Play Book Tag discussion

I just ran across a discussion on Reddit about looking too in depth into your favorite authors. They listed many authors that their personal lives and personal views could detract from their body of work.

How does an authors personal life and views effect your view of their writings? Don you separate the person from their work? Would you rather know about the negative aspects of an author?

Any additional comments or anecdotes or even subjects are always encouraged.

Here is the conversation on Reddit if anyone cares to read.

https://www.reddit.com/r/books/commen...

Yes, knowing too much about an author's life can detract from a book, just as it can detract from enjoying watching an actor. (It's not a problem with Tom Cruise, since he's not a very good actor but does on type of role well enough to bring in money for the producers).

That said, I do look into authors at times, especially if I loved or hated something they wrote before knowing much about them.

I don't expect authors to be perfect, of course, and if it's something in their past the have overcome or changed on, that's not so bad for me most of the time.

Well, Jason, it depends. I usually want as much info about an author as is readily available. I always go to the back first to see if the author has answered questions and to get background. Sometimes, I go to Wikipedia for info. Our backgrounds, our experiences, mold us into what we are.
But I am also quick to forgive or ignore things I do not like. For example, I did not read the latest Harry Potter novelist (Robert Galbraith) wrote because she said some evil things about gays, bisexuals, etc. I do not remember what she said but it certainly upset the gay/bi community and I wanted to stand in league with them. So I did not read it. It seems the action has settled down and she apologized so I will read the book at some point. I like her work but will not support her if she is mean to others.
So, I did not answer your question. I look for information (degrees, where they grew up - family members) that might shape their views. But if a book gets good reviews and I want to read it, I can ignore the info about the author. After all, we know so little about so many authors.
Good question - have had this discussion before, especially whether the author was male or female based what we read in the book. I think it does not matter - again, we know so little and so many folks use pseudo names. peace, janz