tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2429560125838989988.post714967426802792291..comments2024-03-26T23:41:10.319+00:00Comments on Authors Electric: Introduction: beginnings, please... Mari HowardKatherine Robertshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17196712319655603442noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2429560125838989988.post-28879626709127779892019-11-23T22:44:09.966+00:002019-11-23T22:44:09.966+00:00Great first post, Mari! Lots to think about. As a ...Great first post, Mari! Lots to think about. As a reader and a member of a book group (so I'm obliged to read books I haven't chosen myself)I think what engages me is - and I'm sorry for the old cliche - characters I can identify with at some level. Characters I could talk to if we met, feel some sympathy for their situations, smile at their idiocyncrasies. As a writer, I don't think hard about my readers. I write for the joy of it, the fun and excitement of crafting the words, the satisfaction of creating something pleasing to the eye and the ear. Maybe that's why I'm not 'a famous author.' Oh heck...Sandra Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01761260568729338471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2429560125838989988.post-37720533716677937182019-11-23T10:44:24.551+00:002019-11-23T10:44:24.551+00:00'What do readers want from a book?' That&#...'What do readers want from a book?' That's such a hard question to answer when I think about my own experience as a reader.<br /><br />For instance, I recently read quite a famous book by an acclaimed writer. It was personally recommended by a friend who has put me on to many other books I've loved.<br /><br />But this one? It had vivid characterisation, skilfully done. It had beautiful, often witty prose. It had an interesting central theme. I could absolutely see why it was acclaimed: it was artfully constructed and couldn't be faulted.<br /><br />And I didn't enjoy it or like it at all. I trudged through it, mostly because of my friend. I trusted her judgement: surely the book would spring to life any page now? For me, it didn't, though obviously for others, it did.<br /><br />But when I try to analyse why I didn't like it, I'm baffled. Whatever it lacked, for me, wasn't in the craft of its writing. Has anyone else had a similar experience and, if so, do they have a better explanation of why that book failed to engage them?Susan Pricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07738737493756183909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2429560125838989988.post-18221130193671579322019-11-23T09:42:38.604+00:002019-11-23T09:42:38.604+00:00Those amazon categories are such a blunt instrumen...Those amazon categories are such a blunt instrument. I share your frustration and agree that its all down to the best way of selling a product, far more important than defining it with more subtlety. Canny authors can also find an obscure niche in which they hit No 1, enabling them to call their book - justifiably - a Bestseller in eg The Sword and Kitten genre (ooh, might give that one a go myself). I think we poor authors can be overburdened with all this Deep Connection With Your Readers advice. Books have one main purpose: to entertain. That can be on lots of different levels, and include information, making people laugh, cry, think, be scared, excited, whatever, but ultimately people read books for entertainment. If we can manage that, the connection with readers is a given.<br /> Great first post! Looking forward to reading more.Griselda Heppelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09207965148074302337noreply@blogger.com