What type of books does a harried reader want when life is running wild?
I just took off a week from writing my novel, Bridging Two Hearts, because the adorable grandchildren came to stay. I knew my mind, heart and body would be occupied elsewhere and saw no need to pressure myself to try to finish my book in the tiny widgets of free time I might have.
As in, next to none.
I haven’t picked it up in a week and once I’m done here, will nestle into my comfortable pink chair and return to Coronado Island and a massage therapist who is afraid of the bridge. Our hero, Josh, has picked up a couple more aphorisms or cliches, with which to torment Amy, the heroine, so this should be amusing–slipping them into the most (dis)advantaged spot in the text.
I haven’t been down to chat with the boys in the basement to learn what they’ve come up with yet, but I have made several observations of my own. Finding time to read when you have toddlers in the house, a dog, a cat, a husband, a border, a job and laundry to do–can be a challenge. If this was my normal existence (it was for 30 years), what types of books would I want to read? I answered some of those questions on the Books & Such blog last Friday.
Time, of course, is of the essence.
A book needs to “hook” the reader from the minute she (for the sake of ease) sits down and opens it. In this Google-brained world, activity needs to happen; chapters need to be relatively short and the story needs to move. Writers know how to craft sentences to keep the reader’s mind from straying, and there usually needs to be some sort of question at the end of each chapter.
When I sit down with the manuscript for Bridging Two Hearts this afternoon, I’ll be checking for those elements, along with the most crucial one: does the story work?
The harried reader doesn’t want to waste time on a story that isn’t meaningful. I need to make sure the discussion of fear doesn’t drag down the plot and the ending resolves in a satisfying way.
It’s all about the reader–what does the person who’ll pay for this book really want? Click to Tweet
Mine is a romance, so I know readers are looking for love, affection, cross purposes, and a happily ever after. Easy. That’s what I like, too.
But I’m also writing to convey some truth–whether spiritual truth or life-truth. In this case, both, with a finger pointed at how to deal with fear.
I want my readers to laugh at Josh’s foibles and understand Amy’s frustration. I want them to enjoy Coronado Island’s sunshine, and to experience–in writing– a massage at the Hotel del Coronado.
I want them to understand and appreciate the personal, physical and emotional sacrifices Navy SEALs make to defend our country.
All wrapped up in a 50,000 word novel they can read in a couple hours.
That doesn’t sound too difficult, does it?
I’ve just printed it out. I’m about to find out if it works!
When you have a lot going on and only a limited amount of time to read, what type of a book do you like? Click to Tweet
What are you really looking for in a novel? And who does it the best? 🙂
Thoughts? Reactions? Lurker?