Comments on: What grabs you?

By: Laurel Houck

Laurel Houck — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 17:36:03 +0000

It’s an interesting take on the usual agent/editor response. I’ve been told over and over that today’s kids can’t focus long enough to get into a story, and everything needs to be up front to grab them, a la video game mentality. I hate that. In my experience as a reader, it’s the build up that hangs on, long after the grab has faded. I hope this is an upcoming trend, that permits the writer to fully develop characters and plot, without having to stuff it into page one!

By: Linda

Linda — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 14:51:20 +0000

Stephanie P -I agree. I have been known to totally lose myself in a book that has wonderful writing. Whether its Robert Parker’s sparse but packed text or Dicken’s wonderful sentences (It was the best of times…”), sometimes it is simply the words that capture me.

By: Stephanie P

Stephanie P — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 17:39:35 +0000

the writing…. I can read a book simply because the writing style grabs me.

By: Andrea

Andrea — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 16:31:42 +0000

Thanks John, for your comment about “hooking” agents and publishers. It´s good to hear a different view on the dogma (that´s what it seems to be in the land of writing advice, writing workshops and ´how to write´ books).

By: Kim

Kim — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 16:16:25 +0000

What usually draws me in is place and language. I don’t want to get bogged down by the language, but I love when a scene is painted in a unique way by the author’s words. After the place hooks me, something needs to happen in a reasonable amount of time. I will probably have an idea if the characters are people I want to spend time with before I actually acquire the book.

By: John

John — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 15:12:17 +0000

First off, thanks all for chiming in–great discussion! And indeed, it does seem like “different strokes for different folks” is the takeaway here…

Just to comment, though, on the point that authors are encouraged to “hook” editors and agents right off the bat–while obviously you want the agent/editor to want to read more, I do think it’s a misconception that speed is of the essence. Certainly most of you don’t feel the need for speed in published works–it shouldn’t be any different on submission. And while I agree with Susan that we live in sped-up times, books are still one area where people slow down–for example, as was pointed out to me in a critique on Sunday, we don’t even hear the word “wizard” in the first Harry Potter audiobook until disc 2!

Okay, speaking for myself as an acquirer, I think several of the above elements could do the trick to get me reading more–a strong character, a high-concept situation, the knowledge gap (great point, Livia), or even an intriguing setting. But as far as plot goes–what about the cover letter/synopsis? Isn’t that meant to show what happens?

If the plot promised by the synopsis sounds dynamic and exciting, then I’ll certainly entertain a slower beginning that shows me a different element.

By: Susan Jackson

Susan Jackson — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 13:59:21 +0000

Based on the responses so far, what grabs a reader is as different as the readers themselves. The issue that really stuck with me, as it has in so many other areas, it the increased impatience in this generation. I know this is a huge generalization that may or may not be accurate. But with the cell companies emphasizing their faster and faster information flow, instant gratification seems to be expected from everyone and everything, including whether or not a reader will continue to read a book past the first chapter.
Doesn’t really answer the question tho….

By: Dave Sosnowski

Dave Sosnowski — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 12:14:48 +0000

For me, it’s the author’s voice and vision, both of which benefit from being a little bit skewed.

By: Hillsy

Hillsy — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 11:15:45 +0000

I’ll qualify what I’m about to say by stating I think there’s a huge difference in evaluating a writer’s ability in the first 10 pages, and judging the quality of the book. An Agent making a business call has to almost equate the two, whereas a reader can be a bit more forgiving.

An example of this would be ‘The Banned and the Banished’ series by James Clemens. Bit of a powder puff opening, not brilliantly written, not great characterisation – and little improved through the 5 book series. However, I bought them all because the story was so good. Mr Clemens has 40 quid of my money, and I’m happy to part with it for the enjoyment of his plot. If I’d given in ten pages and bombed it purely on writing ability, I would have missed out.

More personally, I want to know what’s going on. I’m not ready to make a judgment about character arc, plot, pacing etc etc in the first ten pages – I just want to know what’s happening, why it’s happening, and to whom. It could be feeding ducks on a park bench, or battling through an alien hanger in 15 foot power armour, but I want clarity. Bland characters can come alive later on….hell a great plot can overcome characters who are always bland. But if I’ve no clue what’s happening in those first few pages, that’s when I start to doubt if I ever will.

Well, of course they’ve got to have SOME kind of writing ability.

By: Kristin Laughtin

Kristin Laughtin — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:29:15 +0000

Like Andrea said, it needs to be an interesting character or a really interesting scenario. Usually this is the main character, but I’m quite accustomed to epic fantasies that open with sort of a one-off chapter or a prologue that foreshadows a bigger conflict in the world. I’m OK with this as long as it’s interesting.

I think people try to cram a lot into their openings because of the fear that agents and editors will put down their manuscript on the first page or, as pointed out above, offer lots of questions about the entire backstory or character profile before the story even has time to breathe. It’s drilled into our heads that you have to hook, hook, hook, and writers start to think it isn’t possible to do this at a slower pace.