Feb 22, 2021
What does it take to impress you when you are reading someone else’s book?
First, thanks to Shania Twain and Robert John Lange for the title.
I’ve written here before about the mistakes that make me put down a book. Lots of misspelled words, grammatical errors, a boring storyline. So, what does it take to impress me?
Let’s start with the story. Please give me something fresh. Unlike many readers, I don’t want to know what the end will be before I finish the first chapter. I want to be strung along. Make me guess the ending. Give me an unexpected hero. How about an old lady who saves the day?
While we’re talking about the ending – please don’t disappoint me. If you’ve spent the entire book building up the female MC, having her learn self-defense and how to shoot a gun, let her rescue herself. Don’t have her lover rush in at the end to save her.
I love stumbling across a well-done book in a new (to me) sub-genre. Let’s say a modern interpretation of Greek mythology written as a love story, for example. Maybe a historical thriller, or a time-travel story that isn’t a romance. The first steampunk novel I read blew me away.
The problem with this is I can easily burn out the genre in no time flat. So, I might miss a really well-done book because I’ve read several mediocre ones in the same category, and they all start to blend together. Heck, once I attempted to read all the James Bond books and even that got tiresome.
I’m not against reading classics, either, although I don’t have the same thirst to read them as I used to. I find the style that many of them are written in no longer suits my preference in reading.
Back to the original question – what does it take to impress me? It’s a fresh approach, a new way of looking at a story. One an author has put effort into to make it feel polished without losing touch with the reader. The book needs to be crafted, not just thrown together. It’s hit or miss. I can love one book from an author and only be mildly pleased by another.
How about you? What does it take for a book to impress you? Let’s talk about it in the comments.
Don’t forget to check out the other authors on this hop and see what it takes to impress them. Just follow the links below,
And, until next time, please stay safe.
Feb 22, 2021
What does it take to impress you when you are reading someone else’s book?
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Lol, that song was the first thing that came to my mind when I read the title. I myself enjoy nice uses of the language, such as when an author describes a common thing in an uncommon way. Thanks for this post!
That’s a good one, and hard to do well.
The heroine having to be rescued by a man … yes, the modern way is to have her saving the world, lol!
I read a book by a well-known author where the heroine had escaped from a serial killer, re-arranged her life to be prepared for when he attacked her again, and at the last minute fell apart and her lover saved the day. It made me angry.
Lol! Was it written by a man or a woman?
A woman. Frankly, it ticked me off. Yes, it was a romance, but still…
I only hope that I write well enough that I can do what everyone expects. that is one of my greatest fears
Remember, you can’t please everybody. Just do your best.
Fear is your worst enemy and your best friend. Fear of crap output has made many a mediocre craftsman better than the sum of their abilities.
” First, thanks to Shania Twain and Robert John Lange for the title.” – Nice!
“Heck, once I attempted to read all the James Bond books and even that got tiresome.” – I did that with the Jack Reacher novels…
I got stuck on the third Jack Reacher book. It just didn’t capture by attention.
I found them hit and miss.
I love reading (and writing) a good genre mash up, my heroines rescue themselves and everyone else.
The cliche hint about reflection and backstory by the princesses up there was a bonus.
I enjoyed the clip, but I’m afraid I’m not up-to-date with Disney princesses.
I thought that was great because they’re all like everyone thinks we can’t solve our own problems without some big strong man coming along? Yeah, what’s up with that? I love the Disney Princesses as they’ve evolved from my youth, my daughter and then granddaughter. I’m a sucker for fables and fairy tales.
There are many things that impress me about books; originality, the writing, characters, to name a few. But one that stands out is when a writer takes a name or idea from somewhere else and spins it into a fictional story. Anita Diamant did this with The Red Tent. She created a historical fiction story based on the mention of Dinah in the Bible. I also was very impressed with The Book Thief. I found it incredibly creative to make Death the narrator during WWII in Germany.