What is the issue with a writer being straightforward with what they have to say? This isn't me saying every piece of fiction needs to make it blatantly obvious what the themes or morals are but I see this criticism a lot.
What is the issue with a writer being straightforward with what they have to say? This isn't me saying every piece of fiction needs to make it blatantly obvious what the themes or morals are but I see this criticism a lot.
"I know writers who use subtext and they're all cowards."
For real though subtlety isn't a requirement for good writing, and sometimes my favorite works (see this by Daša Drndić) are very not subtle in that they have characters literally shouting "this is the point folks!!!" That said, if you do it wrong it's eye wateringly bad. There's little I hate more than a book or movie or whatever treating me like a child and making sure I really, really "get it." For instance, I read this short story a few days ago and it's horrible. Not subtle at all but in a childish way, feeling almost like a shitty fable. Telling rather than showing can totally work, but it doesn't always work, and in fact in most cases it absolutely doesn't work at all and makes me want to stop reading/watching.