Comments on: Step on a Crack

By: Carol Anne

Carol Anne — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 02:33:05 +0000

Just finished reading Sail, by Patterson and co-author Howard Roughan. It had a few spots that overdid the preposterousity, and a few annoying times when information is unfairly withheld from the reader, but overall, it was all right. At least one of the authors at least has a basic understanding of how sailboats work. I have never, however, seen a Hail Mary box kept in the cockpit where it would be conveniently blown into the water if the boat blew up. Usually it will be stowed more securely, such as in a lazarette.

By: zlato

zlato — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 23:15:21 +0000

Does anybody know if classics are exempt from best seller lists? All those high school students getting copies of “A Separate Peace” and “To Kill A Mockingbird” each year would have an impact otherwise, no?

I read a Patterson novel a couple of years back about kids who were transformed into bird-beings. It wasn’t the worst book I ever read but…

By: Jerry

Jerry — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 06:51:45 +0000

Especially since it is their job to know it.

By: Carol Anne

Carol Anne — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 05:55:14 +0000

Considering the whole nation knows about Barbara Bush’s thyroid condition (and Millie’s, too), and Malia Obama’s allergy to dogs, it would be inconceivable that a former First Lady’s peanut allergy wouldn’t be widespread knowledge. It’s not exactly believable that the Secret Service would be ignorant of something that the whole world knew about.

By: Jerry

Jerry — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 02:53:58 +0000

In fairness I have to say that the woman going to that restaurant on that day was traditional. Still it’s still a huge assumption on the part of the bad guys that the tradition won’t fall through this year.

Other than that, you’re exactly right about the preposterosity of it all, especially since the woman in question was the former first lady of the United States. It’s hard to imagine that the Secret Service would not have known about her allergy, considering the White House kitchen would most certainly have had the no-peanut-oil edict drilled into them for at least four years.

I didn’t bother listing all the holes in this part of the story; rest assured there are more.

So, yeah. Wow.

By: TG

TG — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 02:35:38 +0000

So... let me make sure I'm really understanding the foundation on which this entire story is built. A woman important enough to have bodyguards suffers from probably the most highly publicized life-threatening allergy in the world today, yet these bodyguards are unaware of the single most likely threat to her life, the life they are being paid to protect. She then leaves home without her epipen, an action roughly akin to you getting in a car and driving away without your glasses on; a thing that just simply... would... not... happen... EVER. And on the night that this thing that would not ever happen happens, she also just happened to go to the restaurant where the evil genius happened to have someone in place that night all set to slip peanut oil into her food.Wow.I... have to shut up now.

By: Carol Anne

Carol Anne — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 05:21:55 +0000

He was one of the pep-talk email writers in a recent NaNo … don’t remember if it was ’08 or ’07 …

By: Jerry

Jerry — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 21:11:52 +0000

I think being a Patterson co-author would still be an excellent career boost. At least a lot of people would read your work. It’s up to Patterson to protect his own brand name, but if he were to dilute his brand and throw some of that mojo my way, I wouldn’t hesitate to take him up on it. If the writing is good, it will be no trouble getting the next gig without Patterson’s name on the cover.

Hm… I started a thriller one naNoWriMo that definitely had more going for it than Step on a Crack. With work (and a machete), it might even be decent. I wonder how to reach Mr. Patterson…

By: Carol Anne

Carol Anne — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 05:55:08 +0000

Yeah, that’s what I worry about with Patterson. Too many people will, like you, pick up something written by a lousy co-author and then condemn everything he has done. He really needs to work on quality control, either becoming more picky about co-authors or supervising the new ones more closely to make sure they’re up to standards — and ditching them if they aren’t.

There was a time when I thought being a Patterson co-author might be a way for me to get launched as an author, since his co-authors’ names do go on the books (unlike Op Center), and he’s stated that he wants to help up-and-coming mystery and thriller writers. But since he’s lately had a slew of ghastly co-authors, I wouldn’t want to get lumped among them.

By: Jerry

Jerry — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 00:23:52 +0000

I know someone who wrote a Star Trek book. Kind of a drag not getting to put your name on your work, but in this case it helped her career along.

But as with any other franchise, the name has to be protected. In the long term Patterson will lose if his name is on too many bad books. I don’t know about Op Center, but presumably there are editors in charge of the thing who strive to maintain some level of quality.