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Post by writeway on Jul 24, 2021 22:51:36 GMT
I saw this topic on WritersSanctum and it's always interesting to hear what other writers look for when buying books.
For me the main things I look at are:
1. Category/Genre- Some genres and cats I just will not read even if you paid me to. I just don't like them.
2. Blurb
3. Price- I'm all for supporting authors but I'm not spending over a certain amount for an ebook especially when I get find all I want for 3.99 and below or free. And I also just got yet another free 3-month subscription to KU (I swear this is my fifth or sixth free trial) because I just got a new Amazon Fire.
4. Sample- I always look at a sample before even considering a book. If the sample catches me, I will check out the book. If there is no sample, I will skip the book unless it's free and looks interesting. But for me to spend money, I need a sample of your writing.
I don't look at reviews or anything. I don't care about them. I also don't care if an author is new or not. I will read anyone as long as everything I named is right.
What about you?
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Post by prolificwriter on Jul 25, 2021 8:02:06 GMT
Interesting topic! I just got back into fiction reading in a big way recently.
My favorite fiction book format by far is mass market paperbacks, which means the majority of writers I read are trad published. I wish this format would become available to indies through KDP Print! I love this format so much that I’ve waited for a year to read new books by one of my favorite writers because her new books get published in hardcover first. My least favorite way to read fiction is ebooks, but I’ll read it if it’s the only format available or the print book is really expensive when compared to the ebook. I’m much more likely to read non-fiction as ebooks because I read those on my iPad. If I read a fiction ebook, I have to read those on my Kindle Paperwhite. I can’t stand used books and will only read those if the title I want is out-of-print.
I read what interests me and what I think I will like. Some genres don’t interest me so I don’t seek them out. I do read reviews, and I especially like to take a closer look at them after finishing the book just because I’m interested in how various people react to the same thing. I usually scan the blurb. I never read samples, though I might check out the first sentence. When I start a book, I start it with the intention of reading the whole thing, though that hasn’t stopped me from abandoning books I wasn’t enjoying.
Another thing that factors in, especially when it comes to fiction, is length. Thankfully, it’s not usually a problem in the genre I prefer reading. But I do venture out into other genres on occasion and I hesitate to buy books that are a 1000 pages long. It’s a rare story that needs that many words to be told! Right now I’m finishing a trilogy and the last book is over 700 (trade paperback) pages. And there’s no page breaks between chapters! It feels like it’s taking forever. If I could read the whole day, it might be a different story, but I only have an hour or two to read fiction. Non-fiction I can usually read no matter what’s going on, but I need quiet and solitude when I’m reading fiction.
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Post by robertlcollins on Jul 25, 2021 11:48:59 GMT
I tend to stick within my genres, science fiction and fantasy. The only other thing that matters is what friends and people I'm following say about a book. If some of those folks on Goodreads or TikTok like a book, and I've liked what they've liked, I'm inclined towards buying it. I'm following some indie authors on TikTok, and if their books are on Apple Books, and I see friends on GR have read and enjoyed them, I'll buy them.
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Post by K'Sennia Visitor on Jul 27, 2021 3:43:21 GMT
I haven't had book money for many, many years, so I don't purchase a lot of books anymore. I think the last books I bought were Star Wars books, a few years ago. Before that, I purchased some cozy mystery e-books because they had adorable covers with cats on them. Put a cat on the cover and if I have money I'll buy it.  I will purchase for the author/series, first. If you're a known quantity, and I know I like your stuff I'll get it, regardless of cover/title. The only time I read blurbs is if I'm doing genre research for my own writing. And I never sample books, either. I purchase very much on impulse/feeling. Next, is genre. Cozy cat mysteries, for instance, or Star Wars. After that it's all about the cover. If the cover grabs me, I'll get it. Back when I was an xtian, and I spent a lot of time in libraries, I learned to tell the publisher by the book spine, so that I could easily scoop up all the books by the Christian publishers. If the book was inspirational fiction I'd read it, regardless of genre or plot. And when I was a kid and my grandparents would take me to used bookstores I would look through everything and make a huge pile based on everything that looked interesting based on the cover/title or blurb. And then I'd go back and forth, reading and re-reading trying to wittle my choices down to a reasonable pile. |
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