When you first think of this word, it is with a slippery slope in mind.
I’ve been on a few of those in my time.
And while we’re on the subject, those inclines measured in degrees are very important if you want a train to get up and down the side of a mountain.
For the train, that’s an incline plane, the point where traction alone won’t get the iron horse up the hill.
Did I say ‘Iron Horse’? Sorry, regressed there, back to the mid-1800s in the American West for a moment.
It’s not that important when it comes to trucks and cars, and less so if you like four-wheel driving; getting up near-vertical mountainsides often present a welcome challenge to the true enthusiast
But for the rest of us, not so much if you find yourself sliding in reverse uncontrollably into the bay. I’m sure it’s happened more than once.
Then…
Are you inclined to go?
A very different sort of incline, ie to be disposed towards an attitude or desire.
An inclination, maybe, not to go four-wheel driving?
There is another, probably more obscure use of the word incline, and that relates to an elevated geological formation. Not the sort of reference that crops up in everyday conversation at the coffee shop.
But, you never know. Try it next time you have coffee and see what happens.
Hang about. Didn’t I read somewhere you need to plan your novel, create an outline setting the plot points, and flesh out the characters?
I’m sure it didn’t say, sit down and start writing!
Time to find a writing pad, and put my thinking cap on.
I make a list, what’s the story going to be about? Who’s going to be in it, at least at the start?
Like a newspaper story, I need a who, what, when, where, and how.
Right now.
I pick up the pen.
Character number one:
Computer nerd, ok, that’s a little close to the bone, a computer manager who is trying to be everything at once, and failing. Still me, but with a twist. Now, add a little mystery to him, and give him a secret, one that will only be revealed after a specific set of circumstance. Yes, I like that.
We’ll call him Bill, ex-regular army, a badly injured and repatriated soldier who was sent to fight a war in Vietnam, the result of which had made him, at times, unfit to live with.
He had a wife, which brings us to,
Character number two:
Ellen, Bill’s ex-wife, an army brat and a General’s daughter, and the result of one of those romances that met disapproval for so many reasons. It worked until Bill came back from the war, and from there it slowly disintegrated. There are two daughters, both by the time the novel begins, old enough to understand the ramifications of a divorce.
Character number three:
The man who is Bill’s immediate superior, the Services Department manager, a rather officious man who blindly follows orders, a man who takes pleasure in making others feel small and insignificant, and worst of all, takes the credit where none is due.
Oops, too much, that is my old boss. He’ll know immediately I’m parodying him. Tone it down, just a little, but more or less that’s him. Last name Benton. He will play a small role in the story.
Character number four:
Jennifer, the IT Department’s assistant manager, a woman who arrives in a shroud of mystery, and then, in time, to provide Bill with a shoulder to cry on when he and Ellen finally split, and perhaps something else later on.
More on her later as the story unfolds.
So far so good.
What’s the plot?
Huge corporation plotting to take over the world using computers? No, that’s been done to death.
Huge corporation, OK, let’s stop blaming the corporate world for everything wrong in the world. Corporations are not bad people, people are the bad people. That’s a rip off cliché, from guns don’t kill people, people kill people! There will be guns, and there will be dead people.
There will be people hiding behind a huge corporation, using a part of their computer network to move billions of illegally gained money around. That’s better.
Now, having got that, our ‘hero’ has to ‘discover’ this network, and the people behind it.
All we need now is to set the ball rolling, a single event that ‘throws a cat among the pigeons’.
Yes, Bill is on holidays, a welcome relief from the problems of work. He dreams of what he’s going to do for the next two weeks. The phone rings. Benton calling, the world is coming to an end, the network is down. He’s needed. A few terse words, but he relents.
Is that depression speaking, or am I just tired from all the late nights?
Unlike most writers, authors and bloggers I don’t have a day job. You could say it’s one of the benefits of getting old, this retirement thing, but after a while, not having a reason to get out of bed starts working on your subconscious.
The idea of having a job, and going to work, is a good reason to drag yourself out of bed every morning. And because of this, the idea of sleeping in takes on a whole new meaning.
You know, I’ll just lie here for a few more minutes, and then I’ll get up. Having turned off the alarm, the eyelids flutter, and before you know it, half an hour had passed, and you wake up in fright, knowing you’re going to be late.
In retirement, that doesn’t happen. There is no alarm, there is no guilty pleasure in spending those extra minutes in bed.
Of course, this tardiness, or lack of desire could be because I find I do my best writing in the dead of night, often not getting to bed before 2 a.m. Last night it was a little later because of a story I’m working on came to life with a new idea.
It had been stagnating because it’s part two and whilst I had an idea about where it was going to go, in the end, we’re off in a different direction, and the words flowed. You just don’t stop writing when you hit a vein.
But this isn’t always the case. This morning I have an excuse to stay in bed, but most others I don’t.
Perhaps I should find something else to do, something that will give me that same reason I used to have to get up every morning.
Or maybe I should be more organized in my retirement life, you know, set a schedule and do things according to a timetable. I was never one for being organized, but perhaps it’s time to start.
Just let me lie here for a few more minutes and think about that.
It was as if Microsoft Word was sent down from that place in the universe where a group of torturers sit around a table to find new ways of making our lives just that little bit more difficult.
I mean, most of the time it works really well and behaves itself.
But…
Then there are the times, usually when you are stressed about a deadline, or you are nearly at the end of what you believe to be the most brilliant writing you have ever put on paper.
Then…
Disaster strikes.
It could be that the power goes off, even for just a few seconds, but it’s enough to kill the computer. It could be that you have reached the end and closed Word down, thinking that it had autosaved, all the while ignoring that little pop-up that says, ‘Do you want to save your work’?
It’s been a long day, night, or session. You’re tired and your mind is elsewhere, as it always is at the end.
You always assume that autosave is on. It was the last time; it has been since the day you installed it however long ago that was.
So…
When the power comes back on, you start the computer, go into Word, and it brings back all the windows you had open when the power failed, and the one with the brilliant piece you just wrote, it’s just a blank sheet.
Or up to where it last autosaved, which is nowhere near the end.
Or it didn’t save at all.
You forgot that the software was updated recently and that always brings changes. Usually, unwanted changes.
By which time you have that sinking feeling that all is lost, deadline missed, brilliant work lost, it’s the end of the world.
You promise yourself you’re going to get Scrivener, or something else, where this doesn’t happen.
Or if you’re like me, you put the cat on the keyboard and tell him to sort the mess out.
Are Modern Novels Boring? (And How Do We Avoid the Literary Abyss)
Scroll through Goodreads, wander the aisles of a major bookstore, or tune into BookTok, and you’ll find a paradoxical landscape. We are currently living through a golden age of publishing volume. Yet, a nagging, heresy-sounding question is echoing among avid readers, critics, and writers alike:
Are modern novels… kind of boring?
It’s a controversial take. After all, thousands of brilliantly crafted, highly praised books hit the shelves every year. So why does a pervasive sense of literary fatigue seem to have gripped the reading public? Why do so many contemporary books feel like they were written by an algorithm, polished by a focus group, and designed to be consumed like fast food rather than savoured like a fine wine?
Let’s dive into the state of contemporary fiction, explore why modern novels sometimes feel like an uninspired trudge, and discover how readers can navigate past the noise to avoid the terrifying “literary abyss.”
Part 1: Why Do Modern Novels Feel Boring?
To be clear, “boring” doesn’t necessarily mean slow. In fact, many modern novels move at a breakneck pace. Rather, the boredom stems from a sense of sameness, predictability, and a retreat from genuine artistic risk.
Here are the primary culprits turning contemporary fiction into a snooze-fest:
1. The Domestication of the Plot (The “Cozy” Trap)
In an effort to remain hyper-relatable and emotionally safe, a massive slice of modern literary fiction has retreated into the mundane. We are flooded with novels about contemporary people sitting in apartments, navigating micro-aggressions, having esoteric conversations about modern dating, and agonising over career pivots.
While everyday life can be profound, too many modern novels mistake triviality for depth. When every book is a quiet, low-stakes character study about upper-middle-class ennui, the genre begins to smell of stale coffee and self-absorption.
2. The Algorithmic Homogenization of Style
Publishing is a business, and businesses hate losing money. In the age of algorithmic marketing, publishing houses increasingly lean toward formulas that have worked before.
This has birthed a distinct “contemporary literary voice”: clean, hyper-accessible, emotionally explicit, and largely devoid of stylistic idiosyncrasies. Authors are often encouraged to write in a cinematic, easily translatable style that makes adaptation for Netflix or HBO effortless. Gone are the eccentric prose styles of the past; in their place is a bland, standardised English designed not to offend anyone’s palate.
3. “Show, Don’t Tell” Has Become “Explain Everything”
Good writing historically trusted the reader to read between the lines. Modern fiction, however, is terrified of ambiguity.
Influenced perhaps by the digital age’s demand for instant clarity, contemporary novels often hold the reader’s hand a little too tightly. Themes are spelled out explicitly in the dialogue. Characters give TED Talks to explain their internal psychology. When a book does all the emotional heavy lifting for you, the act of reading ceases to be a dynamic collaboration and becomes a passive lecture.
4. The Moralization of Art
Literature has always explored morality, but a growing trend in modern fiction is the demand that characters (and by extension, authors) pass strict contemporary ideological purity tests.
When novels become moral instruction manuals rather than explorations of human complexity, they lose their spark. Great literature thrives in the grey areas, the hypocrisies, and the moral ugliness of humanity. When every character has to be a pristine avatar of virtue—or an unambiguously cartoonish villain—the narrative tension evaporates.
Part 2: How to Spot a “Boring” Book Before You Buy
If you want to protect your reading time from the abyss of blandness, you need a radar system. Be wary of books that feature these red flags:
The Over-caffeinated Blurb: If the back cover features quotes comparing the author to Joan Didion, Sally Rooney, and Ottessa Moshfegh all at once, you are likely looking at a manufactured trend, not an authentic voice.
The High-Concept Gimmick: A book whose entire value proposition is a quirky premise (“What if an AI ran a coffee shop in a post-apocalyptic IKEA?”) but lacks stylistic prose or psychological depth.
The Trauma-Drop: Books that rely on an early, shocking revelation of trauma to generate forced emotional stakes, while the rest of the prose coasts on cruise control.
Part 3: How Do We Avoid the Literary Abyss?
If you are suffering from reading fatigue, do not give up on reading altogether. You simply need to change your navigation strategy. Here is how you can step back from the brink of the literary abyss and fall in love with reading again.
1. Read Widely Across Time
There is an entire cemetery of brilliant literature out there waiting to be exhumed. If modern fiction feels flat, step back. Read the 19th-century Russians for sheer psychological depth; read the mid-century modernists for stylistic fireworks; read genre fiction from the 1970s and 80s that prioritised pure, unadulterated storytelling.
A healthy reading diet resembles a balanced ecosystem: mix the old with the new.
2. Seek Out Small Presses and Indie Publishers
While the Big Five publishers are increasingly risk-averse, independent presses (like Graywolf, Coffee House Press, New Directions, and Europa Editions) are taking massive artistic gambles.
Indie publishers are the lifeblood of contemporary literary innovation. They are printing translations of international authors, genre-bending experiments, and unapologetic prose that traditional houses won’t touch because they aren’t “marketable enough.”
3. Embrace Translation
American and British fiction often suffer from a specific cultural insularity. By looking outward and reading translated literature, you instantly escape the stylistic homogeneity of the Anglosphere.
Writers from South Korea, Argentina, Norway, Japan, and France bring entirely different philosophical frameworks, cultural rhythms, and narrative structures to the page. Reading translated works is the literary equivalent of taking off virtual reality goggles and seeing the real world for the first time.
4. Support Books That Take Risks
When you find an author who refuses to play it safe—someone who uses weird punctuation, writes unlikeable characters, tackles bizarre subjects, or structures a plot like a labyrinth—support them. Buy their books, recommend them to friends, and let publishers know that readers still reward audacity.
Conclusion: The Horizon is Still Bright
Are modern novels boring? Many of them are, yes. But boredom is simply a symptom of a bloated marketplace prioritising commercial safety over artistic peril.
The literary abyss is real, but it is entirely avoidable. By raising our standards, looking beyond the bestseller lists, and championing books with teeth, grit, and originality, we can push past the noise.
Great, vital, mind-altering books are still being written—we just have to be a little braver in how we look for them.
One Day in Barcelona? The One Spot That Will Make It Unforgettable
If you’ve only got a single day to soak up the magic of Barcelona, there’s no better way to turn a quick stopover into a memory that lasts a lifetime than to spend it at the Sagrada Familia.
The towering spires, the kaleidoscopic light that dances through stained glass, and the sheer audacity of Antoni Gaudí’s masterpiece make this basilica the ultimate “must‑see” for any traveller pressed for time. Below, I’ll walk you through why the Sagrada Familia deserves top billing, how to experience it efficiently, and what you can squeeze in around it so your twelve‑hour layover feels like a full‑blown Barcelona adventure.
Why the Sagrada Familia Wins the One‑Place Vote
Factor
What It Means for a One‑Day Visitor
Iconic status
Recognisable worldwide, a single photo here instantly says “I’ve been to Barcelona.”
Architectural wonder
Gaudí’s evolving vision combines Gothic verticality with natural forms—an immersive lesson in art, engineering, and spirituality.
Compact yet complete
You can explore the interior, the crypt, and the towers in 2–3 hours, leaving plenty of time for a bite and a stroll.
Accessibility
Central location (Eixample district) is on the main metro line (L2, L5) and a short walk from the city’s bus network.
Year‑round appeal
No seasonal closures; the light inside changes dramatically with the sun, giving you a fresh experience any day you visit.
In short: it’s the perfect blend of visual impact, cultural depth, and logistical convenience for a traveller with a clock ticking.
Making the Most of Your Visit
1. Book Your Ticket Ahead of Time
Online reservation: Purchase a timed‑entry ticket on the official site (or a reputable reseller) at least 24 hours in advance.
Choose the “Tower + Audio Guide” upgrade if you want panoramic city views and a deeper narrative (extra €15–€20).
Arrive 10‑15 minutes early; security is brisk, but the basilica fills up fast, especially in summer.
2. Timing Is Everything
Morning slot (9:30 am‑11:30 am): Sunlight streams through the Nativity façade, highlighting the intricate stonework.
Mid‑day slot (12:30 pm‑2:30 pm): The interior glows with a warm, diffused light—perfect for photography.
Late afternoon (4:30 pm‑6:30 pm): The Passion façade faces the setting sun, casting dramatic shadows.
If your flight lands early in the morning, aim for the 9:30 am slot; if you arrive later, the 4:30 pm slot gives you a chance to explore a bit of the city first.
3. Navigate the Space Efficiently
Entry Hall – Quick video intro (3 min) runs on the screen; pay attention for a concise overview of Gaudí’s vision.
Main Nave – Follow the audio guide’s highlighted points: the column forest, the ceiling’s ribbed “cocoon,” and the stained‑glass windows.
Crypt & Museum – Spend 20 minutes here; the crypt holds Gaudí’s tomb, and the museum explains the construction timeline.
Towers – If you opted for the tower experience, the lift ride (about 5 min) ends with a 360° panorama that includes the Mediterranean, Montjuïc, and the city grid—a perfect final shot for your travel diary.
Quick “Around the Basilica” Itinerary
You’ll have roughly 5‑6 hours left after the Sagrada Familia. Here’s a streamlined loop that maximises flavour, fun, and photogenic moments without straying far.
Time
Activity
Reason
12:30 pm
Tapas on Carrer de Mallorca (e.g., Bar Mut or Cerveseria Catalana)
A short 5‑minute walk; try “patatas bravas,” “jamón ibérico,” and a glass of cava.
1:30 pm
Passeig de Gràcia stroll – admire Casa Batlló & La Pedrera (exteriors)
You get a second Gaudí glimpse without buying extra tickets; perfect for quick photos.
2:15 pm
Metro to Plaça Catalunya (L2 to Passeig de Gràcia, then L1)
Central hub for a short walk to the next highlight.
2:30 pm
La Rambla & Boqueria Market – a sensory sprint
10‑minute walk; sample a fresh fruit juice or a quick jamón bite.
3:15 pm
Gothic Quarter (Barri Gòtic) – snap the Cathedral façade, narrow alleys, and Roman walls
A 20‑minute walk from La Rambla; you can wander until your next transport.
4:00 pm
Head back to the airport – Metro L3 from Liceu to Zona Universitària, then transfer to the Aerobus (A1) or direct train (R2 Nord)
Gives you ~45‑60 min buffer for security and boarding.
Adjust the times according to your flight schedule; the whole loop can be trimmed to a “quick bite + photo sprint” if you’re pressed for minutes.
Insider Tips for a Smooth Stopover
Carry a lightweight, waterproof backpack – You’ll need space for a water bottle, a portable charger, and a small umbrella (Barcelona’s micro‑showers love to appear unexpectedly).
Download the Sagrada Familia app – It syncs with your ticket QR code, offers an offline audio guide, and shows real‑time tower wait times.
Speak “Catalan” greetings – A friendly “Bon dia!” (good morning) earns smiles from locals and staff alike.
Avoid the “free ticket” scams – Only buy from the official website or authorised vendors; the price is consistent (€26‑€32 for basic entry).
Take a moment to just look up – The basilica’s interior is designed to make you feel small and infinite simultaneously; a few silent seconds are worth the crowded schedule.
Wrap‑Up: The One‑Place Rule for One‑Day Travellers
When a city as vibrant as Barcelona squeezes into a single day, the temptation is to hop from museum to market to beach. Yet the true essence of Barcelona lives in a single, unforgettable structure that ties together its spiritual past, avant‑garde art, and bustling present—the Sagrada Familia.
A brief but intentional visit gives you:
Instant visual identity (those spires are instantly recognisable worldwide)
A deep cultural touchpoint (Gaudí’s philosophy of nature and faith)
A logistical hub (central, well‑served by public transport)
Add a quick tapas stop, a dash of modernist architecture on Passeig de Gràcia, and a stroll through the Gothic Quarter, and you’ll leave Barcelona feeling like you’ve truly lived the city—even if the clock says you’ve only been there for a day.
So next time you find yourself with a 24‑hour layover, remember: a single visit to the Sagrada Familia converts a fleeting stopover into a lifelong story.
Happy travels, and may your Barcelona day be as unforgettable as the basilica’s soaring towers!
A teacher will mark a test in order to give the student a mark out of 100. Yes, to mark a test means to ascertain right and wrong answers and score it accordingly, and getting a mark out of 100 could determine a great many different outcomes at school.
Whereas a mark on your clothes could mean you’ve been playing with fire, rolled in the mud or if much older having a salacious affair with an unexplainable lipstick mark on your collar.
A mark is someone that a con man believes will be easily deceived.
A mark is a catch in certain types of football.
You can have an identifying mark on some item of property.
it’s literally the x marks the spot for someone who cannot write, i.e. make your mark
There can be a mark on a rope that indicates the depth of water.
And many, many more…
But not to be confused with marque, which could be the make or model of a particular type of car
Or marc which is the refuse of grapes after being pressed
The novel ‘Echoes from the Past’ started out as a short story I wrote about 30 years ago, titled ‘The Birthday’.
My idea was to take a normal person out of their comfort zone and led on a short but very frightening journey to a place where a surprise birthday party had been arranged.
Thus, the very large man with a scar and a red tie was created.
So was the friend with the limousine who worked as a pilot.
So were the two women, Wendy and Angelina, who were Flight Attendants that the pilot friend asked to join the conspiracy.
I was going to rework the short story, then about ten pages long, into something a little more.
And like all rewrites, especially those I have anything to do with, it turned into a novel.
There was motivation. I had told some colleagues at the place where I worked at the time that I liked writing, and they wanted a sample. I was going to give them the re-worked short story. Instead, I gave them ‘Echoes from the past’
Originally, it was not set anywhere in particular.
But when considering a location, I had, at the time, recently been to New York in December, and visited Brooklyn and Queens, as well as a lot of New York itself. We were there for New Year’s, and it was an experience I’ll never forget.
One evening, we were out late and finished up in Brooklyn Heights, near the waterfront, and there was rain and snow; it was cold and wet, and apartment buildings were shimmering in the street light, and I thought, “This is the place where my main character will live”.
It had a very spooky atmosphere, the sort where ghosts would not be unexpected. I felt more than one shiver go up and down my spine in the few minutes I was there.
I had taken notes, as I always do, of everywhere we went, so I had a ready supply of locations I could use, changing the names in some cases.
Fifth Avenue near the Rockefeller Centre is amazing at first light, and late at night with the Seasonal decorations and lights.
The original main character was a shy man with few friends, hence not expecting the surprise party. I enhanced that shyness into purposely lonely because of an issue from his past that leaves him always looking over his shoulder and ready to move on at the slightest hint of trouble. No friends, no relationships, just a very low profile.
Then I thought, what if he breaks the cardinal rule and begins a relationship?
But it is also as much an exploration of a damaged soul as it is the search for a normal life, without having any idea what normal was, and how the understanding of one person can sometimes make all the difference in what we may think or feel.
Making the Most of Your One-Day Stopover in Moscow: The Ultimate Guide to Red Square
If you’re whisked away on a one-day stopover in Moscow, you’re in for a whirlwind of history, grandeur, and unforgettable vistas. While the city teems with landmarks, there’s one place that captures Moscow’s soul and serves as the perfect hub for a memorable day: Red Square. This iconic plaza isn’t just a single attraction—it’s the heart of Russia’s capital, where centuries of imperial history, stunning architecture, and vibrant culture converge. Here’s how to make the most of your day.
Morning: Arrival and the Majesty of Red Square
Start your day early to beat the crowds and soak in the serene, pre-dawn atmosphere of Red Square (Красная площадь). As the sun rises, the golden domes of St. Basil’s Cathedral shimmer, and the Kremlin’s fortress walls glow in the light. Begin your stroll here, taking photographs and marvelling at the square’s historical energy.
St. Basil’s Cathedral: Pop into this kaleidoscopic masterpiece. Climb its domes for panoramic views of Moscow, or simply admire its colourful onion-shaped roofs.
GUM Department Store: Adjacent to the square, this neoclassical shopping arcade has sold luxury goods to Russian elites for centuries. Grab a coffee at its open-air café to people-watch.
Midday: Kremlin Intrigue
A short walk away lies the Kremlin—Moscow’s most powerful symbol. This fortified complex is a labyrinth of palaces, cathedrals, and museums. Allocate 2–3 hours here to explore:
Kremlin Walls and Towers: Walk along the 19th-century fortress walls, with stunning views of the city below.
Cathedrals of the Assumption and St. George: Tour these UNESCO-listed churches, where Russian emperors and Soviet leaders are buried.
The Armory Chamber: Discover opulent treasures like the Diamond Fund and Fabergé eggs.
Pro Tip: Book your Kremlin tickets in advance to skip the lines—especially recommended if you’re short on time.
Afternoon: The State Historical Museum
Head back to Red Square for a deeper dive into Russia’s past at the State Historical Museum (Gosudarstvennyy istoricheskiy muzei). Its gold-domed façade is a masterpiece itself, but inside, you’ll find exhibits spanning Byzantine icons to Soviet memorabilia. This is a must for history buffs, offering context for the landmarks you’ve seen.
Alternatively, take a lunch break at Ermolaevskiy (just steps from the square). This historic restaurant serves traditional Russian dishes like borscht and pelmeni in a lively, old-world setting.
Evening: A Walk to the Kremlin Wall and Beyond
As the sun sets, stroll along the Kremlin Wall Gardens, a hidden gem with a prime view of the Kremlin and St. Basil’s. For a romantic finale, visit Sparrow Hills (Vorobyevy Gory) in Moscow’s southwest. The 200-meter hill offers sweeping views of the city’s skyline and is lit up at night—a magical way to cap your day.
This case has everything: red herrings, jealous brothers, femme fatales, and at the heart of it all, greed.
See below for an excerpt from the book…
Coming soon!
An excerpt from the book:
…
When Harry took the time to consider his position, a rather uncomfortable position at that, he concluded that he was somehow involved in another case that meant very little to him.
Not that it wasn’t important in some way he was yet to determine, it was just that his curiosity had got the better of him, and it had led to this: sitting in a chair, securely bound, waiting for someone, one of his captors had called Doug.
It was not the name that worried him so much; it was the evil laugh that had come after the name was spoken.
Doug what? Doug the ‘destroyer’, Doug the ‘dangerous’, Doug the ‘deadly’; there were several sinister connotations, and perhaps that was the point of the laugh, to make it more frightening than it was.
But there was no doubt about one thing in his mind right then: he’d made a mistake. A very big. and a costly mistake. Just how big the cost, no doubt, he would soon find out.
His mother and his grandmother, the wisest person he had ever known, had once told him never to eavesdrop.
At the time, he couldn’t help himself, and instead of minding his own business, listening to a one-sided conversation that ended with a time and a place. The very nature of the person receiving the call was, at the very least, sinister, and, because of the cryptic conversation, there appeared to be, or at least to Harry, criminal activity involved.
For several days, he had wrestled with the thought of whether he should go. Stay on the fringe, keep out of sight, observe and report to the police if it was a crime. Instead, he had willingly gone down the rabbit hole.
Now, sitting in an uncomfortable chair, several heat lamps hanging over his head, he was perspiring, and if perspiration could be used as a measure of fear, then Harry’s fear was at the highest level.
Another runnel of sweat rolled into his left eye, and, having his hands tied, it literally made it impossible to clear it. The burning sensation momentarily took his mind off his predicament. He cursed and then shook his head, trying to prevent a recurrence. It was to no avail.
Let the stinging sensation be a reminder of what was right and what was wrong.
It was obvious that it was the right place and the right time, but in considering his current perilous situation, it definitely was the wrong place to be, at the worst possible time.
It was meant to be his escape, an escape from the generations of lawyers, what were to Harry, dry, dusty men who had been in business since George Washington said to the first Walthenson to step foot on American soil, ‘Why don’t you become a lawyer?” when asked what he could do for the great man.
Or so it was handed down as lore, though Harry didn’t think Washington meant it literally, the Walthenson’s, then as now, were not shy of taking advice.
Except, of course, when it came to Harry.
He was, Harry’s father was prone to saying, the exception to every rule. Harry guessed his father was referring to the fact that his son wanted to be a Private Detective rather than a dry, dusty lawyer. Just the clothes were enough to turn Harry off the profession.
So, with a little of the money Harry inherited from one of his aunts, he leased an office in Gramercy Park and had it renovated to look like the Sam Spade detective agency, you know the one, Spade and Archer, and The Maltese Falcon.
There’s a movie and a book by Dashiell Hammett if you’re interested.
So, there it was, painted on the opaque glass inset of the front door, ‘Harold Walthenson, Private Detective’.
There was enough money to hire an assistant, and it took a week before the right person came along, or, more to the point, didn’t just see his business plan as something sinister. Ellen, a tall, cool woman in a long black dress, or so the words of a song in his head told him, fitted in perfectly.
She’d seen the movie, but she said with a grin, Harry was no Humphrey Bogart.
Of course not, he said, he didn’t smoke.
Three months on the job, and it had been a few calls, no ‘real’ cases, nothing but missing animals, and other miscellaneous items. What he really wanted was a missing person. Or perhaps a beguiling, sophisticated woman who was as deadly as she was charming, looking for an errant husband, perhaps one that she had already ‘dispatched’.
Or for a tall, dark and handsome foreigner who spoke in riddles and in heavily accented English, a spy, or perhaps an assassin, in town to take out the mayor. The man was such an imbecile that Harry had considered doing it himself.
Now, in a back room of a disused warehouse, that wishful thinking might be just about to come to a very abrupt end, with none of the romanticised trappings of the business befalling him. No beguiling women, no sinister criminals, no stupid policemen.
Just a nasty little man whose only concern was how quickly or how slowly Harry’s end was going to be.
Are Modern Novels Boring? (And How Do We Avoid the Literary Abyss)
Scroll through Goodreads, wander the aisles of a major bookstore, or tune into BookTok, and you’ll find a paradoxical landscape. We are currently living through a golden age of publishing volume. Yet, a nagging, heresy-sounding question is echoing among avid readers, critics, and writers alike:
Are modern novels… kind of boring?
It’s a controversial take. After all, thousands of brilliantly crafted, highly praised books hit the shelves every year. So why does a pervasive sense of literary fatigue seem to have gripped the reading public? Why do so many contemporary books feel like they were written by an algorithm, polished by a focus group, and designed to be consumed like fast food rather than savored like a fine wine?
Let’s dive into the state of contemporary fiction, explore why modern novels sometimes feel like an uninspired trudge, and discover how readers can navigate past the noise to avoid the terrifying “literary abyss.”
Part 1: Why Do Modern Novels Feel Boring?
To be clear, “boring” doesn’t necessarily mean slow. In fact, many modern novels move at a breakneck pace. Rather, the boredom stems from a sense of sameness, predictability, and a retreat from genuine artistic risk.
Here are the primary culprits turning contemporary fiction into a snooze-fest:
1. The Domestication of the Plot (The “Cozy” Trap)
In an effort to remain hyper-relatable and emotionally safe, a massive slice of modern literary fiction has retreated into the mundane. We are flooded with novels about contemporary people sitting in apartments, navigating micro-aggressions, having esoteric conversations about modern dating, and agonizing over career pivots.
While everyday life can be profound, too many modern novels mistake triviality for depth. When every book is a quiet, low-stakes character study about upper-middle-class ennui, the genre begins to smell of stale coffee and self-absorption.
2. The Algorithmic Homogenization of Style
Publishing is a business, and businesses hate losing money. In the age of algorithmic marketing, publishing houses increasingly lean toward formulas that have worked before.
This has birthed a distinct “contemporary literary voice”: clean, hyper-accessible, emotionally explicit, and largely devoid of stylistic idiosyncrasies. Authors are often encouraged to write in a cinematic, easily translatable style that makes adaptation for Netflix or HBO effortless. Gone are the eccentric prose styles of the past; in their place is a bland, standardized English designed not to offend anyone’s palate.
3. “Show, Don’t Tell” Has Become “Explain Everything”
Good writing historically trusted the reader to read between the lines. Modern fiction, however, is terrified of ambiguity.
Influenced perhaps by the digital age’s demand for instant clarity, contemporary novels often hold the reader’s hand a little too tightly. Themes are spelled out explicitly in the dialogue. Characters give TED Talks to explain their internal psychology. When a book does all the emotional heavy lifting for you, the act of reading ceases to be a dynamic collaboration and becomes a passive lecture.
4. The Moralization of Art
Literature has always explored morality, but a growing trend in modern fiction is the demand that characters (and by extension, authors) pass strict contemporary ideological purity tests.
When novels become moral instruction manuals rather than explorations of human complexity, they lose their spark. Great literature thrives in the gray areas, the hypocrisies, and the moral ugliness of humanity. When every character has to be a pristine avatar of virtue—or an unambiguously cartoonish villain—the narrative tension evaporates.
Part 2: How to Spot a “Boring” Book Before You Buy
If you want to protect your reading time from the abyss of blandness, you need a radar system. Be wary of books that feature these red flags:
The Over-caffeinated Blurb: If the back cover features quotes comparing the author to Joan Didion, Sally Rooney, and Ottessa Moshfegh all at once, you are likely looking at a manufactured trend, not an authentic voice.
The High-Concept Gimmick: A book whose entire value proposition is a quirky premise (“What if an AI ran a coffee shop in a post-apocalyptic IKEA?”) but lacks stylistic prose or psychological depth.
The Trauma-Drop: Books that rely on an early, shocking revelation of trauma to generate forced emotional stakes, while the rest of the prose coasts on cruise control.
Part 3: How Do We Avoid the Literary Abyss?
If you are suffering from reading fatigue, do not give up on reading altogether. You simply need to change your navigation strategy. Here is how you can step back from the brink of the literary abyss and fall in love with reading again.
1. Read Widely Across Time
There is an entire cemetery of brilliant literature out there waiting to be exhumed. If modern fiction feels flat, step back. Read the 19th-century Russians for sheer psychological depth; read the mid-century modernists for stylistic fireworks; read genre fiction from the 1970s and 80s that prioritized pure, unadulterated storytelling.
A healthy reading diet resembles a balanced ecosystem: mix the old with the new.
2. Seek Out Small Presses and Indie Publishers
While the Big Five publishers are increasingly risk-averse, independent presses (like Graywolf, Coffee House Press, New Directions, and Europa Editions) are taking massive artistic gambles.
Indie publishers are the lifeblood of contemporary literary innovation. They are printing translations of international authors, genre-bending experiments, and unapologetic prose that traditional houses won’t touch because they aren’t “marketable enough.”
3. Embrace Translation
American and British fiction often suffer from a specific cultural insularity. By looking outward and reading translated literature, you instantly escape the stylistic homogeneity of the Anglosphere.
Writers from South Korea, Argentina, Norway, Japan, and France bring entirely different philosophical frameworks, cultural rhythms, and narrative structures to the page. Reading translated works is the literary equivalent of taking off virtual reality goggles and seeing the real world for the first time.
4. Support Books That Take Risks
When you find an author who refuses to play it safe—someone who uses weird punctuation, writes unlikeable characters, tackles bizarre subjects, or structures a plot like a labyrinth—support them. Buy their books, recommend them to friends, and let publishers know that readers still reward audacity.
Conclusion: The Horizon is Still Bright
Are modern novels boring? Many of them are, yes. But boredom is simply a symptom of a bloated marketplace prioritizing commercial safety over artistic peril.
The literary abyss is real, but it is entirely avoidable. By raising our standards, looking beyond the bestseller lists, and championing books with teeth, grit, and originality, we can push past the noise.
Great, vital, mind-altering books are still being written—we just have to be a little braver in how we look for them.
There was something about this one that resonated with me.
This is a novel about a world generally ruled by perception, and how people perceive what they see, what they are told, and what they want to believe.
I’ve been guilty of it myself, as I’m sure we all have at one time or another.
For the main characters, Harry and Alison, other issues are driving their relationship.
For Alison, it is a loss of self-worth through losing her job and from losing her mother and, in a sense, her sister.
For Harry, it is the fact that he has a beautiful and desirable wife, his belief that she is the object of other men’s desires, and, in particular, his immediate superior’s.
Between observation, the less-than-honest motives of his friends, a lot of jumping to conclusions based on very little fact, and you have the basis of one very interesting story.
When it all comes to a head, Alison finds herself in a desperate situation, and she realises only the truth will save their marriage.
But is it all the truth?
What would we do in similar circumstances?
Rarely does a book have me so enthralled that I could not put it down until I knew the result. They might be considered two people who should have known better, but as is often the case, they had to get past what they both thought was the truth.
And the moral of this story, if it could be said there is one, is that nothing is ever what it seems.
Thrills, Spills, and just a dash of Romance 