ieva melgalve

Lately, I’ve been thinking who the most important reader of mine will be when (if) I publish a book. Yesterday the most obvious characteristic suddenly dawned on me: my first future reader is a person who reads A LOT.

Consider: there are lots and lots of people who read a book or two a year. What do they read? Classics, super-bestsellers (think “Lost Symbol” or “Twilight”) and books that are specifically recommended for them. (I think that the assumption they necessarily read trash is unfounded; they could read “Catcher in the Rye” or “Fight Club” as well.)
Then there are lots and lots of people who read, say, ten to twenty books a year. How many of these books are debut books by new authors? I am guessing no more than 10%, and only if somebody has recommended this book beforehand.
Sounds unlikely? Do you think that a casual reader could easily choose book based on cover? Well, then imagine–if you are a voracious reader–that you are allowed to read just one book a month for the rest of your life. (I know, it’s a horrible, horrible thought.) You’d choose something by an author you like, or something you know you should have read ages ago, you would cheat and say you’re choosing War and Peace or that The Lord of the Rings is one very-very-big book instead of nine. You would probably read something your best friend gave you, or a new book in your favorite genre that had 4.5 stars on Amazon. You wouldn’t choose a fiction book because of a nice cover or a blurb if that was the only book you’d be able to read that month.

So basically the first reader and the first word-of-mouth generator for a new author comes in two kinds: 1) Somebody who reads at least two books a month and is devoted to new, interesting things in a certain genre. 2) Somebody who has a more versatile taste and reads or at least flips through hundred books a year.
(Here, I am not putting into equation the book bloggers who get free samples as a part of marketing campaign–that’s another story altogether, as marketing is prone to be.)

What sort of person is this reader?
This reader might not be a writing professional and he might not use all fancy terms. However, during the year before reading my book this person has read, say, thirty other books in my genre, or a hundred or so books in mixed genres.
In other words, this reader knows good stuff from bad stuff even if he doesn’t have the words to tell why exactly he likes or dislikes the book. More often than not, this reader will have the words to write an elaborate treatise on how exactly I messed up.
So whenever I’m thinking “ahh, I’ll let it slip because an average reader won’t even notice”, I’d better think again, because the first reader, the word-of-mouth generator will notice and he won’t hesitate to announce his findings because the ability to notice and prove that the author messed up makes him an expert.
Suppose that this reader is “not an ass” and doesn’t announce all his worst findings? Well, that’s even worse. Generally, you don’t write good things about books you consider crap; you either write bland nothing or you don’t write at all. So there would be no meaningful word of mouth from the all too nice reviewers would have thought my book is crap. As I see it, lack of opinion means lack of discussion. All things equal, I’d rather purchase and read a book that has a 1-star review than a book that has none.

My final, ideal reader might be that average person who reads a book a month and doesn’t have a “where to put my fifth bookshelf” problem. My first reader, the reader that will matter the most in the first steps of my (hypothetical) book, well, THAT reader will be a pro, and I have to pay him all the respect a pro deserves.