How easily would you buy a novel or a story of a unpopular/ new writer?

1. 60

   Chris Antonarosposted 8 years ago

   How easily would you buy a novel or a story of a unpopular/ new writer?
   
   Do you like reading works from new writers? Or you prefer the already reliable writers you know?
   
   

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2. 86

   Amanda108posted 8 years ago

   I may not be the best person for this question since I don't consider myself to have a favorite author! I'm always trying new writers out! But for me it's not a matter of testing the author, rather just finding a book intriguing on its own.
   
   My best examples are these:
   
   1) I love horror and I enjoy Stephen King. But I've not read even half his work. He's got a very distinctive voice and I find myself tiring of it (or anything overly recognizable or repetitive in fiction) after a story or two.
   
   2) JK Rowling: LOVED the Harry Potter series. I grew up with them and still reread them. I think she has vast talent for YA and fantasy and world-building. Perhaps her adult novels are well written too. But I wouldn't know because while I adore her, her new books sounded dull to me personally, based on what I like to read, and so I didn't pick them up.
   
   Oh, and back to the general topic: price is always a factor. I find it insane when an author is just starting out that publishers release the first book as hardcover only with a $20 or more price tag. At the library I may easily pick it up, but I very rarely buy books at their "new" cost unless I intend to keep it as a part of a collection - which would be unlikely with a new author since I've formed no opinion yet.

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   1. 60

      Chris Antonarosposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      1) there is a very good drinking game about Stephen King's movies. I like him a lot but I want something more ... And smaller. I mean, a novel 700 - 800 pages at least, is tiring in some point.
      2) you grew up with his books? God you are young! Hehe!

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3. 78

   Kathleen Cochranposted 8 years ago

   Being a new author myself, I have a soft spot in my heart for those also taking the road less traveled.  But I'm guilty of reading authors who take up a whole bookshelf at the book store.  I figure if I liked one of their books, I'll like the others.  (This trend has not always proven to be true.)  One thing I've started doing lately, I'll seek out a known author's first book.  I like to see how they developed as a writer over the years. 
   
   Out of loyalty to my fellow "new authors" I commit to reading more of them this year.  This is a hard business.  We need to support each other!

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      Chris Antonarosposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I agree with you 100%! We must support each other and don't forget that the big writers were us one day!

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4. 86

   M. T. Dremerposted 8 years ago

   The likelihood that I would buy a book from a new writer is proportional to it's location. For example, if I saw a book in a coffee shop, written by a local writer, I would seriously consider buying it (depending on if it was a genre I like). But if the writer is not local, I'm more likely to fall back on reviews and word-of-mouth. Which, if there isn't any, I'm not likely to buy the book. So, if you're looking for places to market a new book, it's a good idea to start at local coffee shops and book stores.

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      Chris Antonarosposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      That's a good tip! Thanks M. T.

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5. 71

   Old-Empresarioposted 8 years ago

   Hi Christos,
   One of our biggest problems today with writers is that we don't have real people anymore. Men like Joseph Conrad, Ivan Turgenev, Henry James and Ernest Hemingway got up off their duffs and did something. They led interesting lives and gained valuable experience worthy of a good story. Those Americans with a good story in them (oil contractors, mercenaries, politicians, wealthy dilettantes, etc.) don't write novels. As a result, we get sob-story novels by educated writers about a professor who doesn't get tenure and his wife cheats on him. Who needs a novel for that story?
   
   So, to answer your question, its doesn't matter to me if the writer is new or reliable. One of the best writers in the world right now, Will Self, has absolutely nothing to write about in my opinion. I could always take my chances on someone new.

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   1. 60

      Chris Antonarosposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      That's a truth Empress- the readers this date are more but their taste and critic has Changed so much.

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