What Fiction Writers Want from Fiction Readers

by MaryAnn Diorio, PhD, MFA

Last week, we explored what fiction readers want from fiction writers. This week, we're going to explore what fiction writers want from fiction readers.

As I've often said, writers and readers are two sides of the same coin. We need each other, and without the other, what we do is futile. As a writer, I write for you, my valued reader. As a reader, you read (I hope :)) what I write. We share in a mutually beneficial relationship. 

So, what is it that writers are looking for from readers? Here are a few of my thoughts as a fiction writer. I encourage you—as a reader or a writer—to add your opinions in the comment box below. Thanks. :)

So, fiction writers are looking for:

1. Faithful Fans. There's nothing that delights a novelist more than readers who become faithful fans of the author's novels. We fiction writers write stories so that you will read them. And when you read them regularly, you encourage us to continue writing stories for you. 

Of course, readers have preferences as to what kinds of stories they like to read. But once you discover an author whose novels you really like, it helps the author greatly for you to support that author on a regular basis. How can you do that? Point 2 answers that question.

2. Honest Book Reviews. Authors need book reviews in order to help other readers make informed decisions as to what books to buy. A short, positive book review goes far in getting an author's book in front of potential buyers. This, in turn, helps an author to pay the bills so that she doesn't have to find a day job and, probably, stop writing. Or at least cut back significantly on her writing.

Good writing is hard work and authors put in long hours writing their novels. For example, I easily spend 30-40 hours or more a week writing and running my writing business. I think you will agree that, like everyone else, an author deserves financial recompense for the hard work. 

3. Word-of-Mouth Recommendations. This one is a biggie. It is one thing for me to tell others about my books. It is quite another for you the reader to tell others about my books. Somehow, people will believe you more than they believe me. When I promote my books, it could come across negatively, as though I am being conceited, prejudiced, or proud. In reality, I simply want to let readers know that I have novels available for sale.

But when you tell a friend or relative about a novel you've enjoyed, your friend or relative is much more likely to trust your opinion than mine.

So, to sum up, three things writers want most from readers are:

1) Faithful Fans
2) Honest Book Reviews
3) Word-of-Mouth Recommendations

By helping your favorite author in this way, you will doing a great service, not only to them but also to readers everywhere.

Now it's your turn: What are some ways that you, as a reader, help the authors whose work you love? Please post your comments in the comment box below. Thank you!

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HUGE SALE!  I've extended my special sale for another week. All of my novels are available in ebook format for only $4.99. That's less than the price of your favorite latte. Don't miss out on this big sale! This is the last time I will be offering it for a good while. So, check out the list below and click on the cover to purchase. You may also wish to purchase some as gifts for the fiction readers in your life. 

Click on the book cover to purchase. NOTE: The Italian Chronicles is a compilation in a single volume of all three of the following novels in the trilogy: The Madonna of Pisano, A Sicilian Farewell, and Return to Bella Terra. So, when you purchase The Italian Chronicles, be aware that you are purchasing all three books in the trilogy.

Happy Reading! MaryAnn

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Copyright 2024 by MaryAnn Diorio, PhD. All Rights Reserved.

What Fiction Readers Want from Fiction Writers

by MaryAnn Diorio, PhD, MFA

Writers of fiction are continually thinking about how they can best serve their readers. One way writers do this is by sending out surveys. 

I recently sent out a survey myself to my newsletter subscribers and was surprised at some of the results.  For example, to my surprise, most of my readers said they prefer historical fiction over contemporary fiction. Most also said they prefer romance and romantic suspense over other genres of fiction. 

My readers' responses were of great help to me. Since I myself love to write romance, especially romantic suspense, I now know that in doing so, I am meeting my readers' literary needs. This makes me happy as an author.

In addition to genre needs, however, readers of fiction are looking for some other very important things as well. Here are a few of them:

1) Choices of format in their reading material. Readers like to know that a novel comes in print, ebook, and audiobook formats. Audiobooks especially are gaining in popularity at rapid rates. Readers love to "read" books while driving, washing dishes, or exercising, for example. In a world where multi-tasking is the rule, audiobooks have gained a prominent place.

2) Series or stand-alones? Most readers don't care whether a novel is part of a series or a stand-alone. But some readers devour series books only and will closely follow a novelist for the next book in the series. Other readers, on the other hand, prefer stand-alone stories, claiming that subsequent books in a series get "watered down" and are not as interesting as the first book in the series.

3) Good book descriptions (referred to as "metadata"). Fiction readers want to know as
much as they can about a novel before buying it. When an author provides ample information about her book, the reader is better able to make an informed purchasing decision. 

What about you? As a fiction reader, what do you want from fiction writers? Please post your comments in the box below. Thanks! :) 

HUGE SALE!  This week, all of my novels are on sale in ebook format for only $4.99. That's less than the price of your favorite latte. Check the list below and click on the cover to purchase.

Click on the book cover to purchase. NOTE: The Italian Chronicles is a compilation in a single volume of all three of the following novels in the trilogy: The Madonna of Pisano, A Sicilian Farewell, and Return to Bella Terra. So, when you purchase The Italian Chronicles, be aware that you are purchasing all three books in the trilogy.

Happy Reading! MaryAnn

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Copyright 2024 by MaryAnn Diorio, PhD. All Rights Reserved.

The Debate over Romance Fiction

by MaryAnn Diorio, PhD, MFA

During my young-adult years, I recall a huge debate among the literati over the value of romance fiction. Some considered it a valuable genre of literature, while many considered it shallow, frivolous, and even decadent.

The battles between these two camps were quite vocal, with neither side conceding much, if anything, to the other. Moreover, the battle still rages today, although not to as great an extent. One reason is the emergence of Christian fiction.

But more on that later.

So, why were there two such opposite camps regarding romance fiction in the first place? What caused the great divide? 

For one thing, most secular romance fiction focused on the flesh instead of the spirit. Some romance writers appealed to the senses in a way that devalued human beings and made them out to be nothing more than a composite of hormones driven by lust. Much like animals. These writers, in my opinion, had no idea of the true meaning of love. Indeed, they confused lust with love.

But lust is not love. Nor ever will be.

Yet, to tis day, a good deal of secular romance fiction does not reflect, nor comprehend, the true meaning of love and continues to exalt the flesh. Sadly, sex sells.

But in 1979, the true meaning of love began to show up in fiction with the publication of Janette Oke's pivotal novel, Love Comes Softly. Credited with having invented the Christian romance genre of fiction, Oke revolutionized fiction by portraying the Biblical meaning of love, the only meaning of love that aligns with truth.

In her best-selling novel, Oke revealed two important truths:

1. God is the Author of Romance. He wrote the greatest love story of all time. It is found in the Bible, and it is the story of Christ's infinite love for humanity—a love He demonstrated by His death and resurrection. God's love story is called the Divine Romance. It is a love story that will last forever.

2. All authentic human romance is based on God's divine romance. Since all that God created is good, romance is good. And Christian romance fiction seeks to portray the blessings of romance based on God's love. Moreover, Christian romance fiction seeks to point the reader to the Author of Romance, God Himself.

Since God is the Author of Romance, then romance fiction has a very important place in literature. For romance fiction reflects—or should reflect—God's love for man and woman, and man and woman's love for each other. 

What makes Christian romance fiction different from secular romance fiction is precisely this understanding and portrayal of the true meaning of love. Whereas in secular romance fiction, love is usually equated with lust, in Christian romance fiction love is equated with the sacrificial love of Christ that is selfless, not self-serving. In Christian romance fiction, the man and the woman ultimately seek to bless the other more than the self. They are ultimately transformed from selfishness to selflessness.

As with all other fiction, truth must lie at the core of romance fiction in order for it to be great. Romance novels that equate sex with love are missing that core of truth. Certainly sex is a God-given expression of love, but only within the confines of marriage and only if the motive is the well-being of the other person within that marriage.

But the concept of sex-only-in-marriage is taboo in many romance novels today that are not written from a Biblical worldview. The same is true of sex in our culture. Our culture has devalued sex by relegating it to a forbidden place outside of marriage. But sex outside of marriage is not true love. It is lust.

Today, romance fiction remains the most popular form of genre fiction. It has the highest numbers of readers for a reason. The reason is that we all need love. God created us to need love. But He also created us to find that love first and foremost in Him. When we look to Him first to fill our need for love, then we can love another person in a romantic relationship with that same love with which God first loved us.

Nearly 20 years ago, I first recognized God's call on my life to write fiction, including romance fiction. As I began to write stories, I discovered a new joy in writing and an increase in positive feedback from readers, telling me that my stories greatly blessed them.

Imagine my great surprise, then, when a good nonfiction writer friend of mine wrote me a scathing email denouncing my foray into fiction writing. She told me that I was out of God's will, that I was wasting my time writing fiction, and that my extensive, advanced education precluded my writing something so frivolous as novels. She strongly advised me to devote my writing time to more substantial endeavors.

Because I had always valued my friend's professional opinion, I was stunned by her letter, to say the least. But, as always when I am criticized, I went to the Lord and asked Him if my friend spoke truth. The Lord told me that my friend was misled about the value and purpose of fiction. He confirmed that I must continue writing stories, including romance, in order to touch lives for Him.

And so I did. And continue to do. (And, by the way, I forgave my friend. :) )

Jesus is my example. He told stories to teach deep truths. Why? Because while nonfiction appeals to the mind, stories appeal to the heart. And stories alone can touch and transform the heart in a way that nonfiction cannot. This is the reason I write stories. I want the Lord to transform hurting hearts for Him through the stories He gives me to write. 

So, the next time someone tells you that truth-based romance fiction is frivolous, remind him that Jesus told stories filled with the truth of the divine romance, and that His writers, who are made in His image, can reflect that image by stories filled with the truth of the divine romance as well. 

Now it's your turn . . . 

Please share your thoughts on romance fiction in the comment box below. Thank you! :)

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This is the last week to enter my Goodreads Giveaway for the opportunity to win a free ebook copy of my award-winning love story, In Black and White. 

Enter at the link below and scroll down on the left.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48655509

You can't win if you don't enter! :)

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My Novel Pick of the Week . . . 

Prodigal Lives by Carol McClain

eBOOK

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Copyright 2024 by MaryAnn Diorio, PhD. All Rights Reserved.