Great Writing

I have been an avid SciFi and Fantasy reader since I learned to read. Over the decades I have read and collected a number of writers. One that I always loved was CJ Cherryh. I am rereading Rider at the Gate because I haven't been to the bookstore or library in the past week. Ms Cherryh is an author whose work is easy for me to go back to time and again. The depth of her settings and characters amazes me.
I am intimidated by authors of this caliber. Ms Cherryh's imagination leaves me stunned. As I read her work I can't help but thinking "how do you think of all this?" I am always impressed with good writing but to me SciFi/Fantasy turns it up a notch by forcing the writer to create believable worlds and universes on top of good characters and story lines. CJ Cherryh is one of the best, her settings are thought out to an amazing level of detail. On top of these strong foundations she builds believable characters that draw me in. Reading writers like this is what inspires me to want to write.