Hey! I'm a novelist, working on a new project. I've never written realistic fiction before, and it's a challenge to move from fantasy to romantic comedy.
So help me out---What qualities do you look for in a book? What makes you prefer one book over another? What kind of characters do you enjoy reading about?
2007-02-23 02:54:43 · 8 answers · asked by ? 3 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Books & Authors
In order for me to consider a book great, I have to be able to visualize what is happening. There has to be enough detail but not too much. The story should also be original. I have to want to read it. In a book I have to get to the ending but once I get there, I'm mad because I didn't want it to end.
2007-02-23 03:18:53 · answer #1 · answered by Sara 3 · 4⤊ 0⤋
I agree that favorite books have the 'can't put down' factor working for them. It's important for the reader to connect with the book in a personal way. I have found that the way to do that is through characterization. You need to have characters that are 'real.' They need to have strengths and weaknesses. They need to be fleshed out. The more dimensional and 'real' they seem the more the reader is able to connect, respond to your writing. If the characters are flat or one-dimensional or too good or too unexplainably bad (bad guys of the story who are evil for no reason whatsoever, no motivations, etc.) then it's hard to care what happens despite the 'action' of the plot. It's the people you have to care about. Good dialogue is a factor as well. It's not the most important thing to consider. What it has to be good enough that it doesn't throw the reader out of the story. If it's too awkward or too cliched or too stilted or unnatural then the reader may find him/herself thrown out of the story even if they like other aspects of it. I'm not saying it has to be brilliant--but it has to be passably good. Voice is also important. Let me clarify what I mean by voice. Some people feel comfortable writing in first person...some people feel comfortable working in third. But what I find the most distracting is when writers switch back and forth between third person limited (the reader knows what that one character knows) and third person omniscient (the reader knows everything--what other characters are thinking and feeling and the reader is smarter than the character). If it's going to be told through more than one person's eyes...you need to have clear well-written transistions.
2007-02-23 03:14:34 · answer #2 · answered by laney_po 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I look for the unexpected twist that makes it impossible to guess almost exactly what is going to happen in the book based on what I read on the back cover. I want a story that I can read over and over again without it getting old. Check out David Eddings books I have read allmost all of them and with a couple exceptions love them all have read each of the numerous times.
2007-02-23 03:17:17 · answer #3 · answered by aljbookworm 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The only main quality that i look for whenever i am considering a book as my favorite is how much it makes me want to keep on reading. My favorite books are the books that i never want to put down because i want to know what happens next.
2007-02-23 03:04:47 · answer #4 · answered by lakersfan9925 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Cry to heaven by Anne Rice....Spartacus by Howard Fast(outlawed during the Mccarthy era).....The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas, who also wrote the Three Musketeers & The man in the iron mask.....The Thornbirds by Colleen McCullough...brilliant book.....The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (An amazing classic) & The Good Earth by Pearl Buck, lastly A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by betty Smith.
There, many classics and page turners for you!!! I have read all of these and in some cases multiple times!!! I really hope that this helps you!!! Spartacus will blow your mind. It had to be released in England as the McCarthy era had Howard fast black balled when it was written.
I hope that you read Cry to heaven by Anne Rice...it is NOT about vampires, but about the Italian Castrati, thus it is truth intermixed with fiction, rather historical fiction....
Happy reading!!!!! I gave y usome of my top faves here!!
Thanks,
Lioncourt
2007-02-25 14:00:58 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
good plot, memorable characters, books that usually develop into more than one book, coz you get to revisit the place again, and see how much futher a character has developed.
2007-02-23 09:04:21 · answer #6 · answered by Gemma. 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I enjoy novels that provide a glimpse into a relatively unexploited occupation. Cops and doctors have been greatly overused.
2007-02-23 03:05:09 · answer #7 · answered by Harbinger 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
lovable characters. ones that u can relate to, and laugh with.
2007-02-23 03:54:04 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋