It’s time for another Insecure Writer’s Support Group post. We’ve seen the end of the old year and the beginning of a new one. May 2021 be far kinder than 2020 ever was. May any creativity we lost during the old year be returned threefold in the new. May the asteroids miss Earth, and the supervolcanoes remain dormant for at least another 12 months. May the vaccines work and the ignorant be quarantined for at least 14 days to prevent them from reinfecting the rest of us. And may we find a new “normal” where we are more loving to one another than we have been.
Many people find it difficult to remain confident during such a crazy time. The economy stinks, people are out of work, and nobody seems to be buying anything other than the necessities. How can you be sure of yourself when you can’t find a home for your novels or short stories? The best advice I can give is to just keep plugging away. Things can’t stay like this forever. Sooner or later, we’ll have to rebound, and publishers will be looking for manuscripts again. If you continue to work on improving your craft, you’ll be in a far better position than if you give up and toss everything into a drawer.
January 6 question – Being a writer, when you’re reading someone else’s work, what stops you from finishing a book/throws you out of the story/frustrates you the most about other people’s books?
I read books the way most people eat popcorn. It’s a bit difficult to make me actually throw a book down and not finish it, but here are some of the reasons I’ve been pulled from the story:
- Too depressing – times are hard enough in real life. I have no desire to read about someone who’s life is even worse than mine (unless there is a massive upturn to a happy ending). I won’t finish a depressing book (or a horror novel because they usually have depressing endings too).
- Full of errors – I can overlook a few typos or spelling flaws, but when I keep slipping out of reader mode into editor mode, it’s time to put the book down and pick up one where the writer actually tried to polish the manuscript. Too many errors are a sign of a sloppy writer and sloppy writers seldom tell memorable tales.
- Unsympathetic protagonist – I’ve read a couple of books where I just could not identify with the main character at all. One of them was touted to me as being a hilarious book but the protagonist was such an unpleasant person that I could not force myself to care for them at all. I often don’t finish such books.
- Magical solutions – I don’t like it when all the loose ends “magically” tie themselves up without any work from the characters. The fairy godmother comes in and *poof* everyone lives happily ever after without working for it. Or the finger of God suddenly restores everything the character has lost, without any effort on their part. When that happens, I usually find another author to try out for my next book.
- Unrealistic characters – I also dislike what we writers call the “Mary Sue” (or “Marty Stu”) character. This is the one who whines about being ugly but who everyone else thinks is model-beautiful, or whose only fault is being “clumsy.” Aside from one minor fault, these characters float through life, somehow finding everything they try to do so simple that they quickly become experts. I don’t enjoy a character who is too flawed, but I do like the character to work for their rewards and not be good at everything they put their hands to.
- Lack of logic – another thing I don’t care for is an illogical plot or character. If you’re going to make me care about a character’s “horrible choice,” then don’t make that choice between a red dress or a blue one for the big ball. Also, if you have a character who is supposed to be an antagonist, don’t have them suddenly “see the light” and come around to the protagonist’s side without a truly mind-altering reason.
Last year, I read over 100 books and had only 4 in my “Did Not Finish” shelf on Goodreads. Sometimes I’ll put a book down for a good long time if something turns me off, but I often go back and finish those later. I’m willing to give an author a second chance if I liked anything at all about the book. Also, I dislike not finishing a task, so often I’ll finish a not-quite-satisfactory book just to say I read it.
What about you? Do you finish a book even if it’s not entirely satisfactory – or do you toss it aside in irritation, never to look at it again?
It’s funny how reading two or three books a week used to be normal for me, and last year I barely managed two a month. I’m glad you were able to power past the pain of 2020 and get lost in the pages of so many books. I hope your New Year is going well. I only read and reviewed 23 books last year, but my goal for this year is 30. My other goals are to publish another fiction book in 2021, do the Blogging from A to Z Challenge in April, and increase the number of authors helped by Operation Awesome.
Sounds like a full year to me! Let me know if you publish your book and I’ll check it out.
I found your points fascinating and true. Reading everybody’s posts this month has been insightful. I too find the logic thing hard to ignore – if things don’t make sense in a story, it cuts me off and makes me want to quit reading.
Thank you Yvette! Yes this was a good question for us this month.
I agree about the depressing stories. Don’t want those now.
Although with what has been happening, that asteroid looks pretty good.
LOL I’m not ready for an asteroid …
I do put off some books to be picked up at a later date. Sometimes the timing matters too.
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year! You’re right … sometimes timing is the key to some books.