Interesting. That explains why those books are so crap and other less-polished and harder-to-read books have much more value
Bah, elitest bullshit. People who come up with ideas like that are of the "if it's not difficult and challenging, it's not art" mindset. No-one ever said reading had to be difficult. Just because a novel isn't a post-modern critical analysis of the recontectualized metaphor for gender identity doesn't make it a "McNovel". Dissing Stephen King is like dissing Charles Dickens. It is very good writing; occasionally something good <i>does</i> deserve to hit the mainstream.
Good point, Jimbob.
Though, IMHO, elitism gets a bad name. The world's so full of crap that if you don't swallow it, you are by definition elitist. Disapproval of "mass culture" like McDonalds and reality TV may be considered elitist.
Or, to quote Randall Graves, "I believe in the philosophy of a ruling class, because I rule".
Don't blame Strunk and White. I think it has to do with the law of diminishing returns.
Coming soon: the 'no-style' plugin for Microsoft Word.