Kim, you said, But define "fulfilling the function." When I read Anne Rice's "Blackwood Farm" at the suggestion of a friend, I didn't believe this novel fulfilled its function. I thought it was
preposterous, ludicrous, and above all else, poorly written.

Okay, you said it. NOT good writing, then. It told its story, presumably, but, being poorly written, as you say, the poor writing got in the way of the story, so that it didn't achieve its purpose with you.

I'll buy JTT's description of "good writing". GREAT writing requires that, plus having an outstanding vision of some kind to communicate, and then it needs adequately good writing to communicate that vision.

Of course we won't all agree what vision or message we would call great. Seems to me that a great vision can even result in a great book when the standard of writing is (relatively) low, so that the FULL potential impact of that communication is not achieved. And thus we have various levels or degrees of greatness in both the underlying vision and in the communication of it.

Dave Oesterreich