Justine Larbalestier on why she doesn't read.

Certain authors.  Why she doesn't read certain authors.

Scared you for a minute, though, didn't I?

I admit it.  I'm totally one of those author photo people.  If the back flap features a photos that looks like a GlamourShot, complete with the gauze and the windmachine and the soft focus, I won't read it.

I also tend to avoid authors who have legions of annoying fans.  Actually, that goes for musicians, too.

You?

(via Ed Rants)

Comments

[Morwen]

I think probably every reader has silly reasons why they might not read a book, or stop reading a book. For example, I didn't read the Harry Potter series for years because of the crazy fans and debates about whether or not they were books a "good Christian" can read. I haven't read Count of Monte Cristo because I read the first five pages of Black Tulip and didn't like it. And I didn't read Princess Bride for the longest time because "I don't read abridged books."

And that's only a few examples. ;)

[Adam S.]

I don't read books who have legions of fans. Dan Brown, Clive Barker, Clive Cussler, Stephen King, James Patterson, Dean Koontz, to name a few.

It's not that I hate these authors, it's that they suck. From my experience the more popular a book is the more Da Vinci Code-ish it is.

I'll also avoid the book if the author's name is bigger than the title. That's a dead giveaway.

What does get me to buy a book is blurbs from other authors. I've bought books because Francine Prose or Neil Gaiman recommended them.

[Leila]

Regardless of how many people tell me that Abarat is a good book, I haven't been able to bring myself to read it.

"I'll also avoid the book if the author's name is bigger than the title."

Oooo, good one.

[Brandon]

I stay away from anything with a picture of bare feet and an abundance of pink on the cover. (This rule doesn't apply to blogs.) My biggest pet peeve (and I mentioned this at Justine's blog) is dream sequences. I'll stop reading a book with a dream sequence, no matter how good the book is overall, and whether or not I pick it up again depends on my mood. Sometimes I can slog through a character's boring dream. Sometimes not. And I try to stay away from books with those John Grisham-like titles. "The Firm," "The Partner," "The (insert noun here)." You can't get less creative than that. Unless, of course, "The (insert noun here)" happens to have a dream sequence.

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