Joyce Carol Oates, a writer's writer.

Why do you consider her a writer's writer? I know her name but have never read her and I always assumed she was popular fiction. No shame in that but it ain't writer's writing.

The worst three words in the English language: Joyce Carol Oates

Her novel about Marilyn Monroe was ridiculous

R2 may be thinking of another writer with the first name of Joyce. JCO is considered a literary writer and is one of the half-dozen American names perennially bandied about as possible bets for a Nobel. Not saying that's merited or it'll happen, but she is indeed viewed as a literata.

Not as ridiculous as Norman Mailer's Marilyn book, R3,

She's incredibly readable

[quote] is one of the half-dozen American names perennially bandied about as possible bets for a Nobel.

"Perennially" suggests this is still happening, which isn't true.

She was nominated a few times decades ago, but that's long over now.

She's a "writer's writer" in the sense that genre fiction is one of her literary preoccupations, and she's a stylist who adopts and sometimes parodies and comments on genre styles in different examples of her work. It doesn't always come off, but she's done some really interesting takes on horror/crime/gothic-family-saga. "Bellefleur" is one of my favorites. American dynastic with a touch of something a little supernatural or eerie.

I didn't say she was nominated, R7, I said her name came up in these bettors discussions. It still does now and then. She's not gonna get it, Colson Whitehead is, but her name still comes up.