I've been thinking about that a lot lately. What's my style? What do readers think when they hear my name?
I've been spending time on Good Reads lately - that online library/chat room/encyclopedia - reading over reviews. Not just reviews of my own writing, but that of other authors as well. While reading reviews of one's work can be a very affirming hobby, it can also be a dangerous one. As a writer, one is bond to run into negative reviews. Some of these can be quite helpful, well-written, and insightful. Others can be vicious, as if the reviewer now has a personal vendetta against the author.
Some people have been disappointed with my latest work, Galley Proof. While I wish that weren't the case, there has never been a proven way to please everyone all the time. Some people just won't connect with me or my writing. That's fine. We are not clones.
A lot of this disappointment, I think, comes from expectations. Many of the less than favorable reviews come from people who have never read any of my other works. My writing, I have been told, is not typical. I write for Dreamspinner Press, a m/m romance publisher, but my books don't fall neatly into that genre. I have been lucky enough to find a publisher who believes in my work so much she'll publish me anyway. The best description of my writing I've seen so far was from a reviewer who said I wrote "gay fiction with romantic themes." I think it throws readers when they go looking for a balls out romance and pick up one of my books. They soon find my book doesn't follow a particular template. When you are not what people expect you to be, it's something akin to taking a big gulp of Pepsi only to find that it's really iced tea.
(Then again, maybe they just hate my writing.)
I hate the idea that I'm a disappointment to anyone. At heart, my books are about character more than story. I prefer the surreal and fantastic storylines to the contemporary ones. Of the TEN published books I have written, only THREE were intentionally written as romantic. Simple Men succeeded the most, I think, in capturing the genre's template. I tried again with Another Enchanted April, and then once more with Galley Proof. The latter two branched off from the m/m genre as I was writing them. I freely admit that. Yet I find them much more interesting because of it.
I don't have it in me, the ability to write sweeping m/m romance. But maybe that's a good thing. There are a number of master traditional m/m romance writers out there. As long as I have a publisher, I'll be happy to be the weird guy at the party telling stories that might be just a little off. I might not be the most popular, but I'm a lot of fun.
29 comments:
I know I've said this obliquely if not directly, but I love your writing style. It's quirky and slightly left of center without stumbling into gimmicky. It's fun and interesting, and as I said on Twitter recently, I love when reading your writing influences my own. (I tend to pick up bits of others' writing styles the same way I do bits of others' accents.)
There's plenty of boilerplate romance out there (not that there's anything wrong with that). It's the people who step outside the box who keep things hopping. :)
I think your work has depth that others lack, and I admire you for NOT being just another cookie-cutter M/M Romance author.
I hope you continue to write what you have to say, the only stories you can tell, in the best way you know how.
"My writing, I have been told, is not typical."
I can't think of a greater compliment.
You have to write what you're passionate about. Can you push your comfort zone, branch out, and learn to embrace other aspects in your writing? Sure, if you want to. It seems you have realistic expectations of your results if you continue on your chosen path. If you're happy with where you are, carry on, I say.
Everybody's a critic. I've been told "you can't write books with water sports - no one will read it!" and "you can't write a character who cheats - everyone will hate him" and, oh, yeah, my favorite - "nobody is going to understand a transgender romance." The proof is in the pudding - sales. *Someone* obviously disagrees with all those things. So what if some people don't like what you write? Frankly, I'd take that as a compliment. I mean...have you seriously looked at the top 100s lately? With the exception of a few rare shining gems...I'm pretty happy I'm not up there with a lot of them.
Remember, reviews good and bad are merely opinions - and you know what they say about those! Keep writing your way - that's the gift you've received. Cheers, JP
Eric,
I haven't read any of your books, but I will now. Please keep in mind that the crowd on GoodReads represents a very small fraction of your actual book sales. You can see this simply by comparing the number of books sold on your royalty statement to the number of ratings you have on GR. The mm community on GR is predominantly female, and although their input and feedback is extremely important, they do not speak for all readers. Most gay fiction readers, and the majority of my reading audience, is not on GR at all, and most of them are not middle aged women. I love and appreciate my female readers/fans but I also know that they're only a segment of the bigger market. The hundreds of emails I've received say things completely different than the reviews I read on GR. I urge you not to change your writing style to appeal to one small segment of readers. And please don't be discouraged by negative comments you get on GR. Write the things that are meaningful to you, and if you are good at your craft, the appropriate audience will follow you. The praise and attention that GR gives some authors may be nice, but that is not the primary objective. Goodreads is a fishbowl; don't forget there is an entire ocean surrounding it.
Wow. Thanks for all the comments, compliments, advice, and feedback. Don't y'all worry. I have no intention of changing my style. Keep writing!
I hate when things I do don't connect with people, i hate to make mistakes, I hate not be completely understandable, I hate trying and not succeeding, I hate to leave things and people behind or being left. I hate to lose my stability, I hate to quit in areas others just go first... And I'm not a writer as you are.
I like to reach out beautiful things; I like to find new ways to enlighten my life and the others; I like to feel warm and comfortable, set the fireplace, cuddle in with a soft blanket and a good book; I like to watch a movie that moves me, o matter the genre, the box that it is labeled with. I like to express myself in different languages tough I make obviously mistakes; I like to be wonder and to be move and to be touch with Art. And I'm not a writer but I do much like you.
Since the very first moment you stopped in into MySpace page and left a comment there I follow you; I've read your published stories, I think I understand your writing and your intentions; I connect with you in that level even though I don't like (and you know it) all your body of work that doesn't mean I don't appreciate it or weight it with its importance.
You're a very open minded writer. You write what you like and that's awesome because you do it very well in almost every genre you have chosen.
I'm not sure what kind of critter you are. I guess you're one that writes and published, that's all.
I don't like labels, you're a writer that run away from them. That's awesome. And you are a writer of the heart. You're a writer preoccupied for human troubles; a writer that tries to find out there mere miracle of existence and the dark ones of illness, lack of passion, lack of luck, faith, fear and commitment. As a matter of fact you're a writer that finds human life interesting and individual problems appealing and attractive. You write about people and about people's hurts, love and expectations. Maybe that's why readers can't classified you in a box, tagged you with a label: because you write far from the schematized industry, you write about individualism and humanity.
I hate many things about me far from understanding. But one of the thing I just love, it's open a new book of you, submerge in a new story writing by you, and find myself out on the pages that speak to me about wounds, sufferings, fears, awakenings, lost, passion, faith, religions, cruelty, frustrations, magic, realism, and above all, redemption and freedom.
It's not easy try to encapsulate a writer that paints his characters with such kind of colors. And that makes you, Eric, unlabeled and unique.
And that's why I love you so much.
Juan, that was absolutely lovely! Very touching. Thank you, my friend! You have the soul of a poet.
I like that you are not a typical writer, it makes you interesting and enjoyable.
Thanks, buddy!
Well I for one have always enjoyed you and your style of writing. I don't like any cookie cutter story and as you guessed I enjoy the quirky, of anything, art, books,fashion. If someone wants out and out romance then get a Danielle Steele novel I say! You continue to write an amazing story!
as an artist it takes special courage to be so vulnerable -- to create something and publish, or exhibit or perform, really wanting the audience to appreciate and like the creation but knowing that some people won't - as often because they don't understand it - and will express their dislike capriciously or thoughtlessly, and yet knowing that, to nonetheless take the risk and go out there in front of the audience anyway. It's courageous and wonderful that you do that, in order that we members of your audience who do appreciate your writing will have the opportunity to enrich ourselves with your work. And, as another writer says in these comments, you certainly have objective measurements that will tell you that you're a success.
Thank you! What wonderful, intelligent, and thoughtful readers I have!
I often seek the weird guys at parties telling stories that are a little off. I'm glad I found you.
Haha. Thanks!
You be a good writer, sir. You have no control over what others might think or say. Accept the good comments and look at the bad only to see if there might be something you can use. As for the rest, computers come with a "Delete" button for a reason.
You know Eric one thing about your books that I always appreciate is that they are not like anything else out there. That in itself is a huge thing. Straying from the norm is always a bitch especially with audience that can be very fickle. We are not an easy crowd to please. Your humor is snarky and different and always gives something to think about. Anyways, theres always room for improvement, but I think you are doing really well.
As for goodreads they are just opinions, mine included, you write with fervor and that is something that comes through clearly in your books. That kind of statement sometimes doesn't sit well with some people. As for me I'll pick unique over popular ANY day of the week.
You know Eric one thing about your books that I always appreciate is that they are not like anything else out there. That in itself is a huge thing. Straying from the norm is always a bitch especially with audience that can be very fickle. We are not an easy crowd to please. Your humor is snarky and different and always gives something to think about. Anyways, theres always room for improvement, but I think you are doing really well.
As for goodreads they are just opinions, mine included, you write with fervor and that is something that comes through clearly in your books. That kind of statement sometimes doesn't sit well with some people. I'll take unique over popular any day of the week.
One of the things that I really appreciate about your writing style is that it's NOT "business as usual." Gay fiction with romantic elements, and humorous elements, and philosophical elements, and...
It would be a sad, sad day if you decided to throttle your natural inclinations (I'm talking about writing, of course - sheesh) and try to conform to a genre style. That way lies madness.
You people's is gorgeous! Thank you :-) I wasn't fishing for all these wonderful compliments, but dammit! I'll take 'em!
For what it's worth, when I get stuck in my own writing, you're one of the ones I turn to and think "what would Eric do?" Your writing is quick, witty, and just down right awesome. The crazies can shove it. *nods*
Wow. That's one hell of a compliment. Thank you!
Others have said this to you, and I'm adding my own words. . .I really appreciate your writing, your insights, your vulnerability as a person and an author, and the challenge you put forth for others to be MORE than who they are. What I mean by that is you don't conform, or write in one style, and that challenges you (and others) to grow, to expand, to be upwardly mobile, to enrich. How would it be if you stuck to one style of writing or one genre or whatever? I daresay you could churn out several books a month, get royalties left and right, and set up a house in New Zealand if you chose. However, would you be happy doing that, being that type of author? If so, then you should. But I don't believe you would be happy in that place. You are undefinable, unable to be boxed in, and courageous----I appreciate that, and frankly WANT THAT, in my friends, and in the authors I read.
You, my friend (if only we only meet online and never face to face), are that quality that you can almost taste in fine wine, yet cannot put words to, but you know you want more of it. And keep us mere mortals coming back for more, because one taste is never enough.
Tame
Thank you so much! Beautiful words :-)
If there were no new styles of writing, we'd still be writing Homeric Epics. We also nay never have moved to written word novels.
Please keep writing atypical! I love it :)
Thank you :-)
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