While it would be impossible for a writer to duplicate the literary
genius that flowed from the pens of CS Forester and Patrick O’Brian, authors continually
aim to emulate the works of the Masters.
Sadly Forester and O’Brian are long gone which begs the following
questions:
How long can the adventures of Horatio Hornblower and Jack
Aubrey hold their own?
Have these fictional hero’s reached their use-by date?
Are they being consumed by the smoke and fire - not of sea
battles and cannon fire - but fire-breathing monsters, vampires, and aliens
from outer space?
As such, are today’s young readers really entranced by the romance
of the sea and the magic of the world of wooden ships?
Can the combined efforts of a crew of new writers, keep the
genre afloat?
Or is the popularity of the genre dying in parallel with its
ageing readership?
Time will tell, but, no doubt, the classic novels will grace
bookshelves and libraries for many years to come providing budding authors with
the bench mark to aim for.
Such is the challenge confronting writers of nautical
fiction.
Pics courtesy of Wikipedia
Admiralty Orders
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