How Do You Read?

What I'm reading: RITA Contest entries, #4 of 8

Only a day apart, the UPS man delivered the eight books I'm supposed to judge for the Romance Writers of America RITA contest, and the ARCs (Advance Reader Copies) of WHERE DANGER HIDES. I've got a lot of reading to do.

I'm a first round judge. While it's required that I read the entire book, I can read these as a reader—an educated reader, but still, I read them to see if I think the authors have created believable characters, plots that aren't forced, have met the expectations of the sub-genre, and if the author's voice shines through. These are all published romances, so one assumes there's a basic level of quality that got the book past the editorial gatekeeper to begin with. However, there's no denying that there's a vast range of quality in published books, and that the same book will be a great read for someone, and a chore to get through for someone else.

My bottom line, when assigning my score, will be influenced by how I felt about the characters. Was I glad to reach the last page, or did I want the book to keep going. Even more, did I want to spend more time with the characters. Will I be looking for them at the checkout line at the grocery store?

It's also a commitment to read books that I might not have picked up on my own. Sometimes, I'm pleasantly surprised to find a new to me author, in a genre I don't normally read. Sometimes I have to remind myself that there's obviously a market for these books, and take a deep breath to find the objectivity I promised to use when reading. These books, I read as quickly as I can, keeping the story in mind. I can usually finish a shorter book in under a day, so I'm starting with those, saving the meatier ones for my final reads.

On Reading for Contests

What I'm reading: Tombstone Courage, by J. A. Jance

What I'm writing: Mystery short, e-publishing workshop

I finished my last Rita read. I have to admit, I wouldn't have picked up any of these books from the shelf based on type, cover, or blurb. However, I did have a couple of pleasant surprises.

I read 8 entries. Five of them reinforced why I don't read much in that sub-genre. I know there's good stuff to be had, and certainly the 'classic' romance has a tremendous following, but I found much of the writing left a lot to be desired. It seems that if these books are shorter by publisher's requirements, then authors ought to make every word count. Why did they have to keep reminding me that the hero/heroine's inner conflict was caused by a bad marriage/early trauma/family problems. I get it. I'm not likely to forget from one chapter to the next.

I got to book 6 with high hopes. The story was interesting, the writing was clean, and I wasn't being barraged with repetition. But then the holes started showing. If an author creates a problem, such as an injury, for her hero, fine. But you can't just ignore it when it doesn't fit the scene. And please find a better way to show me you're an expert in your field or that you've done your homework. It doesn't need to be on the page unless it moves the plot.

Number 7 kept me turning pages for most of the story, although it, too was a genre I don't read, and have a lot of trouble accepting. Since the heroine started out as someone I could identify with, that helped string me along. I'll probably give this one a high score even though I didn't "like" it.

Which brings me to book 8. Another one set in a world I'm not familiar with, nor particularly interested in. Yet the author drew me in, sprinkling the information logically, relevant to the characters and the plot so I enjoyed learning something new. And the emotional connections were there, making me laugh, making me cry.

So – 8 reads. One keeper. It sure reinforces everything you hear when you're trying to break into the business. It's a matter of marketability. What sells, or what the publisher predicts will sell, get published. Often, unfortunately, it doesn't have a lot to do with how great the story is, or how well the author can tell it.

I've been researching e-publishing for the workshops I'm giving, and there's a lot of misinformation out there, one major point being that if it's in print it's good, and if it's electronic it's inferior (or erotica, which is an entirely different conversation, best saved for another day.)