Walker Weyland: "Dear Carmen Maria Machado: What Makes [me] Start and Finish New Books"

Dear Carmen Maria Machado: What Makes Start and Finish New Books

By: Walker Weyland

On average, I stop reading over a third of the books I start, especially in the SF genre. Deciding which book to pick up is the easy part. There are a multitude of ways to hear about good books today. Most of the time for me, friends will recommend their favorites and these are the books I usually enjoy the most. Besides these books, I will often look at the new releases at the library or bookstore. But ultimately, the first thing that makes me pick up a book is the title.

            A bad title can be a book's own kryptonite. For example, here are two real book titles, "A Vampire Raised by Werewolves” and, “American Gods”. There are three things that the first title does wrong, and the second does right. The first is that the title "A Vampire Raised by Werewolves” gives too much information away. Without reading the book, any one walking by can tell you exactly what that novel will be about. “American Gods” on the other hand, raises more questions than it answers, giving the reader incentive to pick up the book. Second, in a world post Twilight, there isn’t a title much more cliche than something including vampires and werewolves. Originality is probably the most important aspect of an SF title. Finally the flow of the title; this aspect may seem a little superficial and perhaps subjective, but unless the title sounds good to say, readers will be less likely to read the whole book.

            Once I have decided to give a book a chance, the worst thing an author can do is to talk down to the audience. I commonly find this amongst young adult novels. It can be the repetition  of over explaining simple concepts, or explicitly saying what could have been more effective as an implication. I find that many authors, in trying to seem relatable, actually become even less relatable. Because most of the people who write books for young adults are not young adults themselves, references to young adult culture often fall flat. These failed attempts to relate to the younger audience can seem like the author is talking down to the reader and will immediately make me put down a book.

            First impression is everything. Without a well-thought-out title that creates a sense of intrigue and adventure, an author can lose many prospective readers before they even read the synopsis. After, if the title succeeds in luring in a reader, the author must make sure that proper consideration of the target audience has taken place, this will dictate whether the reader will complete the book or not. These crucial attributes are often overlooked and are what I look for most when reading new books.