The Importance of Readers
For any writer, particularly a writer of fiction, the role of the reader is crucial. That’s obvious, isn’t it? Books are made to be read after all, so a key part of being an author is finding your audience, connecting with them and ultimately getting your book into their hands. Readers are the lifeblood of an author’s business, after all. Without them, you can’t make a living from your creative work.
However, that’s not what I’m talking about here. I’ve been an independently published author for just over a year and an aspect of this I didn’t fully appreciate when I started out was the power and importance of reviews and recommendations. The best form of marketing is word of mouth. People will be far more comfortable parting with their money to take a chance on a new author when they’ve heard about them from someone they trust.
Of course, if you look at the reviews of any book or other product you’ll see a range of opinions. One person will be talking effusively about why this five-star novel is their read of the year. Someone else will tell you it put them to sleep. More annoyingly, someone will rate your fantasy book one-star because the reader doesn’t like fantasy. Right. So, why did you buy the book then, let alone read it?
I know lots of authors who don’t read their own reviews for this very reason. You can’t please everyone all of the time and the most important thing is to write what you love. I agree with this 100%. It’s harmful to your mental health to go chasing an unattainable goal, where the only reviews that matter are the five-star variety. If you’re looking for perfection, the career of an author isn’t for you. Most authors I know don’t think their own books are good enough. What are the chances of every single reader thinking it’s a five-star masterpiece? Art always divides opinion and books are no different to any other creative endeavour.
However, books are unique in one important respect. The author creates the novel but it can only be experienced through the reader’s imagination. There may be some visual cues on the cover, perhaps there’ll be some illustrations inside. However, all those descriptions and interactions in the novel are essentially perceived entirely through the reader’s mind. They bring their own views and experiences to the novel, which means they can have wildly different reactions to the same scene or character.
This is one of the reasons why a movie or TV adaptation, whilst great for an author’s bank balance, is a double-edged sword. As soon as you see those characters portrayed on the screen you can’t unsee them. You can’t forget what they sound like, how they dress and how that fantasy world is portrayed. This is why I always prefer to read the book first, before going to see the show.
With a novel, the role of the reader is crucial. They bring your words to life in their own unique way. In that respect, the author and reader are really working in partnership. It took me a while to fully appreciate this but when I did those varying review scores made much more sense. The same words are printed on the pages, wrapped within the same cover. However, that’s where the similarities stop. When the reader turns to page one, you’re handing your novel over to them and they take over. The experience they have with your book is entirely down to them.
Thought about in those terms, every time a reader picks up a novel for the first time, they’re creating something new in their imagination. The author’s work is done, the reader takes control and it’s entirely down to them how they feel as that story unfolds. That’s something to think about next time you’re browsing the shelves. The next book you choose to read will be a unique experience and not even the author knows what’s going to happen.
