Question for you all....

[Michelle]

I'm in contact with quite a few publishers and authors, but the authors are not always the really well known ones. Do you still like reading the interviews if you haven't read anything of the authors, and would you still like the author chats set up? I personally think that they can be interesting, as they can be used to get opinions on general topics and the author's experiences, even if you haven't read their book... but I'd like to know your views.

 

Thank you

[ian]

Hi Michelle,

 

I agree with you that it is still interesting to here their views and experiences on writing and being published in general. I imagine a lot of us here have given a least a few idle moments wondering if we could ever write ourselves, so it would always be interesting to here about that from people who have actually done it. And it's always nice to give these authors a bit of exposure and maybe find a new author to read

[Michelle]

Thanks Ian - these are usually authors who I've read, or at least know through Twitter, and I think it's a better approach than allowing everyone to come along and do their own promotion!

[Michelle]

I'd appreciate some more views, either way. I'm quite happy to set this sort of thing up, but not if there's no real interest.

[Andie P]

Personally I like to read author interviews of authors I know. I have read a few in the past but tend to stick to the ones I know.

 

Andie P x

[Raven]

Personally I only tend to read author Q&As, and the like, if I know the author or if they write a genre I'm interested in. It's my perception (and I'm more than willing to concede that it may be incorrect) that most of the featured authors on the site tend to write chick-lit(?) and consequently I don't read the interviews very often.

 

Having said I don't tend to read them though, I do think interviews and Q&A sessions with new authors are a good idea because it helps people here to find new authors and new authors to get feedback directly from real people. Also, I'm guessing the more of them you do the more well known the site will become and that can only be a good thing!

 

ETA:

 

I like the more informal style of the current author chat with Michelle Gorman you are running!

Edited July 25, 2012 by Raven

[Michelle]

I am going to have to correct you on the chicklit assumption - I do the majority of these myself, and it's not a genre I tend to read. There may some 'women's fiction' authors there, but as Michele Gorman has said, that's actually a different genre. I know for a fact that there are some crime, horror and YA writers in there.

 

I have found that I tend to interview authors when I read a book of theirs which I like, as it makes for a more interesting interview. I really don't want to have a series of interviews all with the same questions. The author chat is much easier, as it opens it up to the lovely people here... but I don't want authors left sitting here with no one talking to them.

[vodkafan]

Interviews with new authors are good to read too.

[julie]

I think I agree with the majority . I'd tend to be more interested if it were an author I was familiar with and had read at least one of their books, but there's nothing wrong with tossing in a new author for those looking for something "new" to read . It might give us some new ideas of books to try that we may not have known about before .

[chesilbeach]

I like them all - I'm really enjoying asking Michele questions at the moment. I'm in an unusual situation with my reading at the moment and not buying any new books, otherwise I'd be inclined to download and read a book by an author immediately so that I could ask any questions about their work, but having said that I have added quite a few to my wish list based on the author interviews. I have to admit, I'm really enjoying the chat version, but that may be because Michele has been quick to answer questions and has given interesting and thoughtful answers, and she writes in a genre I read, but if an author didn't engage as much or I don't enjoy their genre of books, then maybe I'd go back to preferring the Q&A's!

[bree]

I find authors interesting - and I look forward to getting to know how they created what they did.

So yes, I do like reading their interviews - even if I'm not familiar with them.

[Raven]

I am going to have to correct you on the chicklit assumption - I do the majority of these myself, and it's not a genre I tend to read. There may some 'women's fiction' authors there, but as Michele Gorman has said, that's actually a different genre.

 

Fair enough, but speaking as a 40 something single male, the line between chick lit and women's fiction isn't easy to differentiate!

Edited July 25, 2012 by Raven

[Michelle]

I did also go on to say that I know for a fact there's crime, horror and YA in there!

[chaliepud]

I do like to read the interviews Michelle, in fact they sometimes draw my attention to an author I might otherwise have missed!

[Roland Butter]

I find them interesting, Michelle, and I think it would be good to continue with them. I don't read them to find new books - there are plenty of ways to do that anyway - and I'm not bothered whether or not I've "heard of" them.. What interests me is their accounts of how and why they write, and of the whole process of being a writer.

[~Andrea~]

To be honest I haven't read a lot of the author interviews, although I may be more inclined to read them if I knew the author. I am enjoying reading the author chat however, even though I don't know the author. I used to enjoy the featured author slot we used to have and missed it when it disappeared. I discovered quite a few authors that way.

[Michelle]

Thank you everyone for your feedback. I do appreciate that the more interesting interviews and chats will be with well known authors, but obviously this is usually harder to arrange. I'm glad to see an overall interest, so I will see what can be arranged.

[Gerli]

I generally enjoy reading interviews of well known authors and authors of my favorite books. But that's just me.

[Kseniya Malakhova]

I like reading interviews of known authors and not really known. There are many talented new authors, they have their own style of writing. It is interesting to read something fresh and new. And of course it is always interesting to read interviews of known authors - they can share their experience of writing and give useful advices.

[davidverney]

I've looked through them (briefly), and haven't heard of many of the authors you have interviewed.  

 

I would love to read an interview with Mike Gayle or Chris Ryan - two contemporary authors whose books I can't get enough of.  Both of them have a presence on Twitter so maybe you can tweet them and ask them for an interview.  That would be great.

[Michelle]

David, over the years I've tried to contact many authors, and on the whole, the more well known ones tend not to respond, or at least say they're too busy. That's why I was asking what interest there is in the lesser known authors. However, this was a year ago, and I would find it hard at this point to do all the running around, and conducting the interviews. Thanks for responding though.

[dex]

I also feel that I would only look into an Author I had read, any other search would be through Genre. I'd be more likely to check reviews of brand new authors.

[blackwhiteandgray]

Anything that offers some sort of perspective is worth some mention. It's not all very interesting and tends to lean on the side of "patting themselves on their backs."

 

Regardless, it's interesting.

[Marmin]

I don't mind reading about interesting new authors. One can always learn something new.