# Authors That Have Jumped The Shark



## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

They say everyone has one good book in them.  Some authors want to see if they have 20 good books in them...and fail miserably in the process.  So who grabbed your attention at one time that you now wish would retire?


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## naomi_jay (Feb 1, 2011)

Laurell K Hamilton. I used to adore her Anita Blake books, but you'd have to pay me to read them nowadays, and you'd have to pay me _a lot._


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## anguabell (Jan 9, 2011)

Patricia Cornwell.


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## sbaum4853 (May 3, 2010)

Yann Martel wrote one of the greatest of all contemporary novels in Life of Pi, then followed it up with the horrendous Beatrice and Virgil.


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## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

Anyone for James Patterson?


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

I don't think authors are like TV shows, in that, once they "jump the shark" they are never any good again.

Authors tend to go in cycles.

I loved Stephen King from Carrie, right up through Pet Sematary.

Then, from Cycle of the Werewolf through Dark Tower III: Wastelands, there wasn't much I cared for except It, Thinner and Misery.

Then, he had me again from Needful Things through The Green Mile.

Starting with Desperation through Just After Sunset, he was very hit-and-miss with me. I only liked Bag of Bones, On Writing, and Cell.

Now, with Under the Dome he seems to be capturing me again.

I could say the same with James Patterson.

So I don't think there's "a point of no return" for writers, but I do think there are cycles that are less appealing than others.

NOTE TO OP: It ought to be "Authors WHO Have Jumped the Shark"


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## Geoffrey (Jun 20, 2009)

The best thing that happened to Anne Rice was her re-conversion to Catholicism. The Vampire Chronicles had gone on way too long and it was time for her to move on to something different.


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## StaceyHH (Sep 13, 2010)

David Weber. ghh.


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

Geoffrey said:


> The best thing that happened to Anne Rice was her re-conversion to Catholicism. The Vampire Chronicles had gone on way too long and it was time for her to move on to something different.


So... how about her recent re-unconversion?


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## crosj (Nov 8, 2008)

Harry Turtledove


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## JFHilborne (Jan 22, 2011)

I recently had to take a break from Harlan Coben. Started to find his novels a bit too "samey" and less thrilling. I'm sure I'll go back, but it won't be for a while.


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## Guest (Mar 27, 2011)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> I don't think authors are like TV shows, in that, once they "jump the shark" they are never any good again.


Or musicians. I used to be a big fan of The Dave Matthews Band, Jack Johnson, Brand New, and so on, but they've all found a downward spiral.

Speaking of TV shows: THE OFFICE and 30 ROCK are recent disappointments. And of course HEROES before that. I've been surprised that The Simpsons has been able to get back to form. Newer episodes have actually been pretty good.


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## Cynthia Justlin (Feb 23, 2011)

In romance, I'd have to say where once I was a major Jude Deveraux fan, she's lost me with her recent books. They just don't have the same emotional pull they used to.


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## Geoffrey (Jun 20, 2009)

crosj said:


> Harry Turtledove


Preach on, my brother.



foreverjuly said:


> I've been surprised that The Simpsons has been able to get back to form. Newer episodes have actually been pretty good.


Yeah, I thought the movie was their shark jumping moment.


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

Piers Anthony. As a young teen, I LOVED the Xanth novels. But the last decade, at least maybe 2, has been nothing but how many reader submitted puns can he fit in.


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## Guest (Mar 28, 2011)

Geoffrey said:


> Yeah, I thought the movie was their shark jumping moment.


I was under the impression that they were going to end the show when they came out with the movie. I'd already long stopped watching at that point, but then I happened to see they were still making episodes last year. They must've gotten some new writers or something.


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## TadVezner (Mar 23, 2011)

Kinda feel bad about saying this, because the guy died recently, but Robert Jordan really REALLY started to annoy me with his Wheel of Time series, which he never finished.

The series started out great, but as with many fantasy epics intended to last god knows how many books, it just kept introducing new characters, forgetting about the plot arcs of old ones, bringing dead people back to life.... gah! It lost all sense of consequence, momentum, story. The series actually made me stop reading fantasy for a long, long time, until somebody told me to give the Black Company books a chance.


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## Labrynth (Dec 31, 2009)

naomi_jay said:


> Laurell K Hamilton. I used to adore her Anita Blake books, but you'd have to pay me to read them nowadays, and you'd have to pay me _a lot._


Amen.  Anita used to be such a fantastic character and then... well... it's not even worth wasting the time to discuss it.

I stopped reading King many years ago... Aside from a few off the wall things like The Green Mile, I just don't care for him these days. Once I figured out his formula I failed to be surprised at his stuff and just gave up.

I think this is one reason I don't like to read a series, or at least an ongoing series. After a while they just don't seem to hold together any longer.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

James Lee Burke and Robert Parker.


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## caseyf6 (Mar 28, 2010)

JFHilborne said:


> I recently had to take a break from Harlan Coben. Started to find his novels a bit too "samey" and less thrilling. I'm sure I'll go back, but it won't be for a while.


I never really liked his Mitch character; I love Harlan's writing, but I don't like Mitch so I wish he'd write something else.

James Patterson lost me a long time ago when his main series character starting whining about how his grandma was getting old and he didn't know how he was going to make it once she couldn't take care of his kids, etc. OMG. How about HE take care of HER?


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## L.J. Sellers novelist (Feb 28, 2010)

I'll second the Patricia Cornwall mention. She got really dark and bitter and weird. I'm also sad to agree that I couldn't finish the last James Lee Burke novel I picked up either. But there are lots of new great writers!
L.J.


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## cegrundler (Aug 16, 2010)

Janet Evanovich with her Stephanie Plum novels. The first few were amusing. The next few were moderately passable. But once she hit the double digits the decline was steady and by sixteen the 'sizzle' has gone 'fizzle.'


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## Bob Mayer (Feb 20, 2011)

I've been thinking about this and I have to admit something-- pretty much all traditional deals are multiple book contracts.  And frankly, when you're writing a book that's already in the bank, so to speak, it's very hard to focus as hard as you would if it were a book that was on spec.  The feeling I get sometimes from some authors is that they're phoning it in.

I love Michael Connolly-- every other book.  It just seems as if he writes a great one, then either reaches in a drawer for an old manuscript, has someone else write for him or something.  Because the one in between aint that great.

I stopped reading King after Gerald's game.

It's sort of like tv:  they just want to sell the pilot.  Then they've sold it, it succeeds and they have a great first season.  They're shocked to get renewed for a second season and making tons of money.  So the writers are all doing cocaine, trying to figure out a storyline they never planned and by the third season there's Fonzi jumping the shark.


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## NapCat (retired) (Jan 17, 2011)

I swear you can tell when Michener moved to a word processor (1978 ?) seems like his writing lost its wonderful descriptive color shortly after Centennial


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## LiteraryGrrrl (Jan 24, 2011)

cegrundler said:


> Janet Evanovich with her Stephanie Plum novels. The first few were amusing. The next few were moderately passable. But once she hit the double digits the decline was steady and by sixteen the 'sizzle' has gone 'fizzle.'


I couldn't agree more.

Shana


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## LiteraryGrrrl (Jan 24, 2011)

Bob Mayer said:


> I stopped reading King after Gerald's game.


Bob, have you read Under the Dome?

Shana


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## Pinworms (Oct 20, 2010)

RL Stine has jumped the shark.  After Goosebump book number 84, I just didn't feel it anymore.


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

foreverjuly said:


> I was under the impression that they were going to end the show when they came out with the movie. I'd already long stopped watching at that point, but then I happened to see they were still making episodes last year. They must've gotten some new writers or something.


The current show-runner of The Simpsons is Al Jean. He was there from the first season, and became co-show-runner with Mike Reiss for season 3 and part of season 4.

Then he and Reiss left to launch THE CRITIC at ABC in 1994. It lasted 23 episodes over two seasons, then ABC lost faith and killed it.

Jean returned to THE SIMPSONS in 1998 as a writer and then became solo show-runner in 2001. He's been show-runner ever since.

Jean cycles a lot of writers in and out of his staff, launching many careers, and keeping the show fresh while maintaining quality season-to-season.

Neither Groenig nor Brooks have been directly involved, hands-on, for quite some time, though their names remain on the show and always will.

THE SIMPSONS is currently about 17 episodes into its 22nd season, for a total of 481 episodes. The current season is expected to run 21-24 episodes, so no one knows what the final count will be this season.

The show had already been renewed through the 23rd season (next year) and it will celebrating its 500th episode right around the November sweeps period.

In her 2001 biography MY LIFE AS A 10-YEAR-OLD BOY, Nancy Cartwright (voice of Bart) speculated the show would end after season 20... but we're already well past that.

Some people had speculated the show would end with episode 500, but publicly the show is on order for a full season order in season 23.

Others say that, because the voice cast is only signed through season 23, next season will be the last... but we've heard that at least three times before over the last 22 years.

Finally, others speculate that Fox wants the show around through Season 25, the Silver Anniversary season of the show, and then is willing to let go. Critics of this theory say the voice cast wants to be done and isn't interested in two final seasons.

The truth is, who knows?

My opinion? THE SIMPSONS will stay on the air until showrunner Al Jean gets tired of doing it, a sentiment Cartwright said in her autobiography, in a special addendum added when the audiobook was released.

The biggest risks right now are the ages of the voice cast. Julie Kavner (Marge) is in her early 60s. Harry Shearer is 67. Pretty much everyone else is in their 50s, except Yeardley Smith (46, the voice of Lisa).

If any of the main voice cast... Castenella, Kavner, Smith, Shearer or Cartwright, were to pass, I think the show would wrap rather quickly. Just my opinion.


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

Bob Mayer said:


> ...and by the third season there's Fonzi jumping the shark.


Fonzie literally jumped a shark in episode three of season five.

And the line that did it was when Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) uttered the infamous words, "Fonzie, if you get your legs bitten off by a shark, don't come running to me!"

The show lasted six seasons beyond season five. Fonzie never left the show, and the show remained in the Neilsen Top 25 for five of those additional six seasons.

Creatively, that's where the show broke faith with viewers. No argument.

These are facts, too.


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## GreenThumb (Mar 29, 2009)

Pinworms said:


> RL Stine has jumped the shark. After Goosebump book number 84, I just didn't feel it anymore.












I have to agree about Laurell K. Hamilton. She's the first name I thought of when I saw this thread. Jumped the shark about 15 books ago I think.

Regarding Janet Evanovich, I'm really liking the Diesel character, and am looking forward to more books about him.


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## Mo (Mar 25, 2011)

TadVezner said:


> Kinda feel bad about saying this, because the guy died recently, but Robert Jordan really REALLY started to annoy me with his Wheel of Time series, which he never finished.
> 
> The series started out great, but as with many fantasy epics intended to last god knows how many books, it just kept introducing new characters, forgetting about the plot arcs of old ones, bringing dead people back to life.... gah! It lost all sense of consequence, momentum, story. The series actually made me stop reading fantasy for a long, long time, until somebody told me to give the Black Company books a chance.


Yeah, I believe as a teenager I read the first 3 books. The first one was great, like you say. After the 3rd book I stopped reading the series in disgust because it was just getting lame!


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## Annalinde Matichei (Jan 23, 2011)

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - with the Holmes stories. The later ones, after his "resurrection" are contrived and nowhere near as good as the earlier work.

Of course, Conan Doyle was sick of Holmes and had tried to kill him off. I often wonder if he had the later work ghosted, or if it was just the work of an author writing something in which he no longer had much interest.


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## lpking (Feb 12, 2011)

I'll add a vote for Robert Jordan. The third book was the one that lost me, too. As my brother said, who has the time to invest in a never-ending series?

What about Dick Francis?


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## triciatypes (Mar 25, 2011)

It's probably been said but it's 6am here and the following name is just screaming in my head, begging to be released.  It pains me to say this, but Charlaine Harris has so jumped the shark imo.  The first couple of books were solid and enjoyable and all that jazz...but then people started doing stuff for no logical reason (totally out of character stuff) and Sookie just became a boring cardboard cut out.  It makes me muy triste because I loved the Southern Vampire Series, but yeah...will get it from the library from now on.
Also, the show kinda jumped the shark last season as well.  I was kind of leery about how they were going to do the whole (SPOILER ALERT if you haven't watched Season 3) Sookie is a fairy thing.  So I'll give them a pass on the suckiness of that.  But how the heck do you make werewolves unintimidating?  How, Alan Ball?  HOW  *cries in corner*


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## Labrynth (Dec 31, 2009)

Pinworms said:


> RL Stine has jumped the shark. After Goosebump book number 84, I just didn't feel it anymore.


RL Stine hasn't written his own books in years... neither has Christopher Pike. Both are merely brand names now.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Robert K. Tanenbaum, whose Butch Karp series of a growing family were a big influence on my own work. Along about the tenth in the series, the stories got way outlandish and fluorescent. Then I learned that the series' longtime editor had quit and gone on to become a successful novelist on his own. Prima facie conclusion: it had been the editor all along who had put the final polish on the earlier books. Sayonara, Butch Karp....


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## jason10mm (Apr 7, 2009)

I'd throw up Tom Clancy, right around the time he had Jack Ryan become the president ("Debt of Honor"?). It was flagging a bit before then (Sum of All Fears) but wow, sharp decline afterwards as he started having Ryan handwave solve all sorts of domestic issues and longstanding international crises. Some of that was just the general death of the high powered technothriller after the wall went down and the USSR broke up, but some was certainly editorial negligence, probably author mandated, that allowed that sort of grandstanding to go unchallenged. His non-fiction biographical stuff stayed interesting, but his fiction died for me.

What about Clive Cussler? Somewhere in there he started putting himself in his books, which is, like King, the ultimate "jump the shark" moment for a writer IMHO.

Some guys, like Bernard Cornwell, can put out pretty formulaic stuff but somehow keep on finding that "hook" to maintain freshness, or at least excitement. I have yet to be able to overdose on him, no matter how hard I try. He never wavers from his vision and has yet to reach for the preposterous in what I have read so far.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Good call, on Clancy. By way of contrast, there's Patrick O'Brian, whose 20 Aubrey/Maturin novels never grew stale for me. I always felt O'Brian was writing for his own satisfaction, not for sales. He's another of my inspirations. I even wrote to him once and received a nice reply, from his pied á terre in France. RIP, sir!


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## Syria Says... AKA Celia Can Read (Apr 16, 2010)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> So... how about her recent re-unconversion?


I've been watching that too... Odd...


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## jason10mm (Apr 7, 2009)

Actually, I redact my statement about Cornwell. He stuck Sharpe on the Victory for Trafalgar. JUMPING THE SHARK! But it was done so well and so fun I excuse him  And at this point in that series he is just playing with his fans rather than trying some sort of publicity stunt, so I further excuse him 

I would mention George R. R. Martin (what is it with middle "R" initials?) but it remains to be seen if the "A Dance of Dragons" announcement turns out to be shark jumping or shark wrestling (i.e. overhyped but lives up to it).


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## TadVezner (Mar 23, 2011)

jason10mm said:


> I'd throw up Tom Clancy, right around the time he had Jack Ryan become the president ("Debt of Honor"?). It was flagging a bit before then (Sum of All Fears) but wow, sharp decline afterwards as he started having Ryan handwave solve all sorts of domestic issues and longstanding international crises.


I actually laughed out loud when I read this. Did he really?


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## TadVezner (Mar 23, 2011)

lpking said:


> I'll add a vote for Robert Jordan. The third book was the one that lost me, too.


I actually spoke with Robert Jordan at a funeral, a short time before he died. He seemed to be in pretty bad shape, health-wise. I sometimes wonder if that impacted his writing and focus somewhat at the end. It's too bad: the first book or two really grabbed me. Took me 'til four or five before I threw up my hands.


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## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

Labrynth said:


> RL Stine hasn't written his own books in years... neither has Christopher Pike. Both are merely brand names now.


Then again, I don't know of any author that could get up to book 84 and still be on their game.


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## Sean Thomas Fisher (Mar 25, 2011)

I used to read a lot of Dean Koontz, but haven't in sometime. Can't even remember where I left off but I do remember being a little disappointed with the last two I read. Maybe I should give his Frankenstein stuff a day in court...


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## purplepen79 (May 6, 2010)

naomi_jay said:


> Laurell K Hamilton. I used to adore her Anita Blake books, but you'd have to pay me to read them nowadays, and you'd have to pay me _a lot._


Yep--she's on my list.

I think some writers and musicians and artists adapt and keep challenging themselves. Others stagnate.


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## arshield (Nov 17, 2008)

John Ringo, he seems on a sex fetish for a few years.  Although I liked the Troy Rising books.  The last six or 8 before that I read varied between really bad and mediocre.

Orson Scott Card.  I have read the last several books he wrote, and I keep hoping that he will write some more that are really good.  But he is very uneven lately.

I agree with the fact that many authors go down and then get better for a while.

Also there are lots of non-fiction authors that just write the same book over and over and over again.


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## GBear (Apr 23, 2009)

I'm not a writer, but imagine there are some difficult choices to make between satisfying your reader base and challenging yourself. I don't think that John LeCarre "jumped the shark" when he wrote "The Naive and Sentimental Lover," but it was the only book of his that I never finished, and I was happy that he went back to spy novels. I didn't like Nelson deMille's "Gold Coast" books, either. So we get angry with our favorite authors when they become too infatuated with certain characters or formulas to the extent that their writing suffers - like the aforementioned Parker, Cornwall, Francis, Clancy and Patterson - but are also not too forgiving if they stray too far from our expectations.

I'm glad I'm not a writer.


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## CaedemMarquez (Mar 23, 2011)

I may take a beating for this, but for me it's *Nicholas Sparks*. Enjoyed his first novels but then his writing just became the same.


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## hs (Feb 15, 2011)

John Grisham, once he strayed from writing legal thrillers.


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

Regarding James Patterson, I'd bet that he doesn't write those books. I noticed while working at the library that all of his new releases had a tiny "with ...". I wondered how an author could release 3 books a year. There was another author doing the same thing, but I can't think of who it was. There were always huge hold lists for their books so I guess the collaboration must not be too bad.


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## NapCat (retired) (Jan 17, 2011)

BrassMan said:


> "...By way of contrast, there's Patrick O'Brian, whose 20 Aubrey/Maturin novels never grew stale for me. I always felt O'Brian was writing for his own satisfaction, not for sales..."


Wonderful words on Mr. O'Brian !! I cannot wait for that series to be kindlized !!


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## Julie Christensen (Oct 13, 2010)

I'm amazed by how painful a topic this is.  I feel like I'm betraying my favorite authors (although, one could argue that they betrayed me!).  

Elizabeth George - one of my favorite mystery writers of all time.  I can't remember the name of the book - it might have been her tenth, or something.  Suddenly, she seemed to betray all the people I loved the most.  

My second one is Diana Galbondon.  Whom I adore.  But her fifth book was a disappointment.  Rape doesn't belong in romance novels.  I tolerated it once with her, but not the second time.  Plus, the action shifted to Claire and Jamie's kids.  What Why  I love Claire and Jamie and will happily follow them along as they age.  Don't replace them with 20-somethings, please.  (What is this?  Hollywood?)


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

mom133d said:


> Regarding James Patterson, I'd bet that he doesn't write those books. I noticed while working at the library that all of his new releases had a tiny "with ...". I wondered how an author could release 3 books a year. There was another author doing the same thing, but I can't think of who it was. There were always huge hold lists for their books so I guess the collaboration must not be too bad.


Years ago, I heard that James Michener had a whole squad of writers to whom he'd merely deliver an outline. That was about the time I bummed out on James Michener, and also about the time _Texas Monthly_ magazine came out with a parody of Michener's _Texas_ BEFORE it was published. It turned out to be right on!


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

NOTE:

"Jumping the Shark" is NOT the equivalent of repeating oneself, becoming boring, getting stale, or simply not being good. We're losing our central definition and this is becoming a mere "why I don't like so-and-so" thread...

Very specifically, the term "jumping the shark" is used to refer to that moment when an author or show "breaks faith with the reader/viewer" by stretching the character too far beyond their roots, because one becomes too desperate for new ideas.

The term was invented in relation to the TV show HAPPY DAYS. In the first couple seasons, the Fonz character was established as a street tough who'd grown beyond his hoodlum days but was still respected for being too tough to mess with. Character-crystallizing moments were the episode in which Richie wanted to avoid being hassled and tried to emulate The Fonz... wore a leather jacket, etc. But Fonz left one important fact out... to gain the proper fear that demands respect, Richie had to hit someone, really beat them up, "at least once." And he didn't have the stomach for it.

The character grew of course, and withstood a "Fonz becomes Eval Knievel" episode around Season 3, where he jumped a motorcycle over several barrels in the parking lot of Big Al's.

By episode 3 of season 5, when the Happy Days crew all go on vacation to California (or was it Hawaii?), Fonzie decides he wants to jump a motorcycle over a shark, and in that third episode, does so. It wasn't so much the repetition of Fonzie jumping something on his motorcycle that caused the viewer displeasure, but the fact that it was all so far removed from The Fonz's original, season-one roots. They'd taken a former hoodlum character and made him Superman, Eval Knieval and a role model all in one. He bore little resemblance anymore to that "former hoodlum. He wasn't recognizable as the same character. He's become a caricature of himself.

That, my friends, is "jumping the shark." Happy Days lasted another six seasons after that. Many were memorable. Many episodes were not repetitive. It wasn't about being boring, stale, or not good.

It was about a character being forced into situations that no longer seemed plausible. (I therefore agree with Jack Ryan becoming president as a jump the shark moment for Clancy... who ever heard of a CIA consultant becoming president? Other than Bush the Elder, I mean, LOL....)


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## BethCaudill (Mar 22, 2011)

I have to agree with Laurell K Hamilton and the Anita series.  I've given up there are too many men and she no longer focuses on the Necromancer powers Anita was born with.  Friends have said the books have been better but I don't care about the series anymore.

I'd love for her to start something new that didn't revolve around sex.


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## Syria Says... AKA Celia Can Read (Apr 16, 2010)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> NOTE:
> 
> "Jumping the Shark" is NOT the equivalent of repeating oneself, becoming boring, getting stale, or simply not being good. We're losing our central definition and this is becoming a mere "why I don't like so-and-so" thread...
> 
> ...


While I was working yesterday (and couldn't find time to get to The Google), it occured to me that I didn't actually know what this phrase ACTUALLY meant. I see that my vague understanding was close (which is good) and I definitely had no idea where the phrase originated from. Super interesting. Thanks!


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Syria Says... said:


> While I was working yesterday (and couldn't find time to get to The Google), it occured to me that I didn't actually know what this phrase ACTUALLY meant. I see that my vague understanding was close (which is good) and I definitely had no idea where the phrase originated from. Super interesting. Thanks!


I too found the derivation of that term entertaining. As a member of the tiny tribe of non-television watchers, however, I'd like to add that, however much we may have bent that specific definition in this thread, I have nonetheless found our comments interesting and worthy of consideration.


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## purplepen79 (May 6, 2010)

BrassMan said:


> I too found the derivation of that term entertaining. As a member of the tiny tribe of non-television watchers, however, I'd like to add that, however much we may have bent that specific definition in this thread, I have nonetheless found our comments interesting and worthy of consideration.


This is a weird side-note. I had never heard the term "jumping the shark" before yesterday and this thread. So last night I was watching an episode from season 5 of _Supernatural_ when the author/prophet character Chuck is up on the stage, nervously trying to entertain a captive audience while the brothers hunt some ghosts. All of a sudden out of the nowhere, Chuck said something about "jumping the shark." That kind of thing always happens to me. I hear a term or word I've never heard before, and all of a sudden it's everywhere.


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## Dennis Coslett (Jan 14, 2011)

For me, Robert B. Parker. His Spenser novels were excellent until _Catskill Eagle_, but many after that were so-so.

It was definitely after Catskill Eagle that Spenser became something of a boring invincible borderline superhero character.

Although, to be fair, some of Parker's later Spenser novels were good, but not all.


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## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

Maybe I should have titled this thread authors past their prime.


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## GBear (Apr 23, 2009)

The dead-on Robert B. Parker comment and the real "jump the shark" clarification got my thinking headed off on a slight tangent. In at least two series that I can think of, along with the "Happy Days" original, it wasn't the main character that first "jumped the shark" for me but the sidekick. Spenser has Hawk and Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar has his invincible Tonto as well (forgot his name offhand). When the main character lands in ever more incredibly impossible circumstances, it's the sidekick who seems to be the first one to develop superhuman powers to bail him out, to "jump the shark" in my mind.


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## Geoffrey (Jun 20, 2009)

arshield said:


> Orson Scott Card. I have read the last several books he wrote, and I keep hoping that he will write some more that are really good. But he is very uneven lately.


I used to read everything he wrote as soon as it came out. I have a shelf full of his books all in first edition. But he has gotten uneven .... he's been pumping out Ender's This and Ender's That and there's no innovation in his books any longer.


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## Katie Salidas (Mar 21, 2010)

naomi_jay said:


> Laurell K Hamilton. I used to adore her Anita Blake books, but you'd have to pay me to read them nowadays, and you'd have to pay me _a lot._


You know, I have heard this a bunch of times. I haven't made it far enough in her series yet to get to that point. I'm a slow reader.


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## Scath (Jan 3, 2011)

purplepen79 said:


> That kind of thing always happens to me. I hear a term or word I've never heard before, and all of a sudden it's everywhere.


Same thing happens to me all the time. Usually it's vehicles, though. I buy a new one, and it seems like everyone has the same model/color all of the sudden. 

The Anita Blake series did take a turn for the better with Skin Trade (at least in my opinion, and I wrote a 'review' of sorts for it:http://thebibliobrat.net/2010/03/skintradeblake/).

Sookie didn't chime with me...maybe I shouldn't have viewed a few episodes of True Blood first. I checked the first one out, and returned it to the library after reading about 20 or so pages.


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## naomi_jay (Feb 1, 2011)

> You know, I have heard this a bunch of times. I haven't made it far enough in her series yet to get to that point. I'm a slow reader


Katie, My advice would be to read as far as The Killing Dance and stop and pretend the other books never happened! I'm quite fond of the next book in the series, Burnt Offerings, but after that it's all down hill...



> The Anita Blake series did take a turn for the better with Skin Trade


I have heard there's a slight improvement with this book. I didn't read that one, but someone lent me Bullet, so I started it and gave up after about three chapters of Anita watching ballet.


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## MichelleR (Feb 21, 2009)




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## Guest (Mar 30, 2011)

Henri Winkler gliding into shore on water ski's is really impressive! I tried to do that once and hit the sand face first.

He played a great part on Arrested Development too!


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## coffeetx (Feb 12, 2011)

This isn't really "jumping the shark" so much as a "one hit wonder" for me.  Personally, I thought the Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger was a great (albeit depressing) read.  Even though it disturbed me, the book was extremely well written.  I'll never forget reading it.  Unfortunately, everything I've read of hers after that has been something I could not even force myself to finish.


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## caseyf6 (Mar 28, 2010)

The second clip is hilarious...      Those shorts in the first one should be illegal.


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## lpking (Feb 12, 2011)

TadVezner said:


> I actually spoke with Robert Jordan at a funeral, a short time before he died. He seemed to be in pretty bad shape, health-wise. I sometimes wonder if that impacted his writing and focus somewhat at the end. It's too bad: the first book or two really grabbed me. Took me 'til four or five before I threw up my hands.


You have more patience than I. The plot of 3 seemed so close to those of 1 & 2 that even the new twists and big-picture characters introduced couldn't compell me to continue.

The problem in my view: there may be an overarching story of a world in conflict, but the same story arc repeated a dozen times tends to cloud that big picture.


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## lpking (Feb 12, 2011)

NapCat said:


> <snip> I cannot wait for that series to be kindlized !!


Has NapKat coined a word?


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## Bob Mayer (Feb 20, 2011)

Clancy jumped the shark for me after his first book.  I just want to know who helped him.
King after Gerald's Game although I re-read his earlier books.


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## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

I thought this thread had jumped the shark, but apparently not.  How about Philip Roth?  His best books seem to have been decades ago.


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## Tamara Rose Blodgett (Apr 1, 2011)

I have to agree with the other poster...the Laurell K. Hamilton, Anita Blake series has digressed in to erotica...used to be paranormal/mystery/suspense...cooler. After book 10, not so much...


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## Jon Olson (Dec 10, 2010)

lacymarankevinmichael said:


> Anyone for James Patterson?


Yes. Yes and yes. Let's ask him to retire.


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## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

Jon Olson said:


> Yes. Yes and yes. Let's ask him to retire.


He certainly has enough money to retire.


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## Laura Ruby (Feb 22, 2011)

mom133d said:


> Regarding James Patterson, I'd bet that he doesn't write those books. I noticed while working at the library that all of his new releases had a tiny "with ...". I wondered how an author could release 3 books a year. There was another author doing the same thing, but I can't think of who it was. There were always huge hold lists for their books so I guess the collaboration must not be too bad.


He doesn't write the books, and hasn't been for a long time. He comes up with the outline, and he hires someone to write it. But it's only recently that he's included the names of his collaborators on the covers. (That's a new thing). I've heard, however, he treats his collaborators very well, so there's that.

-- Laura


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

...and we're back to people misunderstanding the meaning of the phrase, "Jumped the Shark."


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## Labrynth (Dec 31, 2009)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> ...and we're back to people misunderstanding the meaning of the phrase, "Jumped the Shark."


Let it go dude. Generally it just means that something isn't what it used to be and will never recover. Thus, the topic is still right where it should be.


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

Labrynth said:


> Let it go dude. Generally it just means that something isn't what it used to be and will never recover. Thus, the topic is still right where it should be.


Incorrect.


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## Laura Ruby (Feb 22, 2011)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> ...and we're back to people misunderstanding the meaning of the phrase, "Jumped the Shark."


Not sure that people misunderstand the term as much as they don't necessarily care about the precise meaning. : )


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## bulbboy (Jun 28, 2010)

Stuart Woods


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## Labrynth (Dec 31, 2009)

Laura Ruby said:


> Not sure that people misunderstand the term as much as they don't necessarily care about the precise meaning. : )


Thank you!


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## easyreader (Feb 20, 2011)

Honestly, there are very few authors that I was reading ten years ago that I'm still reading.  Most obviously became complacent and figured they could put anything out there and their readers would buy it.  It's the whole issue of branding.  We like our McDonalds even though it isn't healthy.


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## Mike McIntyre (Jan 19, 2011)

I was into Lee Child, and now I'm not.


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## *DrDLN* (dr.s.dhillon) (Jan 19, 2011)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> Incorrect.


So what is the correct meaning of jumping the shark. Is it jumping over the shark and never to jump back?? Don't take me seriously because I don't know..


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

Laura Ruby said:


> Not sure that people misunderstand the term as much as they don't necessarily care about the precise meaning. : )


That could very well be... LOL


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

*DrDln* (dr.s.dhillon) said:


> So what is the correct meaning of jumping the shark. Is it jumping over the shark and never to jump back?? Don't take me seriously because I don't know..


Don't take me overly seriously, either, LOL.

I believe I set the phrase into proper historical perspective in terms of its original meaning earlier in this thread.

The upshot is, most people use it as a "something I'm bored with these days," or "something not as popular as it once was" or simply as a way of talking about something they don't like, whether they ever did or not.

None of which is what it means.

But I'm a word-nerd, I'm probably among the 0.00001 percent of people who actually care about the original meanings of pop culture expressions, LOL.


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## R. M. Reed (Nov 11, 2009)

Someone mentioned the TV show "Supernatural." I recently saw part of an episode (I had to go to work so I didn't see it all) in which the boys are sent into another dimension in which they are TV actors making a show called "Supernatural." They used their real names and lived in Vancouver, where the show is shot. It seemed like a prime example a show that is out of ideas.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

I've learned so much from KindleBoards! I love the twists and turns that our discussion topics take. I already vaguely knew about the origins of "Jumping the Shark" but I've learned a lot more. However, language does evolve:

From Urbandictionary.com:


> *jump the shark*
> a term to describe a moment when somethin that was once great has reached a point where it will now decline in quality and popularity.


And by and large, members have responded to what lacymarankevinmichael said in the original post:



lacymarankevinmichael said:


> They say everyone has one good book in them. Some authors want to see if they have 20 good books in them...and fail miserably in the process. *So who grabbed your attention at one time that you now wish would retire?*


Interestingly, several of my (still) favorite authors have been mentioned in the thread, though I agree heartily with others mentioned, such as Stephanie Plum and Laurel Hamilton. I supposed it's in the eye of the beholder. (I think that expression still means the same thing? )

Sometimes I think that the writing by an author hasn't changed so much as we have. It seems most of the authors offered up are writing in a series? When we first encounter a series, it's fresh and new and different, eventually, though the quality of the writing hasn't changed, we're so accustomed to the character that we get bored. Sort of like some relationships after the honeymoon period wears off. I suppose the argument could be made that a good author could keep the series fresh... And by the same token, I'm sure some authors feel eventually that they are trapped in a series--it's all their readers want but the author wants to write something different. I can sympathize with Conan Doyle for killing Sherlock Holmes off (another thing I learned from this thread).

Good discussion, thanks!

Betsy


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Sometimes I think that the writing by an author hasn't changed so much as we have. It seems most of the authors offered up are writing in a series? When we first encounter a series, it's fresh and new and different, eventually, though the quality of the writing hasn't changed, we're so accustomed to the character that we get bored. Sort of like some relationships after the honeymoon period wears off. I suppose the argument could be made that a good author could keep the series fresh... And by the same token, I'm sure some authors feel eventually that they are trapped in a series--it's all their readers want but the author wants to write something different. I can sympathize with Conan Doyle for killing Sherlock Holmes off (another thing I learned from this thread).
> 
> Good discussion, thanks!
> 
> Betsy


I agree with this. . . . .I'll get on a kick and think I want to read a whole list of things. . .sometimes several in a series in order. I usually find that after 3 books or so, I've got to switch to something very different or I'll go nuts! So now I tend to read two longer, similar, types of books and then cleanse my reading palate with something shorter and/or very different 

I especially have to do this with series or else I'll get to a point where I just don't want to read another book with those characters. . .and that feeling could last years! Kind of like, if you get drunk on peppermint schnapps it's really hard to brush your teeth for the next few days.  Much better to read the series, slowly, in moderation, so it stays enjoyable to the end rather than making you sick by taking it in too fast.


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## Labrynth (Dec 31, 2009)

R. Reed said:


> Someone mentioned the TV show "Supernatural." I recently saw part of an episode (I had to go to work so I didn't see it all) in which the boys are sent into another dimension in which they are TV actors making a show called "Supernatural." They used their real names and lived in Vancouver, where the show is shot. It seemed like a prime example a show that is out of ideas.


Actually that episode moved the story line ahead and gave Mischa Collins a chance to shine. Not one of my fav eps, but not a throw away either. I remember when the rumor was that Buffy was going to meet Dracula at the beginning of season 5 and I thought it was all going to be downhill. Actually tho, that episode gave some information as to the history of the Slayers that we didn't know until then.


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## Dan Holloway (Dec 18, 2010)

L.J. Sellers said:


> I'll second the Patricia Cornwall mention. She got really dark and bitter and weird. I'm also sad to agree that I couldn't finish the last James Lee Burke novel I picked up either. But there are lots of new great writers!
> L.J.


For me the moment I stopped with Patricia Cornwall was The Last Precinct. She suddenly went into the present tense in a really stilted way, and having read all her preceding books in one or two sittings, I have to confess I never got far enough with TLP to find out why she was doing it.


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