The Mystery, Crime, and Thriller Group discussion

Hi – as a crime fiction fan can I ask you:

Q1 – how do you find new crime writers to read?
Q2 – what leads you to try a crime writer for the first time?

My ‘agenda’ here is straightforward. I’m a crime writer and I’m looking to see how I could go about reaching more crime fiction readers with my work – without too much BSP - so many thanks in advance for all your comments and feedback.

I’m genuinely interested in your views as readers, so please either post here or leave a comment at
http://bad-press.co.uk/your-views-wan...

Regards Iain

All about a synopsis for me. That has to grab me, if it does I get the book and give it a read

All about a synopsis for me. That has to grab me, if it does I get the book and give it a read

Hi -thanks - so where do you look for a synopsis - is it just the blurb that you see on Amazon etc?

And what takes you to look at thise books to see if the synopsis grabs you?

Rgds
Iain

Yeah it is from the blurb. I tend to look at an author I know and then at what people are buying that are similar. I've become a little addicted to getting books at the minute though as I've got about 160 books to read on my kindle

1/Friends and family who pass me books by an author I haven't read. When my dad was still alive, I got introduced to a lot of new authors this way.

2/The synopsis in Goodread's Recommendations. But it has to have something unique that piques my interest such as a setting other than a big city. I'm also more inclined to try a new author whose MC is a police officer or PI over a strictly amateur detective.

3/Meeting the author at a writers' convention.

And 4/Monthly newsletters from Stop You're Killing Me (www.stopyourekillingme.com).

I also look at the synopsis, as well as others reviews and what other authors or books it has been compared to similarity wise.

Hi Iain. In the states your book should be nominated and or win awards. That's how you get published here. Have the top of line outstanding best photo you can get for your book cover. No crazy boring art work unless your artwork resembles classic art work. Make the title stand out kick arse cool for everything on the cover.

The first thing that grabs me is an interesting cover. The cover cannot be boring or cartoonish or cheesy. It has to be truly interesting. I will then read the synopsis and if that grabs me as well I will open the book randomly and start reading a bit of it to see if I like the style of writing. If all of that is good I will try a new author.

I like to think of myself as someone spontaneous. Also I am very curious. I am not so much particular about the author and I would pick up any book that intrigues me at the moment. Like most of others here, synopsis is what grabs my interest but. What grabs my attention is the name. Have a really, really catchy name for your book, something very cleverly cryptic that is a 100% in lieu with the story. The more artistically it's done, the better. The longer it takes me to decipher it and make sense, the better. Provided the realization should come. It puts me off (a little more than) a little when I pick an intriguing title but don't get the context of it.

When I wander through bookstores, the first thing that often attracts me is the cover (I'm very visual), then the synopsis on the back jacket. In some books, at the end, there are sometimes synopsis's of other books and authors that the particular publisher also handles and I'll check out that. I'm starting to look at the recommendations that goodreads itself adds to my homepage. Finally, I'll also try books that fellow goodreads mates recommend to me.

I agree with cover and synopsis as important to choosing a new author. I also read the first page to get a sense of the author's style. I may be weird, but sometimes the typeset used can put me off.

I am a cover person. Is it something unique? Then I will open and read the first page. Does it grab me? Do I want more? Then, as a writer, I think what is it in the story that makes me want to read more. One of the best openings I ever read was a line that went something like this. "She was 23 and never thought she would be utterly alone in the world." So my mind thinks why is she utterly alone? At such a young age? What happened in her life? Who is she? How did she survive? I never bought the book, but that was a great one liner that totally hooked me. I am ashamed to say I recently discovered Karin Slaughter who I really like as far as her writing style. I do not like writing with a lot of flourish. My thing is get to the point. A good synopsis on the back helps too.

Solange wrote: "I am a cover person. Is it something unique? Then I will open and read the first page. Does it grab me? Do I want more? Then, as a writer, I think what is it in the story that makes me want to read..."

I like Karin Slaughter as well, nothing to be ashamed about.. :)

My answer is easiest of all. First, I only read classics. But how do I choose which classics to read? Probably via my own exploration of the genre. Books are tied to each other in subtle, but discernible ways. For instance, I know I generally want to read everything by Chandler. But once I read everything by Chandler, well then, I might want to read something by Richard Stark if I know he was influenced by a plot previously done by Chandler. See?

I read a lot of classics in high school. I can remember devouring all of the Agatha Christies on the list, remember crying about Off Mice and Men, remember reading to Kill a Mocking Bird. I remember reading some of Hemingway's classics like the Old Man and the Sea - especially relatable since after coming to the US, my family settled in Key West home of the Hemingway House with all its stray cats and lush natural beauty. I remember sitting and having a drink at Sloppy Joes on Duval Street, a place where Hemingway was always welcome. How the memories flood my soul. These are books that you always remember. They never leave you.