Not reading what doesn't interest you - and the purpose of the blurb

Mr Flibble · Mar 6, 2010

Once or twice over the past few days I have attested that it doesn't matter how good the writing is, if the subject matter doesn't interest me, I won't read it.

It would appear that this does not sit well with some people ( or it could just be the way I've phrased it they don't like...), and I'm not sure why. Rather than derail those threads any more I thought I'd ask.

As a reader I have my preferences - don't we all? I like my fantasy - but I can live without ever reading about vampires falling in love with humans, or farm boys whose dad is secretly the king or so much gritty realism I can smell the shit. I would rather poke my own eyes out than read a book about women shopping and doing lunch. No offence to people who like these things, but I can't stand them, in the same way my husband wouldn't read a contemporary romance if his life depended on it.

So why the feeling that if the writing is good enough, that I should enjoy it anyway? I can appreciate that something is well written without appreciating the story that it's writing about and not wanting to read it, surely?

Whihc brings me on to the blurb. It's the publishers hype, the author has nothing to do with it etc etc. Yes, those things are mostly true. But that;s forgetting the one thing that the blurb is really for, and this the author is responsible for in a way. The reader. A while ago there was a thread about 'stupid reasons you won't read a book'. Among the little ticks and foibles were several reasons that actually weren't stupid. And one was 'no blurb'. Blurb is vital to many readers. Watch the browsers in a bookshop - I do this quite often in my quest for info - what makes a reader buy a book? My own habits are too irregular to be much use here - all depends what mood I'm in! So I watch.

So, the browsers. They scan the spines of books. Maybe a title or the part of cover art jumps out at them. They pick it up and look at the cover. If there's nothing there to put them off, the vast majority will then flip the book to scan the blurb. Why - why not just start reading? Some do, but most don't - especially if they're standing in the general fiction section, where they could have picked up anything from a georgian romance to a book about black ops in Iraq. Why don't they just read? Because they are looking for the vital piece of information, one which is not always acurately conveyed by cover. 'Is this the sort of story I like?' So, if it were me and I saw the words 'sexy vampire' I know I've picked up something that's in a genre I don't particulary enjoy. However, there may be something about that blurb that interests me, or there might not. If not, I go on to the next book. Watch those browsers again. They go from book to book, putting some back if the sort of story doesn't interest them, reading a page or so of those that do. Writing style, while important, while it may be what sells the book, is not what made them open the book. Because I don't know about you but I can't tell whether somethings got a great style by the artwork.

In my view, life's too short to read about things that have no interest to me and no amount of style will make me like it. Am I being unreasonable here? Because I'm starting to think I have to like things even if I don't....

shaldna · Mar 6, 2010

I'm the same. If the concept doesn't appeal to me, then I won't read it.

I know what I like and what I don't.

kaitie · Mar 6, 2010

Gosh, I don't think you're being irrational at all. I speak as someone who doesn't read pages before buying at all--I make my entire decisions based on blurb (or the occasional nifty cover or title).

I have sometimes read things outside of what I would normally pick up and enjoyed them, but usually only because someone gave it to me to read swearing I'd love it. I've also come across some that I really didn't enjoy.

I agree with you, things are very subjective. What someone else loves may not be something I would enjoy. This isn't a 100% applicable, but I literally just finished watching Where the Wild Things Are. I've heard amazing things about it, that it was one of the best movies of the year, that it was fantastic and great. A couple of people I know who have watched it said it was wonderful and powerful.

Honestly? I really didn't like it. At all. For me, it was a reminder of all those things about childhood I hated, the parts I'd really rather not go back and revisit. It also felt unresolved and like these things were just going to go on continuing. The monsters were going to go on being miserable and sad, as was Max. Maybe that's just my take on it, but that's how it felt, and despite some of the things that were well done, I just disliked it. Another movie that fits this is Kill Bill, which I can admit was amazingly well done, but I still hated it. I read The Graveyard Book not long ago, and while I didn't dislike it, I certainly didn't enjoy it as much as the other people I know did.

Some things just aren't my style. Some I would read because someone on here wrote it and I want to be supportive, but for the most part I just really have no interest in certain topics. I really dislike war stories. Yes, a couple of the best books I've ever read in my life were war stories, but I'll still avoid them because they're horribly sad and depressing, and that's not what I want in a book.

To be honest, for the most part I don't mind missing something really good if it doesn't sound interesting to me because I'm enjoying the ones that I do read. Yeah, I still tend to read them when my friends say "Oh you'll love this," but in a bookstore you can bet unless the blurb sounds cool I won't be spending my money on it. I read for entertainment.

I think the important thing here is that we all have our own tastes and opinions. Just because one person loves something doesn't mean the next person will, no matter how well done it is. I try to be open-minded and try new things. I tried out a sci-fi book not long ago because it had won a novel of the year award. Wasn't a bad book, but it also wouldn't have been anywhere near my novel of the year prize. That doesn't make the people who awarded it wrong, it just means we have different tastes.

shaldna · Mar 6, 2010

I have to admit that the blurb will make me put down a book alot faster than it would make me read it.

Even if the idea sounds great, all it takes is for the blurb to be worded a certain way and I will put it back down, on principle.

I hate blurbs that sound smug, or like they are trying too hard to be mysterious or interesting.

If the word 'danger' or 'forbidden' is anywhere on the blurb then I set it down again.

backslashbaby · Mar 6, 2010

I can be very picky about what I like, and I don't even mean to. I don't mean to diss entire genres, certainly, but some just don't entertain me.

I also loathe canteloupe, although I'm sure it is a very upstanding and tasty fruit

Mr Flibble · Mar 6, 2010

shaldna said:
I have to admit that the blurb will make me put down a book alot faster than it would make me read it.

Even if the idea sounds great, all it takes is for the blurb to be worded a certain way and I will put it back down, on principle.

I hate blurbs that sound smug, or like they are trying too hard to be mysterious or interesting.

If the word 'danger' or 'forbidden' is anywhere on the blurb then I set it down again.

Lol horses for courses again. I know what you mean about the smugness but if the premise sounds 'oooooOOOooooh' interesting I'll give it a shot.

Anyway, good, I was beginning to think it was just me.

kaitie · Mar 6, 2010

I think what gets me in a blurb itself (other than just the topic doesn't interest me) is when they sound preachy. Doesn't happen often, but I've seen one or two. The ones that really frustrate me are the ones that don't really give any indication of the book, however. Those back covers where it's just telling you how great this book or the author is. Honestly...I don't care haha. Tell me what the story is about and if it sounds cool to me I'll buy it.

SPMiller · Mar 6, 2010

I will read/watch/listen to anything that interests me.

Unfortunately, my tastes are narrow.

Fredster · Mar 6, 2010

Life is too short to waste it on stories you're not into.

I'd much rather read an enjoyable story with writing I didn't care for than a boring story where the writing won a Pulitzer.

Interestingly enough, I'm reading a Pulitzer novel right now (Lonesome Dove), and were the story not so interesting, I wouldn't be. McMurtry is very obviously a good writer, but his style isn't what I would normally read because I'm not a fan of head-jumping within a scene.

Unless, of course, it's Stephen King doing it. Then I like it.

knight_tour · Mar 6, 2010

I never read any pages before buying. I look at the cover and the blurb and judge from there. That may be unfair, but that is what I do. This is why I believe it is wrong for publishers not to give authors some input on these things. I have strong opinions on how I would like my covers to look.

I always choose based upon the story types I like to read. I would choose a book written so-so on a subject I love any day over a brilliantly written book about something I don't care about.

Mr Flibble · Mar 6, 2010

I would choose a book written so-so on a subject I love any day over a brilliantly written book about something I don't care about.

I'm not alone!

Sevvy · Mar 6, 2010

Yeah, I'm not sure how anyone could ever get the idea that you should read something you don't like just because the writing is good. The only reason you should do that is if you're trying to learn something about how the book was written. But that's different than just picking something up off a shelf for your own enjoyment.

My friends keep recommending books to me, even though they know my tastes are limited. "Oh, you should read insert bestseller here, you'll love it." "Is it fantasy or science fiction?" "It's a thriller." "No thanks."

With school reading, my own reading, and all the other stuff I cram into my day, I really don't have time to waste reading books that I know I'm not gonna like. Life isn't high school, I don't have to read anything I don't want to anymore.

And I agree about the blurb stuff too, that's the first thing I read. If I like the blurb, or am undecided from that, I'll skim that random passage some books put in the front, or if they don't have that, the first couple of lines. That will usually make up my mind. But I hate blurbs that obviously only tell me about the very first chapter of the book. I would like an idea of whether I'm going to like the entire book, not just the first chapter.

And these days, if I see a sexy person with a gothic themed cover and the word "vampire" on the back, I put it down again. Maybe I'm missing out on the best vampire book since Dracula that way, but I seriously doubt it.

knight_tour · Mar 6, 2010

I actually came late to the game on George R.R. Martin's big series simply because I hated the Game of Thrones cover. I ended up reading the second book of the series first, because I was stuck somewhere and needed something to read, and that book was available. Then I had to go back and read the first book. When I saw the cover to the first book, it reminded me that I had passed on it in the past.

Phyllo · Mar 6, 2010

A long, long time ago, when I was in high school, a book we were required to read was Margaret Lawrence's Stone Angel. About an elderly woman looking back on her life in the prairies (more or less). As a seventeen-year old boy growing up in the city, I couldn't imagine anything more dull.

And then a magical thing happened: I was drawn into this character's life and started to care. By the time I was mid-way through, I couldn't put it down.

I went on to read pretty much everything the amazing Margaret Laurence wrote. Virtually none of her books would have appealed to me based on the story outlines (female-focused, usually set in small towns, no major "excitement").

All of which is to say that I learned a good writer makes a story interesting. Much more interesting than a mediocre writer working on what, on the surface, seems a story more suited to my interest.

Mr Flibble · Mar 6, 2010

But I hate blurbs that obviously only tell me about the very first chapter of the book. I would like an idea of whether I'm going to like the entire book, not just the first chapter.

I know what you mean, and obviously this is the part of the blurb that the author has little or no control over - the style of blurb. But we do have control over our stories - what that blurb is about. I try to ignore the style of blurb and concentrate on the premise it's presenting me with - because that's the author, not the blurb writer, and is more of an indication of whether I'll like the book.

Although blurb writing is an art in itself - I just got my preliminary one through the other day and it was about a zillion times better than I could have done!

All of which is to say that I learned a good writer makes a story interesting. Much more interesting than a mediocre writer working on what, on the surface, seems a story more suited to my interest.

It happens, sure, and we all love surprises. But I've been burned too many times now....

A good writer can make more people read that book. I do read outside my genre, in things that on the surface wouldn't interest me, but something in the blurb / premise tickles. something makes me sit up and think 'Oh hello. now that could be good' and I give it a go. But to me, a good style or writing ability can't make up for the fact that I'm not interested in what they are saying.

Phaeal · Mar 6, 2010

I read the blurb first, as a first filter, but I never buy a book without reading at least a few pages, usually the first chapter. In the writing itself, I'm looking for three vital qualities:

-- Technical competence. Not brilliant writing, not poetry, but prose clean and smooth enough so I'm not always getting knocked out of the story by fractured grammar, clunky rhythms, misused words and overly repetitive sentence structure.

-- Profluence: A sense that there's a story starting here and that the writer can keep it going. It can be starting slowly or quickly, so long as it's starting.

-- Voice. I'm going to like "listening" to this writer and her characters.

As for subject, about the only thing that will absolutely stop me from reading is my apprehension that a book's some kind of thinly veiled religious or political diatribe. I will only read thickly veiled diatribes.

kaitie · Mar 6, 2010

You know what else is interesting, though? If you give me a mediocre book that's a genre I enjoy, I'm still going to like it more than one in a genre I don't like. Heck, I might even enjoy it more than a good book in a genre I don't like. My tolerance for mediocre increases greatly the more the story appeals to me, even if in the end the story itself turns out to be pretty blah.

Summonere · Mar 6, 2010

Not reading what doesn't interest you
...Am I being unreasonable here?

Not at all. To believe that anyone else should enjoy something that we do is absurd.

That's like saying “The cooking is good, you'll enjoy the mushrooms.”

Well, no, I don't like mushrooms at all. I'm never going to like mushrooms. So I don't care who your world-famous cook is, the dadblamed things are still awful, no matter the artfulness of the stew.

As for book buying, I always read the blurb, the first page or two, the last page. The blurb generally provides a reasonable sense of what kind of story I'm holding, and the first page tells me immediately if I can sit still for the writing inside, while the last tells me if this is a story I'll want to sit still for.

myrmidon · Mar 6, 2010

I think I'm with you on not reading subject matter that doesn't interest me. Heck, in a book store I rarely venture out of the sections that I know I love...which in some way may seem small minded of me...but there are already so many books in THOSE sections which I have not yet read...I suppose if one day I manage to exhaust all those sections I would widen my search area...but it seems unlikely.

As for blurbs. I hate them and refuse to read them. They sound like PR and salesman pitches to me and generally don't reflect the writing inside. I buy books based on three things - two of which have to hit hard in order for me to buy. Title, cover, and first line of the first page. The most important of those three things is the first line, and the least is the cover. I'd love to say I could ignore the cover since I know the author often has no control, but as an art major it seems impossible for me to totally ignore it.

This system has yet to let me down (I've been using it for maybe five years). And it HAS led me to a lot of amazing books that I don't know how I ever would have found without it. I'm pretty happy with it overall, though like any system I can admit it's not flawless.

kuwisdelu · Mar 6, 2010

Eh, I'm on the other side of the coin.

Life is too short to read mediocre writing.

My tastes are pretty varied. If a writer is good enough, he or she should be able to make any topic interesting to me. I don't pay much attention to genre.

I do admit to putting down anything where the blurb makes the book seem too plot-driven, because I prefer character-driven writing. Anything else, and I'll usually give the reading a try before putting it away or moving on.

If the writing isn't interesting, I'll put it down.

Mr Flibble · Mar 6, 2010

Fair enough Kuwi

I do admit to putting down anything where the blurb makes the book seem too plot-driven, because I prefer character-driven writing.

I like character driven stuff too - all I require to pique me is some intriguing character wassname

I read all sorts of genres ( though I have my limits) so it's not that that limits me. I read Atonement recently. Cover did nowt for me. But I read the blurb and the phrase 'Briony will have committed a crime for which she will spend the rest of her life trying to atone' was what got me to read it. Because it sounded interesting. If I hadn't read that, then the first page probably wouldn't have done it for me and I'd not have read ( and loved) the book - and the writing, which was imo droolworthy.

Libbie · Mar 6, 2010

Oh, I am absolutely with you. If I can't find some reason to be at least interested, if not enthusiastic, about the story I won't bother with it. Why should I? I am definitely a blurb-reader, to the point that if a book doesn't have a blurb on it, I won't take a chance on it. I'd rather not pay money and waste time on something I may hate.

It's the whole reason why blurbs exist.

that being said, I think it's important to find stuff you might like within genres you normally dislike. Track down poetry you can appreciate and study it, even if you usually don't like poetry. Find literary fiction you might enjoy and study it, even if you hate the majority of literary fiction. Find a romance novel or two that has a plot or characters you think you can be interested in, even if you avoid romance. We have stuff to learn from all kinds of writing. But you're not going to learn anything if you can't stay interested in actually reading.

Claudia Gray · Mar 6, 2010

The subject matter has to appeal to me, yes. However, there's a lot of different subjects out there. I'm not a big fan of Westerns, but if there was one that mentioned a character dynamic I especially like, that could intrigue me. Hard SF isn't a favorite of mine either, but there are certain author blurbs that would get me to flip through. So on and so forth. So I am not very absolute in saying what definitely will and won't interest me. There are a lot of different combinations of things that could appeal.

Kitty27 · Mar 6, 2010

I pay no mind to blurbs. I read everything except chick lit. I can't stand it.

What catches me is a unique cover,especially horror. Then I read the first three-five pages. If I like it,I buy it.

I rarely read blurbs. It's all breathless excitement and hollering to me. I read it,buy the book and it's as dull as Georgia dirt. That's happened to me too many times.

I feel that a writer will catch you in those first pages and that's what I look for.

dolores haze · Mar 6, 2010

Libbie said:
I think it's important to find stuff you might like within genres you normally dislike.

I agree with this. Since I've been writing I've actively pushed myself to read genres that, as a reader, I avoided. By pushing myself to read YA I've learned so much about writing in first person. By pushing myself to read fantasy I've learned so much about worldbuilding. I've been very selective, however. I don't just pick a book off a shelf because it's something I wouldn't normally read. I try to find books I would like in genres I wouldn't normally read. And that blurb helps a lot!

Not reading what doesn't interest you - and the purpose of the blurb

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

The cake is a lie. But still cake.

With great power comes

The cake is a lie. But still cake.

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With great power comes

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Village idiot

Fantasy Tourist

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Spec Fic Writer

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Still sitting

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Whatever I did, I didn't do it.

With great power comes

i AM batman (not really)

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