At the bequest of Harry...

[bkendall]

Recently, we have been discussing what editor's will expect from us. Let me preface this discussion by saying I am not an editor, nor do I view myself as one. I am barely experienced enough to know how to form coherent sentences. Then again, sometimes that fails me.

After recently deciding to try to focus more on writing in my life, I have been discussing the subject with different people I meet. Some of them are close friends, some are just people I see reading a book. When querying them about what types of books they like, they list mostly modern writers. While not everyone feels the same, (myself included) several of these people have mentioned the fast-paced action in these stories has been a definite draw.

I would never assume that there isn't still a market for the slow-paced, heavy description stories. I have a fond place in my heart for stories like this myself and I wish there were more. When I look at the bookshelves in stores, the action-heavy books seem to be taking over.

So, now that my little rant is over, let's start the discussion. What do you think the markets are looking for? Moreover, what would you like to see?

[Dave Hardy]

I'm not an editor either. I suspect editors buying Westerns are so thin on the ground that speculation about their expectations would be fruitless.

As a reader I lean toward action stories. Elmer Kelton & Louis L'Amour are sort of my points of reference. I respect Elmer Kelton's skill in creating a setting, but he had no swashbucklers in his tales. L'Amour had some swashbucklers, but his settings are often a bit thin.

What I want is an author who has both a fully realized setting & full-speed adventure.

Elmore Leonard is growing on me. He captures the moral ambiguity that informs what I find as the best sort of hard-boiled adventure tale. I might read a simple white-hat/black-hat sort of yarn, but I probably wouldn't go back to it. Leonard's heroes aren't exactly different from his villains. Moreover, stuff happens in Valdez & Hombre, it's not just talk.

Here's a partially formed thought: The Western doesn't rely on the fantastic the way Rider Haggard's Lost Race tales or Lord of the Rings does. You can visit or even live in the West, it's not Tarzan's Africa let alone Barsoom.

For me, I like adventure tales. You can write a Western that eschews adventure I suppose. But unless it's about gold rushes, desperadoes, range wars, Indian battles, or the like, I'm probably not too interested.

[Puma]

What do I think the market is looking for - fast paced thrillers and fantasy that appeal to the under 30 crowd.

What would I like to see - more fiction that appeals to the over 50 crowd, who, according to statistics I accumulated a couple years ago, represent about 60% of the book buying market. My opinion, westerns and slower paced books are in this category. Puma

[HarryHoskins]

What do you think the markets are looking for? Moreover, what would you like to see?

1 - Something that turns a profit.

2 - Something good.

:)