I'm going out on a "limb" here but I noticed that today's reader (not trying to sound like a grump scolding children to 'get off my lawn') seems to have a surface level knowledge of critical thinking that only allows them to explore a very limited point of view. Nuances are rarely unpacked in daily conversations, including context. There was a time (okay grandma) when as children and young adults, you were forced to read different genres of books, then asked to do book reports, and deep analysis of characters, plots, and stories. That's how we learned to read books. These exercises weren't meant for the reader to simply find "joy" in the characters or books, but to understand decision making, challenge thought processes and even takes on societal norms. Today's books readers move like "fast fashion", rarely diving in deeply and sitting with stories. Almost everything is either DNF, or loved, no in between. Books are easily discarded, characters are unforgiven, authors are deemed unworthy of support. Okay, I've gone on long enough.....
I try to keep in mind that the pandemic created a new generation of readers who are going through the same journey all readers do. My entry point was romance, and I would read the same type of story over and over, with little reflection. Now, I read everything and have published two books. I also think what we see online is a very specific subset of readers who engage with books in a very public, connected, algorithmic way. The people who buy a book that sounds interesting at the store, read it, and don't talk to anyone about it or log it on Goodreads are still out there. Just a bit more quiet than everyone else.
Yes yes. The distinction between caring “for” and caring ABOUT. We can have stakes in characters we dislike for a lot of different reasons — that complexity is our job as writers. I mean, if we’re honest, don’t we like/dislike ALL the people we love? I will say that I tend to land on thumbs down overall when I don’t like a single character in the story/ movie / TV series. This is why some of the affluence porn that is popular these days is not my thing.
Love AUGUST LANE, congrats. I read about your 11 drafts — double brava!
This is a sore spot for me, as an author. It infuriates me that in a genre written mostly by and for women, the MMC and FMC are treated so differently. I find it especially troubling because it reflects the attitude we're seeing in the real world of treating badly behaving men with kid gloves while roasting a woman who stands up for herself or is ambitious.
Yes, and there's no introspection going on either. I think people would actually enjoy their books more if they saw them as opportunities to gain insight about themselves and their own biases. If the slightest hint of dishonesty in a main character enrages you to the point of throwing the book across the room, that's something to reflect on.
Just read The Missed Connection by Tia Williams and I loved Sasha because she was weird in all these specific ways that felt real. I also recently read Yesteryear and Natalie was a character whose head it was terrifying to be in but really fascinating/compulsively readable even though I did not like or trust her. Different genres but I love specificity in characters!
Love the Missed Connection! I have the ebook of Yesteryear and anticipate having the same reaction to the main character. Very much looking forward to reading it.
I'm always surprised to find that most readers are quicker to judge women characters, because I'm the opposite. It's very rare I don't like a heroine, because the vast majority are decently written and somewhat relatable IMO. Likable heroes, on the other hand, feel like a rarity, so much so that I've come to judge a romance on the author's ability to write a decent hero alone.
I think the difficult part is convincing readers of what you think your character is, or want your character to be. What is wisdom? What is kindness? What is intelligence? Sometimes authors use past accomplishments to prove that a character must be all that (they're supposedly great at their really fancy job, are admired by so many people, have survived a ton a BS), but in the actual ways they behave in the book, the things they say and do, those traits are nowhere to be seen.
It's interesting to think about bravery... To me, bravery is always the point of the novel, it's what earns them their HEA. That means they don't necessarily start out very brave (or not about the right things), but I agree, there has to be something that makes us believe that they can go on this journey and triumph. They may not have fully come into their bravery yet, the seed must be there from the start.
I'm more like you. It takes a lot for me to connect with a male character, while it takes very little for me to engage with a woman's journey. I hear you on the difficult part of portraying those positive characteristics. I hate when people default to show don't tell as a craft answer, but here I think it's applicable in that it's better to establish the general (kindness) through the specific (individual moments of the character being kind). There will never be people who look past those moments or interpret them differently, but that's the beauty of art. We can look at the same painting and walk away with a different emotional experience.
Xiomara from My Train Leaves at Three, it's just like you said, she reflected something in me and even though she was sometimes "unlikeable" I found myself rooting for her.
Another great post. "Girlfriend level at best"--so true. And I love your bravery comment. Characters who burst into tears too often drive me crazy. I always thought it was because I was an asshole.
Oh, Winter Counts. I started that book last week and I love it. The main character is Virgil Wounded Horse, more of a window than a mirror situation. Romance heroines definitely drive me crazy for mirror reasons. Sometimes I need a break from the genre because I just can't with my own life or anything close to it.
Once I figured out the bravery thing, I started seeing it everywhere! I'm convinced it's the reason so many characters who are technically horrible people end up being so popular.
Reading contemporary romance reminds me that I'm on deadline and should be writing my book. Historical romance feels more like an escape. But I've been reading a lot of thrillers, horror, and fantasy lately to give my brain a rest.
loved this. craftwerk, for serious. thank you.
You're welcome!
I'm going out on a "limb" here but I noticed that today's reader (not trying to sound like a grump scolding children to 'get off my lawn') seems to have a surface level knowledge of critical thinking that only allows them to explore a very limited point of view. Nuances are rarely unpacked in daily conversations, including context. There was a time (okay grandma) when as children and young adults, you were forced to read different genres of books, then asked to do book reports, and deep analysis of characters, plots, and stories. That's how we learned to read books. These exercises weren't meant for the reader to simply find "joy" in the characters or books, but to understand decision making, challenge thought processes and even takes on societal norms. Today's books readers move like "fast fashion", rarely diving in deeply and sitting with stories. Almost everything is either DNF, or loved, no in between. Books are easily discarded, characters are unforgiven, authors are deemed unworthy of support. Okay, I've gone on long enough.....
I try to keep in mind that the pandemic created a new generation of readers who are going through the same journey all readers do. My entry point was romance, and I would read the same type of story over and over, with little reflection. Now, I read everything and have published two books. I also think what we see online is a very specific subset of readers who engage with books in a very public, connected, algorithmic way. The people who buy a book that sounds interesting at the store, read it, and don't talk to anyone about it or log it on Goodreads are still out there. Just a bit more quiet than everyone else.
Yes yes. The distinction between caring “for” and caring ABOUT. We can have stakes in characters we dislike for a lot of different reasons — that complexity is our job as writers. I mean, if we’re honest, don’t we like/dislike ALL the people we love? I will say that I tend to land on thumbs down overall when I don’t like a single character in the story/ movie / TV series. This is why some of the affluence porn that is popular these days is not my thing.
Love AUGUST LANE, congrats. I read about your 11 drafts — double brava!
It really is fascinating. I think affluence is often assumed to make a character interesting, which is why some of those stories fall flat.
Likability is overrated! I just want the characters I read about to be interesting. And Spread Me is such a wild, entertaining ride!
Same! And agreed about Spread Me. It was so entertaining!
This is a sore spot for me, as an author. It infuriates me that in a genre written mostly by and for women, the MMC and FMC are treated so differently. I find it especially troubling because it reflects the attitude we're seeing in the real world of treating badly behaving men with kid gloves while roasting a woman who stands up for herself or is ambitious.
Patriarchy be damned!
Yes, and there's no introspection going on either. I think people would actually enjoy their books more if they saw them as opportunities to gain insight about themselves and their own biases. If the slightest hint of dishonesty in a main character enrages you to the point of throwing the book across the room, that's something to reflect on.
Just read The Missed Connection by Tia Williams and I loved Sasha because she was weird in all these specific ways that felt real. I also recently read Yesteryear and Natalie was a character whose head it was terrifying to be in but really fascinating/compulsively readable even though I did not like or trust her. Different genres but I love specificity in characters!
Love the Missed Connection! I have the ebook of Yesteryear and anticipate having the same reaction to the main character. Very much looking forward to reading it.
I'm always surprised to find that most readers are quicker to judge women characters, because I'm the opposite. It's very rare I don't like a heroine, because the vast majority are decently written and somewhat relatable IMO. Likable heroes, on the other hand, feel like a rarity, so much so that I've come to judge a romance on the author's ability to write a decent hero alone.
I think the difficult part is convincing readers of what you think your character is, or want your character to be. What is wisdom? What is kindness? What is intelligence? Sometimes authors use past accomplishments to prove that a character must be all that (they're supposedly great at their really fancy job, are admired by so many people, have survived a ton a BS), but in the actual ways they behave in the book, the things they say and do, those traits are nowhere to be seen.
It's interesting to think about bravery... To me, bravery is always the point of the novel, it's what earns them their HEA. That means they don't necessarily start out very brave (or not about the right things), but I agree, there has to be something that makes us believe that they can go on this journey and triumph. They may not have fully come into their bravery yet, the seed must be there from the start.
I'm more like you. It takes a lot for me to connect with a male character, while it takes very little for me to engage with a woman's journey. I hear you on the difficult part of portraying those positive characteristics. I hate when people default to show don't tell as a craft answer, but here I think it's applicable in that it's better to establish the general (kindness) through the specific (individual moments of the character being kind). There will never be people who look past those moments or interpret them differently, but that's the beauty of art. We can look at the same painting and walk away with a different emotional experience.
Xiomara from My Train Leaves at Three, it's just like you said, she reflected something in me and even though she was sometimes "unlikeable" I found myself rooting for her.
Rootable > Likeable for me. 🫶🏾
Another great post. "Girlfriend level at best"--so true. And I love your bravery comment. Characters who burst into tears too often drive me crazy. I always thought it was because I was an asshole.
Oh, Winter Counts. I started that book last week and I love it. The main character is Virgil Wounded Horse, more of a window than a mirror situation. Romance heroines definitely drive me crazy for mirror reasons. Sometimes I need a break from the genre because I just can't with my own life or anything close to it.
Once I figured out the bravery thing, I started seeing it everywhere! I'm convinced it's the reason so many characters who are technically horrible people end up being so popular.
Reading contemporary romance reminds me that I'm on deadline and should be writing my book. Historical romance feels more like an escape. But I've been reading a lot of thrillers, horror, and fantasy lately to give my brain a rest.
Lol. Same. Romance feels too much like going to the office.