and I prefer my characters, when they make plot changing decisions, to make those out of honest places. If a character does something stupid, I don't want it to be a momentary aberration that has nothing to do with that character's personality.
It seems to me that the books I've really loved, that I come back to and reread, don't fall back on these crutches. Miles Vorkosigan may make stupid decisions, but you completely see where he's coming from when he talks himself into way too big a problem in an effort to protect someone he loves. And you understand why Harry Crewe has to go haring off to the Outlander outpost to warn them that the northern army is coming. And, for that matter, you get why Edmund lets the White Witch seduce him away by making him feel special.
Those moments make sense and feel natural. Sure, you may rail at the character not to do it, but you buy it. Okay, I buy it. And I don't buy the other moments, where it's all about idiocy.