What do the readers want? - Page 2 - Writers Forum

NaCl · 04-24-2008, 01:40 AM

Didi,

You ask, "What do readers want?"

I have two questions for you.

1) Why do you want to know what readers "want"?

2) If you do decide to write a story, what genre would you choose?

I ask about your motivation for writing because your question implies that you are more concerned about potential sales, than writing a compelling story. Most writers attempting to write "what the readers want", tend to produce weak material as they mimic common formulas for successful sales. This pandering usually results in cookie-cutter imitations that will sell okay in supermarket check-out lines, but rarely generate inspired literary works. Instead, write from your heart and worry about finding a market after your enthusiasm is voiced through your writing.

My second question addresses your life experiences. Rosanne Barr took common homemaker/mom/wife life-issues and produced some of the funniest humor I have ever heard. Your experiences prepare you for many different styles of story...inspirational, humor, documentary, fictionalized action in a medical setting, even religious stories (if there is a faith component to your experiences). The biggest limitation you face is your own creativity.

Ultimately, people buy books for information or entertainment. Write a compelling story and then find a good publisher. After that, readers who like your type of story will find you.

Good luck.

.....NaCl

Mike C · 04-25-2008, 01:58 AM

I read this quote today which I think resonates quite well with the 'write what you know' argument:

"Coming home from very lonely places, all of us go a little mad: whether from great personal success, or just an all-night drive, we are the sole survivors of a world no one else has ever seen."
- John le Carre

We are the sole survivors of a world no one else has ever seen. We all have our own personal perspective, and it is that which can make the seemingly mundane quite extraordinary. Nobody else, in the history of the world, has ever lived your life and nobody else knows what goes on inside your head.

Raging_Hopeful · 04-25-2008, 02:45 AM

Embarrassing as it is to say this Mike, your quote made my nipples perky!

No seriously it's a good quote and a great point. Perspective creates the many shades and variances of life.

A good example is right now I'm volunteering in Mongolia... and the fact is, a Mongolian woman is going to have some of the same concerns, thoughts, and fears that I may have (we are all human) but beneath these broader themes are nuances of lifestyles and culture that cannot be replicated, reproduced, or fake.

Cheers,
Linz

Mike C · 04-25-2008, 03:20 AM

Perky nipples in Mongolia... I'm all in favor of that.

So true, though. I remember thinking in a naive moment many years ago, seeing people starving to death in Ethiopia - a woman who was skin and bone, crying over the body of a dead infant; I think just the latest of her children to die, in a camp full of people starving to death or dying of disease - how surprised I was that she was so upset; it was commonplace, normal, she'd experienced death over and over... how could she still cry over a dead baby?

Like I said, I was young, and very naive. As humans, emotional beings, there were only 3 good meals difference between me and her, but the nuances, life experiences, put us planets apart.

Truth-Teller · 04-25-2008, 03:31 AM

Why not write about these people, didi?

Instead of writing shitty fantasy.

Raging_Hopeful · 04-25-2008, 03:39 AM

Yeah Mike, again you're right on.

I think we all go through those stages where we cannot comprehend those nuances. But THAT'S what real reading and writing is about. Sharing nuances and perspectives that otherwise would be lost to us for all our lives (trust me, I've met people who think that way even as "successful adults.)

And TT, even if its fantasy or sci fi or a romance novel, whatever the genre, the writer has a unique opportunity to make readers think and feel thoughts and feelings that are not their own. That is the process of emotional growth, being able to be an empathic person with a spectrum of understanding.

It's all good. But remember, money never made anyone happy.

Mike C · 04-25-2008, 05:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raging_Hopeful

But remember, money never made anyone happy.

It's always given me a reasonable feeling of satisfaction!

Hosseini's Kite Runner is an excellent example of 'nuance'. He managed to teach me a lot about what it was like to be a kid growing up in Afghanistan (pretty much what it's like to be a kid growing up in any country on earth) whilst showing me the differences, and at the same time telling a great story. (prepare for a blast from TT here, he claims to hate the book though I doubt if he's read it.)

Your comments on genre are spot-on too. Even in TT's beloved King novels, they're about the eternal struggles of good vs evil, but told on the personal level of the characters involved. Love him or loathe him as a writer, that's what makes him successful - his ability to put you in the place of his characters.

Loulou · 04-25-2008, 06:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NaCl

Most writers attempting to write "what the readers want", tend to produce weak material as they mimic common formulas for successful sales. This pandering usually results in cookie-cutter imitations that will sell okay in supermarket check-out lines, but rarely generate inspired literary works. Instead, write from your heart and worry about finding a market after your enthusiasm is voiced through your writing.

Agree completely. Write what you want. Make your audience want it. Make them like it. Write it so that they do. But always write what you enjoy writing.

Joe Moore · 04-25-2008, 08:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike C

"Coming home from very lonely places, all of us go a little mad: whether from great personal success, or just an all-night drive, we are the sole survivors of a world no one else has ever seen."
- John le Carre

Thanks for sharing this, Mike. Even as writers, we can sometimes forget the extreme power of words and the vivid pictures they create. It once again confirms for me that the story is never on the page but in the mind.

HarryG · 04-25-2008, 08:18 AM

What the readers want, as shown by the statistics, is not what I like reading. I'm dipping into Tom Clancy and Wendy Holden at the moment and already know that I won't be finishing one of them.

Apart from a fantasy project, and possibly even then, I write what I know, and most of the time I enjoy it immensely. But, I do write for profit, and I write what my agent wants me to write, and, in earlier times, I wrote for TV companies who wanted scripts within very tight parameters.

I started off writing for fun and would dearly like to say that I still do, but why lie? I write in the hope of getting a fat cheque through the post, much fatter than the last one.

NaCl · 04-27-2008, 01:30 AM

Harry,

Writing for a fat check, versus writing for literary impact, have about as much in common as an elephant and a blue whale. I consider you fortunate (and talented) if you achieve success with both "animals".

.....NaCl (envious!)

safara duff · 05-22-2008, 04:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by didi768

I was thinking. Write what you know.
I know nursing, motherhood, loving to eat, hating to exercise, how to do laundry.
Do we always have to write what we know? I suppose if we don't, we'll be doing a lot of research, correct?

Based on my experience, I prefer to write things that i know or familiar with. I can easily create a story and make it more interesting. Didi, you can use those motherhood thing or nursing issues to create a story. You can talk about the most emotional or unforgettable experience you had as a mother. Starseed is right. Appreciation of readers will depend on how well the story is written especially its power to change the views of your readers. This is the challenging part every writer considers, that is, how you are going to convince your readers to believe.