Connecting Readers and Writers discussion

When you like a book, do you tend to read several by that author, or do you just appreciate it for what it is and move on?

I tend to be a picky reader, so once I find something written in a style I like, I tend to look for other titles by that author. That being said, I am always up for checking out new authors and adding to the list of writers I enjoy reading the most.

I'm always interested in new authors, but I do have some authors that I absoutly love and really stalk to see when their next book.

Ottilie wrote: "I'm always interested in new authors, but I do have some authors that I absoutly love and really stalk to see when their next book."

I have found I do the same thing. Since so many books are now series, I put alerts on my phone to remind me when the next book in the series is coming out. Wow, that just really showed what a dork I am.

Hahaha oh trust me that doesn't sound much different than me, between facebook, twitter and goodreads I'm the one telling my friends when books come out...

If I find a writer that I like, I will buy their entire available library and devour it. Then add them to my 'watch for' list - a PDF on my Kindle. I've got series titles in order, when the next book comes out, and reminders to purchase - all in the same place. So, Elle, you're not the only dork, or the biggest one :)

If I'm blown away, I'll seek out other works by the same author. Otherwise, I look more for genre/description/plot than anything else.

I read pretty much anything. I have my favourite authors though and I read everything they can produce to show my support for them.

I am always up for reading something that grabs my interest, regardless of if I know the author or not... you just don't know unless you give them a go!

i read many authors at once.

I tend to read several by that author...then everything I can find by that author, then I'll move on and find another. Coming back to a favourite author years later is liking seeing an old friend after a long absence.

I read many authors at once, however, if I find an author that I really like, then I'll see out as many of their books as I can.

joana same here.

Finding an author you enjoy is like finding a new friend (Tony, I love your comment "Coming back to a favourite author years later is liking seeing an old friend after a long absence" - I wish I could have put it so beautifully). I tend to read several books by the same author. And I'll revisit the best again and again.

Sherri wrote: "If I'm blown away, I'll seek out other works by the same author. Otherwise, I look more for genre/description/plot than anything else."

I'm the same way :)

I'm with IUHoosier and Tony: I devour books by authors I follow and wait impatiently for their next. I have often bought from abroad when a US release is delayed (why do publishers do that?) and hunted down OOP books in a series I like.

Authors, ya can run but ya can't hide...

I find new authors in used book stores and then hunt down their other books.

Karen wrote: "I find new authors in used book stores and then hunt down their other books."

Karen, I hang out in used book stores, and don't remember you finding me!

Rosemarie wrote: "I'm with IUHoosier and Tony: I devour books by authors I follow and wait impatiently for their next. I have often bought from abroad when a US release is delayed (why do publishers do that?) and hu..."

Ah, Rosemarie, I'm not runnig and I'm not hiding! If you and Julie want to really be blown away, read my paranormal thriller, http://geraldggriffin.blogspot.com

:-)

Gerald wrote: "Karen wrote: "I find new authors in used book stores and then hunt down their other books."

Karen, I hang out in used book stores, and don't remember you finding me!"

I always tend to like headhunt other authors from the ones that I read. I always like discovering other people's talents or in this case, writing skills. It's not that I do not like that author's I have read before, but it's fun having a big foundation of literary sources. It gives you, as a reader, a great view and a lot of perspective in authors. Maybe if I become some critic, I wouldn't be harsh in anyway.

IUHoosier wrote: "If I find a writer that I like, I will buy their entire available library and devour it. Then add them to my 'watch for' list - a PDF on my Kindle. I've got series titles in order, when the next ..."

That's exactly what I do!

IUHoosier wrote: "If I find a writer that I like, I will buy their entire available library and devour it. Then add them to my 'watch for' list - a PDF on my Kindle. I've got series titles in order, when the next ..."

Ha! Me too. Once I like an author, that's it, I have to read absolutely everything they ever wrote. Even if there is a gap of years between my fave authors producing anything, I still wait diligently and then gobble up something new as soon as its out. Even if I don't really like the new stuff, I still read it. Weird isn't it?

I keep a look out for when the author has new works but I never read an author two books in a row unless it is a series like Twilight. Then however, I might just devour the entire thing.

If I like one book from a writer I tend to read other works. Sometimes I'm happy I have and other times I wish I wouldn't have. But most of the time I find a writer I like I have liked their other works as well.

I'm with Janiera. If I like an author, I'll look out for more, but seldom two in a row. I enjoy variety.

I'm never hindered by having to read everything an author I like has written, but I do tend to read many of their books. I jump around in genres a lot so I don't get too bogged down only reading one single author for too long.

I'll buy any new book by Terry Pratchett. He's probably the only one in this category for me, though. I have other favorites, but I look at the book blurb first. For authors I don't know, I find them either in the library or by looking at the preview samples on Amazon. When I do find a series I like, I will read the whole thing in order, if I can find it.

I use to be trigger happy. If I read a great review or talked to someone about a book, or I watched a movie based on a book, I would go out, buy all the books from the Author, yes all the books I could get, sometimes up to twenty (did that with Dean Koontz). I don't do that anymore. I first buy only two books from the Author if available) so I can get a feel from the author. If the books are good I will buy more and be a loyal reader while at the same time I go out and buy more. I love reading, and I really love finding an Author I haven't read before.

Elicia wrote: "I use to be trigger happy. If I read a great review or talked to someone about a book, or I watched a movie based on a book, I would go out, buy all the books from the Author, yes all the books I ..."

Wendy, if you really love finding an Author you haven't read before, I offer my paranormal suspense thriller OF GOOD AND EVIL (several strong 5-star reviews). http://geraqldggriffin.blogspot.com

If I love a book, I will add more of the author's books to my to read list. But there are only about five of those such authors for me at the moment. I usually pick my next book by my mood. I read lots of genres and usually don't read two in the same genre back to back.

I like to expand my horizons and select different authors who happen to write about the genres that I'm
interested in.

I tend to read whatever interests me at the times so I don't stick to just certain authors. Well except Dean Koontz I try to read everything he writes, I'm addicted. lol

John grisham is one of my fave3 authors

In general, I read what looks interesting to me, regardless of author, genre, etc. When I like a book I usually check into the author and see what else they have written. A few times I have been disappointed and found that I only like that one book, but other times I fell in love with the author. It's a risk you take, but I feel that even if the other books by that author are disappointing, it doesn't take anything away from that first one you read.

reading everything by one author can be a double-edged sword. after reading "jurassic park," i started reading everything by michael crichton. eh.

the first john grisham book i read was "a time to kill," and it was fabulous. but then, after about four more, it was, "yeah yeah, i get it. big law firm does whatever it wants, and nobody can stop them except a pain in the ass law student or a rookie lawyer." how many times? how many books? so i automatically stayed away from john grisham. formula formula same same.

then he tried a different route, "the bleachers," which was worse than the formula. then i found "the last juror," which was great without the formula. and "a painted house" was far from formula and worth reading.

this all goes back to "write what you know." grisham knew law, and it's all he wrote, and it got old until he wrote something else.

Usually if I come across a book I love, I'll try to find other stuff the author wrote. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I second the Michael Chrichton comment. Some books were fantastic, some meh. Same with Orson Scott Card. Once in a while, I discover a treasure trove and it's all worth it: Andrew Klavan, Dean Koontz, Tom Clancy (Op-Center notwithstanding). Some authors just have longer streaks than others.

i'm having more and more trouble finding *anything* to read. let me clarify and say that i don't really *read,* but really i listen to books on CD while driving. so right there i'm limited to what is released in audio format.

when i browse the CD books, probably 75% comprised of spies, CIA espionage, military special ops, and murder mystery/private detective. i just have no interest in reading that.

to my surprise - nobody has mentioned stephen king. i've had a lot, maybe too much to say about king, as in this blog post here:
http://brainsnorts.wordpress.com/2006...

king writes brilliant sentences. i love his concise style, much like hemingway. however, his stories basically suck because he can't write an ending worth a dime. too often he finds a convenient moment to conclude a story, something that is not just unexpected but unimaginable - in a bad way. his endings often make no sense, and that's partly because he refuses to outline and admits that he likes to just make it up as he goes along. that will lead to a fun ride, but at the end you'll look around and ask, "where the hell am i and how did i get here?"

it's like a wonderful salad, excellent appetizer, perfect entree, and then dessert sucked. i'll read most of what he writes because his sentences help me write better. there's going to be a letdown, but it'll be worth it enough.

I have a varied taste in books and could not really name a favorite author. If pressed, it would be a toss up between Mark Twain and Ray Bradbury. Or maybe Charles Dickens and Tom Clancy. Or possibly Jules Verne and H. G. Wells. Asimov?
Oh shoot, I give up.

glad to see you've narrowed it down.

I totally agree with Kristen! I pick my books based on mood, other than my author friends who I will always support and read their work.

If I like a book by an author, I read the whole series. I then look at whether or not their other series sound like something I might enjoy. If so, I try it, if not I won't. I won't buy every series by an author if it doesn't sound good just because it is that author. I'm also trying other new authors at the same time.

If I really like an author, I will read everything they have. But I have also been known to buy up multiple books...even complete series...by the same author just because I find them for the right price and they look good to me, even though I've never read the author before.

But I read a lot of different authors all the time. I tend to jump around more than I stick with one author.

I read almost every genre and different writers, but when I find an author I really love I read everything of theirs I can find. I tell my friends about the book. I like to jump around quite a bit depending on my mood. Books have really came alive to me when I can meet the author who wrote it!

I read many authors in the hope to find one that engages me to the point that I will read everything they wrote...

Aside from a few such as Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Margaret Weiss & Tracey Hickman, and maybe Maurice Leblanc, I tend to appreciate the one I read from an author and that's all, aside from series of course.

I will read more of their work if I like it.

I am always looking for new authors to try, but if I have really enjoyed a book by a particular author then I tend to work my way through everything else they have written.

I love to read different authors so I can enrich my life as well as my writing abilities. That being said, I do have favorites and know that I can always pick up any title written from a favorite author and know that I'm in for an enjoyable read. I have only written and published two books in my own series, The extraordinary life of an ordinary woman, and I hope that readers will keep coming back for more. My third book is written but not yet published. I'm trying to get an agent instead of self-publishing again. I've had excellent ratings on my first two books, so hopefully, that means I'm doing something right. My story has to be told while I'm still alive to tell it, so I will keep writing even if no one buys my books.

J.B. wrote: "I'd like to ask a related question, if I may...

If you find an author whose work you enjoy, how do you stay updated on any new releases from that writer, if their books are only available online? ..."

I remember them and look for their work. I'm so busy writing my fourth book, that I have little time for reading. My garden needs lots of attention this time of year. WE are having a drought and heat wave to top it off, so I have to care for my baby fruit trees and veggies constantly. I wish there were more hours in the day (and night) so I could read to my delight.