Annoyances with authors

Is it wrong to dislike Nicholas Sparks? I know he's a wildly popular writer of sappy romance novels, but I've never actually read one. I've seen "A Walk to Remember" and "The Notebook" and I was emotionally wrecked after watching both. Years later, I still can't watch the end of "A Walk to Remember" without hyperventilating. Regardless.From what I've read in the reviews, I find his novels to be too conveniently sappy. It's almost like he's seeking out that one lonely group of women who would rather curl up with one of his novels rather than their significant other. And now that he's got a new movie and a new book coming out, he's everywhere.

I don't find too many writers to be annoying. For the most part, unless I actually look at the author's picture in the back part of the book jacket, I have no clue what this person looks like. Same goes for the journalists in the magazines I read. I try not to get too involved with the bios of writers unless I find them to be truly interesting. To me, Nicholas Sparks (and is that even his real name? sounds fishy to me...) comes off as an effeminate male desperately trying to prove he's hetero. And I have no issues with gays, let me clear that outright. I do have issues with people claiming to be proudly gay, yet refusing to come out at the same time. Like Clay Aiken. But that's a different entry for a different blog...

I also find the authors of the "Left Behind" series to be incredibly annoying, mostly because they are so damn preachy. BUT that is the whole gimmick behind their novels. They write Christian fiction and that's how it's supposed to be -- preachy & gimmicky. Bentley Little -- he tries waaaayyy too hard to be this generation's Stephen King. I read one book of Little's and I only finished it because I had invested too much time reading it.

I especially like seeing television interviews with music magazine (Rolling Stone, Spin, etc.) journalists who love to claim they are "writers" except I don't buy it because the column they write is restricted to either a Top Ten list or some random quotes from a rock show they had recently attended. I know I shouldn't knock what they do, but it's almost like calling yourself a Doctor because you have a doctorate degree (and yes, I know someone who does this and has been doing it most of her adult life). It's misleading.