# So what are you really looking for in the books you buy?



## sabolich (Sep 2, 2011)

When you're flipping through the endless choices for SF or fantasy at the bookstore or on Amazon, what are you looking for? What grabs you enough to buy the dang thing? A cool cover? The back blurb? Do you flip through and look at the quality of the writing? Is it the promise of an original idea you haven't seen before? A character who looks like he/she hasn't been done to death? Or do you want something comfy in the genre you like best, like a vampire story or military SF or a sprawling high fantasy?

C'mon, fess up. What are you looking for, and what makes it a great read for you? And one last question: do you think readers and editors are looking for the same thing in a book?


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## J-Sun (Sep 2, 2011)

I usually know what I'm looking for ahead of time. While there are definitely exceptions, I tend to come across authors in anthologies and, if I develop the idea that I'd like them from their short fiction, I tend to give their collections (if I can find them for less than an arm or a leg) or novels a try. If I like the collection or the talent carries through into novel form, then I get more.

There are exceptions - I used to belong to the SFBC when it didn't suck (I still do, I think, if they haven't kicked me out, but I haven't bought anything in years) and I used to buy some things off the blurb because that's all there was (pre-WWW) and it just had to sound "interesting". How to define that, I dunno.

And these days, if there's enough buzz on the internet for something that sounds like I could like it anyway, I'll sometimes try it.

And sometimes there's association: movements like cyberpunk and NWoBSO will sometimes get me to try a work by an author who comes up in context with others if I've already read the others.

As far as browsing the shelves, yeah, you look at the title, look at the cover, read the blurb, read a page, try to get a gestalt and decide. I don't buy a lot that way and it tends to need to be high-tech space-oriented to get me to buy it, but that's just me.

And, no, editors have to be looking for something that will sell. And maybe reflect well on them. Naturally, they are readers, too, and want to bring quality writing to a wide readership, but they have commercial constraints. Readers are on the short end of the commercial stick and are looking for things much more personal and apart from popularity and commercial considerations - they just don't want to waste the X dollars they spent.

Anyway: rule #1 to get me to read an author: they need to write good short fiction.


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## Vertigo (Sep 2, 2011)

I almost never browse for a book, I really don't have the time for that sort of luxury. I have always already decided what I want and I almost always buy over the internet (the nearest book shop is over 25 miles away).

My decision as to what books to buy is based on recommendation from places like this, new books from authors I know I like and occasionally "if you like this you might like that" recommendations from places like FantasticFiction, though I will usually check them out with a question on here.

There are other ways; for example I got into John Scalzi through a free download of his book Agent To The Stars. I loved that and am now slowly working through the rest of his material.

About the only time I used to buy a book by browsing was at airports and the like when I realised I'd forgotten to pack a book. This had never happened since I switched to ebooks. Good job really since my record for finding a book that way, that I actually liked, was pretty poor to say the least.


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## sabolich (Sep 3, 2011)

LOL. Yes, it is so easy to get burned, even when you have the physical book in your hands. I bought one off the shelf a couple of years ago based on a killer prologue that promised well for the book. Alas, it turned into a bunch of pointless characters wandering pointlessly on a long journey to nowhere, doing pointless things along the way to break up the monotony. I never finished it.  

Word of mouth is definitely a factor, now that I think about, especially when buying off the internet. There didn't used to be the reviews to glance through, and I confess they do sway me to a certain extent.  But I, too, want "interesting" as a starting place. And the writing has to be good. I cannot tolerate first-grade writing, no matter how interesting the idea. So, for me, I need to be able to at least look at some representative sample (beyond the uber-polished page 1). The Look Inside feature on Amazon is a must.


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## fleamailman (Sep 9, 2011)

("...I guess what I want from a book is something to remember when I've finished reading it..." remarked the goblin, continuing "...where I have a growing distrust for much of what one reads these days...", in fact, the goblin often wondered if there wasn't some sort of computer program out there by now where one just fills in the blancs with names, dates, settings, etc., and then presses the _create sff novel_ button, whereupon the goblin just grinned, remarking "...but then again if it sells why knock it...")


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## Toby Frost (Oct 2, 2011)

I don't have much in particular I look out for, except for a very vague idea of the sort of book I'd like to read that tends to change each time I go to the shops ('Been ages since I've read any crime', etc). I do have a few things that will put me off. None is a guaranteed fail, but more than one will pretty much guarantee that I'm not interested.

- Failure on some prettly basic level - characterisation, grammar, blatant Mary-Sueism etc.
- Excessively derivative/no new twists on genre.
- Multiple volumes of the same story, especially those with no clear end in sight. Life is just too short for soap opera.
- Dumbness/witlessness. This needs some explanation. I don't mean a lack of jokes, but a sort of lack of sophistication, even in telling a daft story. Them-vs-us space war stories count here. Books that think they're clever and bang on and on, especially if trying to tell a message, count double. Basically, anything that batters the reader over the head.


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## AnyaKimlin (Oct 2, 2011)

I've never been fussy about what the genre etc is. It doesn't matter if something is familiar or innovative.

My requirement are an easy to read voice, fun plot and a character I think I am going to want to spend a few hourse.


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## J Riff (Oct 2, 2011)

I llok for paper money concealed within, or a treasure map.


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## TL Rese (Nov 7, 2011)

i have to confess, good covers really catch my attention =P.  but the old adage is def true, "you shouldn't judge a book by its cover."  i read "twilight" and "eragon" because i liked the covers, and did Not like the books at. all.

ideally, a "good" book will have it all - beautiful language, dimensional characters, a gripping plot, originality, and some inherent meaning and soul - not just some lifeless derivative.

as for editors, i've become a bit disillusioned with the whole publishing process.  i think the element of chance plays too big of a role.  after all, something like harry potter was rejected from all the major houses.  so who knows what else they've turned away that never made it out of the cracks.  it is pretty sad to think that masterpieces might have been lost forever, simply because they didn't fit the publishing trends at the time.


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## Vince W (Nov 7, 2011)

When I look for books I usually base my purchases on what I'm reading at the moment. If I'm reading military SF I'll look for more. It helps that I have a large number of books waiting to read so if my mood changes I'll generally look to those first. Though I will pick up a book if the cover and back blurb intrigue me enough.

Rese as for your comments about publishing as a whole, rejection of good material is nothing new. Remember Herbert had to publish Dune through Chilton the automotive manual people.


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## chrispenycate (Nov 7, 2011)

What I'm looking for, and the techniques I use to find it are not necessarily related, and the latter has not been over effective. I am not looking for a pretty cover; I'm not going to hang the book on the wall, or lie in bed at night gazing at it. Nor do rear-cover blurbs take me long to read. A number of authors have let me down over my years of testing Sturgeon's law, and put not thy faith in publishers, revewers, even word of mouth.

What I am looking for is original ideas that explode in my brain like fireworks, original points of view that can make me see something I have long known in a different light, and frequently laugh myself silly at it (Pratchett has frequently been the perpetrator here), obvious truths that have never been drawn to my attention.

What I get…

And, since no two people's judgement on an oeuvre is identical, this situation is bound to continue.


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## TL Rese (Nov 8, 2011)

Vince W said:


> Rese as for your comments about publishing as a whole, rejection of good material is nothing new. Remember Herbert had to publish Dune through Chilton the automotive manual people.


 
i know, that's why it's so depressing.  think about all those, perhaps millions, of good books that have probably been lost over the decades, centuries, whatever - just never picked up by any publisher, and after awhile, the author gets too discouraged and gives up, with the manuscript forever unpublished.  just sad.


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## J-Sun (Nov 9, 2011)

It is that, but so would be reading everything on the internet. While some signal has gotten lost throughout time, I'm not sure the signal-to-noise ratio has been bad or is getting better. IOW, people may have been able to find more than they lost via publishing. But I'm not disagreeing with you and not saying I'm convinced of what I just said - just raising another possible way to look at it. And, of course, such a theory, even if true, wouldn't be much consolation to the great rejected author, himself, or to the reader for whom the lost book would have been the greatest ever.


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## Tecdavid (Nov 25, 2011)

The first thing to catch my attention will normally be the cover, simply because vivid scenes tend to stand out more than plainly titles on black. If I like what I see, I'll probably give the blurb a quick read.
But really, when it comes to choosing new books, I'm never really sure what to go for, unless I'm looking for the next instalment to something I already enjoy. For this reason, I'll usually just ask for a pile on my birthday, or at Christmas.


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## chongjasmine (Dec 1, 2011)

The cover design and the back cover description of the book helped me to buy a new author on impulse. Otherwise, I usually go for books that are recommended by other people.


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## DianaIlinca (Dec 30, 2011)

Oh!!!
High fantasy. Adventure. Magic. Fighting. Suspense.
I don't want a mushy love story, sorry. Yes, I'm a chick but I like my men manly and meaty. 
If there are vampires, werewolves or a story written in 1st person, I drop it and move on.
I need books where something is always happening. Someone is in trouble. And you can see the character(s) change and grow.
And..well...I can go on.


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## Hilarious Joke (Dec 30, 2011)

A mixture of recommendation (whether from a friend or from the Chron (not that Chronnites aren't friends!)) and if the blurb reads well.

Joe Abercrombie I'm reading because of the Chron. Great recommendation, Chron!!


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## Rosemary Fryth (Jan 20, 2012)

TL Rese said:


> i know, that's why it's so depressing. think about all those, perhaps millions, of good books that have probably been lost over the decades, centuries, whatever - just never picked up by any publisher, and after awhile, the author gets too discouraged and gives up, with the manuscript forever unpublished. just sad.


 
Which is why places like Amazon Kindle are the saviours of discouraged authors. Finally you can dodge the middlemen agents and publishing houses, and go direct to your clients, the readers of books.

As for what I'm really looking for in the books I buy?

A good cover will catch my interest, an accurate blurb will inform me as to whether or not the book may interest me or not. What however will take me from book one to follow up books in a trilogy or series are characters I can relate to, a fast moving plot, easy to read dialogue, and the occasional spot of humour in the writing.

Nowadays I am less into buying new books, and more into re-reading old favourites. Also am of course deep in writing a new novel, this one in the Dark Fantasy genre.


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## Anne Lyle (Jan 20, 2012)

I tend to discover new authors via the internet - often on forums like this.

As for what I look for - I like strong, memorable characters, of both sexes; flawed but likeable heroes struggling against ruthless enemies; intrigue and plotting rather than all-out war. A dash of romance is nice, but not so much that it overwhelms the rest of the story; magic likewise is fine, but honestly, I can live without it if the rest of the world-building is solid.

No tired cliches or sexist stereotypes need apply. Female characters who only exist to be victims are a big turn-off for me, as are graphic torture and sexual violence. Lumpen prose and writing that tries too hard to be clever are equally likely to have me closing a book and putting it down.

Oh yeah, and preferably no dragons. Just because I've seen them wheeled out far too often, in order to give a flagging series a shot in the arm. Yawn.


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## sabolich (Jan 21, 2012)

Anne Lyle said:


> Oh yeah, and preferably no dragons. Just because I've seen them wheeled out far too often, in order to give a flagging series a shot in the arm. Yawn.



Oh, God, yes. Dragons, elves, orcs, vampires, werewolves, or any analog thereof. I worry that my world in Firedancer is _too_ different, as it employs none of the usual villains and tropes. Is that a turn-off for people who just want to cozy up with something familiar, like a good old-fashioned swords and sorcery romp, or is there a driving hunger out there for stuff outside the norm? I dunno. I, too, like epic fantasy and swordplay and magic, but not all the time, both as a reader and as a writer. I write what feels good at the time and try to avoid tripping over too many things that have been done to death.

I do have to say that if there is a dragon on the cover it is far more likely to drive me to put it back than buy it.


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## Anne Lyle (Jan 21, 2012)

sabolich said:


> Is that a turn-off for people who just want to cozy up with something familiar, like a good old-fashioned swords and sorcery romp, or is there a driving hunger out there for stuff outside the norm?



Yes and yes - I think there are audiences for both, thank goodness. My book is getting a lot of positive buzz, and there isn't an elf or dragon in sight. The nearest I come to traditional fantasy tropes is that iron disrupts magic - hardly original, but it gives my Elizabethans a reason to believe that the non-humans are some variety of faery folk.

They are of course very, very wrong


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## thaddeus6th (Jan 21, 2012)

Awwww. My second book has a dragon.

I don't mind elves/orcs etc but for the differing races I've gone for slightly different human subspecies (some being almost identical but some being a bit freaky).

Anyway, to answer the question: it varies. Sometimes I want a rollicking yarn (Tales of the Ketty Jay, Space Captain Smith etc) other times I want a grim and dark tale of blood and woe (Abercrombie, Martin) and I quite like trying out new authors.


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## Toby Frost (Jan 21, 2012)

> Space Captain Smith etc



Yay!

I quite like dragons and what not, but they've got to be done well. I particularly liked Sapkowski's treatment of elves in The Last Wish. The danger is either that they all end up the same, or that writers get a bit obsessed and go into extreme detail. I always wondered how there could be so many different families, breeds and clans of vampire when there were only a certain number of people for them to live off.


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## Wybren (Jan 21, 2012)

First thing in a book store that grabs me is the cover, but I won't buy it unless I have read the first few pages and it grabs me. The only time I did't do this, I looked at a book, read the blurb, saw it was published with the help of a guy that is helping a friend of mine get published and thought " oh well it has to be good then" and I was sadly disappointed. If it I am not in a store, and shopping on line then it is only for books that have been highly recommended by several people who I trust in there book reading tastes or an author I have read previously or a book I have borrowed previously from somewhere and decided I had to have it in my library.


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## Christopher Lee (Jan 27, 2012)

I typically know what I'm going into the bookstore for ahead of time, although there are always exceptions.  Covers sometimes grab me, just because they can paint a very vivid image in my already wild, imaginative mind.  Generally I just enjoy a good story with real characters to spend time with.


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## Warren_Paul (Feb 2, 2012)

Just like most other people, I am drawn to the cover at first, I'm sure when I get my first book published I will be _very_ fussy with the cover art (If the publisher lets me).

So yeah, I grab the most attractive covers first then refer to the blurb on the back to see if my eyes are just trying to trick me or if the book really does seem interesting.


What I am looking for in books is a different question though, I think first and foremost I am a romantic at heart so naturally lean towards books that have believable relationships in them. I don't mind a tragedy, hell, I've written one, but I love to see the guy get the girl, or vise versa. Granted I also want to see those relationship stories in epic fantasy settings with big battles and magic. Urban fantasy is as close as I get to reading books based in the real world.


As for readers vs publishers, I'm not entirely convinced that the publisher knows what the reader wants or if it is the possibility that they think "this is what a reader should like". There are many examples of books that were turned down by publishers only to become famous later. Granted half those examples I never liked either, so likely I share the same tastes as those publishers.

But then, I'm not a publisher and they have been publishing books as a business for years, so they must know what they are doing.

I imagine they have to think about what would sell, and that means comparing it to what is selling now and in the past. The reader is looking for the next big thing, while the editor would be looking for the secure investment based on proven track record.


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## Anne Lyle (Feb 2, 2012)

Warren_Paul said:


> I imagine they have to think about what would sell, and that means comparing it to what is selling now and in the past. The reader is looking for the next big thing, while the editor would be looking for the secure investment based on proven track record.



I'm not sure the reader is always looking for the next big thing - often they just want "same but different", which is why genres exist and why they tend to evolve slowly.

Editors are the ones looking for the next big thing, but at imprints owned by huge multinational corporations, their hands are often tied by commercial considerations. That's why the publishers that do well in awards tend to be the smaller, more independent ones like Pyr and Angry Robot, who can take risks with titles that might not impress the bean-counters


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## Stephen Palmer (Feb 2, 2012)

The best editors are the ones who know they can never predict what the next big thing is going to be.


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## Karn Maeshalanadae (Feb 4, 2012)

What I look for in the books I buy are just a couple things: Good story, good characters. Not only believably human characters, but how they interact with one another. Not much more. The world can, but I'm not much of a scenery man.


And as to the second question? Editors are readers as well. I'm sure they're looking for the same kind of things as the consumers are, to a point. It's just that it's an editor's job to wield a fine-toothed comb when they first see a book, usually. At least, as far as their working hours go. Everyone has their own personal tastes, however, and in their own time an editor looking for a book to read wants to find something they feel they can enjoy, whether it's a fantasy/sci-fi novel, a romance novel, classic lit, magazines, comic books, whatever. Still, I'm sure a properly trained critical eye can really never be turned off fully. (I'm sure TE would be able to correct me on this.)


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## David B (Feb 4, 2012)

I'm a sucker for a good cover. However, that's not what comes first. I gravitate to the genre bookshelve that suits my mood.

Next, it's only the spines on display.

To pull out the book to look at its cover it needs:

1. A great title

or

2. A familiar author.

If it's also got the artwork, I let the blurp convince me or turn me aside.


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## Brian G Turner (Feb 4, 2012)

Ultimately, I'm looking for something that will make me *think* You know, where for days afterwards you imagine yourself in that world, facing those same issues, because there was something profound in the experience of it.

I actually get frustrated with the fantasy genre. Too much of it is focused on escapsim; wish fulfillment as protagonists; magic that solves basic problems with deus ex machina; evil hordes that demonstrate nothing more than the writer's inability to consider moral complexities; stories that have nothing really to say.

I'm perhaps a literary snob. I want to be challenged. I want a piece of writing to provide me with an insight I didn't have before.  

Sure, I like some fun and light stuff. I have a big Pratchett collection because of that. But what makes Pratchett great is that he's always trying to make a point about something as well. 

So why can't more fantasy writers do this? Why is it left to the Gaiman's, Mievilles, and George R R Martin's, to try and give us something of that? Why does it seem so beyond most others?


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## sabolich (Feb 6, 2012)

I said:


> Ultimately, I'm looking for something that will make me *think* You know, where for days afterwards you imagine yourself in that world, facing those same issues, because there was something profound in the experience of it.



Yes. There is nothing more satisfying than a read that sticks with you for days afterward. It's just very tough to tell going into a book whether that will be the case or not.



> I actually get frustrated with the fantasy genre. Too much of it is focused on escapsim; wish fulfillment as protagonists; magic that solves basic problems with deus ex machina; evil hordes that demonstrate nothing more than the writer's inability to consider moral complexities; stories that have nothing really to say.



Agreed. I get sick of Evil Overlords and quests and grand battles just to flash the swords. People make the stories, which is why I like to read--and try to write--books that speak to ethical dilemmas or very strong themes of courage and duty and honor and sacrifice (ex-military here, so those appeal to me). I like exploring what happens when the hero is put to difficult choices, and things aren't easy, and the answers aren't clear. When a book can do that in a satisfactory way, I am far more likely to pick up another by the same author. When I can reread one of my own and get a visceral gut reaction, I know I did it right, which is very appealing to me as an author.


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## Anne Lyle (Feb 6, 2012)

I said:


> So why can't more fantasy writers do this? Why is it left to the Gaiman's, Mievilles, and George R R Martin's, to try and give us something of that? Why does it seem so beyond most others?



This isn't an issue confined to SFF - most genre fiction is pretty light on "meaning", which is why the literary types look down on it. I guess the issue is that few if any writers can churn out intense, meaningful books in the quantities required for commercial success - I'm not saying that prolific authors are bad, but they are unlike to be "great" in the literary sense.

This is something I'm torn about at the moment - I'd love a full-time writing career, but the last thing I want to do is let quality suffer in an effort to get more books out, because that would just turn away existing fans. (I'm speaking in a hypothetical sense, of course, since my book's not out yet - I'm going by the early reviews, and what they pinpoint as the strengths of my writing. Complex characters and in-depth historical world-building aren't things you can knock up overnight!)


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## Tiffany (Feb 11, 2012)

For a new to me author, I read the books synopsis, then I decide if I'm going to enjoy it.
For an author I have read books by before, I'd simply buy the book & do.


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## Lilmizflashythang (Mar 3, 2012)

I try the first page, if it hooks me, it hooks me. I really try anything.


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## calyxte (Mar 22, 2012)

I simply look to be entertained, and if it makes me think too all the better.


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## sabolich (Mar 23, 2012)

Lilmizflashythang said:


> I try the first page, if it hooks me, it hooks me. I really try anything.



Ah, but do you finish it? I bought a book a couple of years ago that had a terrific opening prologue, but from chapter 1 on the writing was awful and the plot was Dullsville, with characters that never hooked me. I'll try anything that looks interesting, too, but I confess to a lot of page-flipping before I spend money these days.


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## sabolich (Mar 23, 2012)

Tiffany said:


> For a new to me author, I read the books synopsis, then I decide if I'm going to enjoy it.
> For an author I have read books by before, I'd simply buy the book & do.



CJ Cherryh said something a con last year that really hit home, which is that you'd better be really great at writing cover blurbs if you want to make it as a self-published writer. My book, Firedancer, is published in the usual way, but I think the cover blurb is awful, not really conveying the depth of the book. I'd be delighted for feedback that confirms or overturns this gut feeling. Maybe if enough people agree I can get the publisher to change it.


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## thaddeus6th (Mar 23, 2012)

Although I've yet to publish (still hunting artists) I did the book blurb a while ago. I think I've done a decent job, but maybe I'll read it back and think it rubbish.

I just scanned the blurb and it seems ok. It's not trouser-explodingly good or dire, but I agree that it doesn't convey a great deal of depth. More important, to me, than the blurb is the fact you've got some nice ratings. I often just skip blurbs altogether and read a positive and (if there is one) negative review.


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## Geddon's Wall (Mar 23, 2012)

The thing I look for is a new author and a premise that works.


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## sabolich (Mar 23, 2012)

thaddeus6th said:


> I just scanned the blurb and it seems ok. It's not trouser-explodingly good or dire, but I agree that it doesn't convey a great deal of depth. More important, to me, than the blurb is the fact you've got some nice ratings. I often just skip blurbs altogether and read a positive and (if there is one) negative review.



Thanks, Thaddeus. I appreciate you taking the time.


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## Anne Lyle (Mar 24, 2012)

I go by the content of the blurb, not the prose - what puts me off is a mention of tired plots (young mage comes into his/her powers) and tropes that just don't press my buttons (dragons, telepathic bonded animals, telepathic bonded dragons...you can tell I overdosed on Anne McCaffrey as a teen, can't you!).

I asked my publisher nicely to change my novel's blurb when it first went up on Amazon - it wasn't bad, but it put the wrong spin on the historical backstory and I thought it was misleading. They asked me to write the replacement, and I'm pretty pleased with it 

http://www.annelyle.com/nightsmasque/


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## Brian G Turner (Mar 24, 2012)

Good blurb, Anne.


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## Toby Frost (Mar 24, 2012)

> I actually get frustrated with the fantasy genre. Too much of it is focused on escapsim; wish fulfillment as protagonists; magic that solves basic problems with deus ex machina; evil hordes that demonstrate nothing more than the writer's inability to consider moral complexities; stories that have nothing really to say.



While I agree with you, Brian, I think the pendulum has swung the other way somewhat and "gritty" is now in fashion. However, gritty is pretty easy to do by numbers (soldier pees self on battlefield; brave warrior abandons own men; princess is ugly; mob kills gay wizard etc etc) and I wonder if we won't have a run of second-rate tough fantasy in the next few years. What I'd really love to see in fantasy is a move away from the epic: just as every detective novel isn't about the murder of the Prime Minister, I don't see why every fantasy story should be about the fate of the kingdom. But that will probably never happen. And don't get me started on multi-volume stuff.


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## Anne Lyle (Mar 24, 2012)

Not every fantasy story is epic. _The Lies of Locke Lamora_ is a heist caper; _Among Thieves_ is about an informant trying to survive the machinations of rival crime bosses. My own books walk the line - there are major political stakes underlying everything, but the real motivation of the characters is personal.


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## sabolich (Mar 24, 2012)

Anne, I agree that not every story is epic. My novel Firedancer started  as a stand-alone and went into the drawer for 10 years before a  publisher approached me wanting to see my long fiction (she'd only seen  my short stories and was impressed). She only buys series but she wanted  Firedancer, a lot. Ergo, now it's a series, but I admit it's been hard  to wrap my head around extending the plot of a book written and stuck in  the drawer in 1999. It's all good, as there was sufficient story there,  but what's wrong with stand-alones?

I think there is serious peril for a writer of series to get pigeonholed  by fans into expecting them to write the same thing forever (JK  Rowling, Jim Butcher). My stuff is all over the map, from alternate  history to dark fantasy to soft SF to epic fantasy. I have had the  freedom to write what I want because for a long time I wasn't serious  about publishing it. (Now I am, because having freed myself from a day  job, I don't ever want to go back!) Be that as it may, people reading my  stuff never know what they're about to pick up, but my first readers  are always eager to see it. Is variety in your writing bad? I don't  think the writer should have to stick to one trope just because people  expect more of the same.

I like continuing series as much as the next person, and heaven knows, I  can't seem to write short novels, as my mind continually spins out epic  yarns. However, if I like an author, I am willing to try anything they  write, and even stick with them if one book disappoints. Nobody hits  home runs every time.


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## Anne Lyle (Mar 25, 2012)

It is a worry, certainly. I have a project on the backburner that I could make either alternate history or secondary world fantasy, and I'm leaning towards the latter purely because I don't want to get pigeon-holed early on as a writer of alternate history.

OTOH I'm happy to stick to "historically-inspired" fantasy, because that's pretty broad in scope and encompasses pretty much everything I wrote before I got published. It could lose me some readers who love my books for the historical detail - but then again it could widen my appeal to readers who are put off by historical stuff.

I read an interesting ebook that goes into quite a lot of detail on creating your author brand. The stuff about online presence is rather dated (the author is very keen on MySpace!), but the rest is still relevant.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003VD1EQC/?tag=brite-21


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## sabolich (Mar 25, 2012)

Anne Lyle said:


> I read an interesting ebook that goes into quite a lot of detail on creating your author brand. The stuff about online presence is rather dated (the author is very keen on MySpace!), but the rest is still relevant.
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003VD1EQC/?tag=brite-21



LOL. I acquired that book just last week on the strength of a Broad Universe recommendation, which totally backs up Kristine Kathryn Rusch's point about books are sold by word of mouth, not bestseller lists, reviews, or nearly any other type of promotion the newbie author agonizes over. I'm about halfway through it and yes, she has many good points to make.


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## Lilmizflashythang (Mar 26, 2012)

sabolich said:


> Ah, but do you finish it? I bought a book a couple of years ago that had a terrific opening prologue, but from chapter 1 on the writing was awful and the plot was Dullsville, with characters that never hooked me. I'll try anything that looks interesting, too, but I confess to a lot of page-flipping before I spend money these days.


 
Only two books did I not finish, they were both by John Grishom, and I felt that they were too slow. I guess you could call it three, but I don't think running out of time on Moby Dick and having to return it to the library counts.


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## Karn Maeshalanadae (Apr 4, 2012)

Lilmizflashythang said:


> Only two books did I not finish, they were both by John Grishom, and I felt that they were too slow. I guess you could call it three, but I don't think running out of time on Moby Dick and having to return it to the library counts.



No, it doesn't count.


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## BAYLOR (Feb 8, 2015)

A book that will hold my interest.


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## MWagner (Mar 6, 2015)

A conflict that has high stakes.

A setting that is fantastic, and rich with texture. 

Characters whose values and behavior are a product of their environment. Nothing turns me off more than modern sensibilities ported into a different world.

Prose that demonstrates a mastery of word-smithing. The sound and rhythm of the words should be pleasing to the mind's ear.


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## Anne Spackman (Mar 27, 2015)

I look for something to incite my imagination or to make me think a lot about what is possible, what I believe, what I hope for, etc.  In historical fiction, I find I just want to be "transported" to another time and to try to understand it.  I like to feel strongly for the protagonist and like him or her and what he/she is doing or trying to achieve or do.  I like descriptive language and intricate plots.  I guess you know it when you see it...


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