Dear Readers: What Do You Want?

By Glenys O'Connell

Readers, what do you want?

In the words of the Spice Girls (which dates me, no doubt) tell me what you want; what you really, really want?

I mean, take books for example. We writers sit at our computers, or pens and notebooks, or chalks and slates, and we pour out our hearts and souls. Then we send those words out into the world, after fussing over them like mother hens, and wait. And wait. And wait. Sometimes there's a kind word from an editor or a publisher; sometimes there's a contract.

And all too often, there's a rejection.

Which, try as we might, we do take personally. Who could help but do so, after all we've given up – time with family, lazy days in the sun, movies and tv, reading other writers' books, dinner dates and trips out – in order to write those words that are so unappreciated.

And the worst of it is that those editors, publishers and agents that we rely on so heavily for a yeah or a nay, these people are only human. Stories are subjective – I might love a particular writer's work, someone else might hate it or worse, be indifferent.

Stephen King, my hero, was told his work was 'not commercial'. That not commercial writer has sold millions of books, and his work has been made into television shows and movies.

J.K. Rowling, creator of the breathtakingly popular Harry Potter books, was told that kids today weren't interested in dragons and wizards and magic. 'Nuff said.

Somewhere, out there in the Great Unknown, are editors or editorial assistants or publishers' purchasing committees who are crying into their beer for turning down the next great thing. At least I hope so.

So it seems these days that it is the readers who have the final say; the readers who spread the word about King and Rowling and many other bestsellers – once a publisher decided to take a chance on an unknown writer.

You see, readers know what they want.

There's a story about George Sands that says she began to write because she couldn’t find a book that interested her. The same is said of Louisa May Alcott, author of my girlhood favourite, Little Women and the sequel, Good Wives. But just like Rowling, they kept right on writing. The readers found them, and the rest is history.

So, readers, what do you want? What stories light up your lives, or leave you afraid to go into the dark basement alone? What inspires you? Makes you laugh, makes you weep? Lifts your mood and makes you feel better when your world is in chaos? A Love that makes your toes curl?  What, in fact, would you say are the ingredients of that Next Great Thing? Or even a book that you'd love to read?

The Internet is full or how-to advice for writers. I'm as guilty as any other blogger or article writer; I teach creative writing to would-be writers. I'm glad to say that quite a few have gone on to be published.

But to me the burning question isn't what is selling today; not what formula works to make a book successful – the very existence of such a formula is a fallacy.

The real question can only be answered by you, Dear Reader: What do you want?

Right about now you may be wondering what this has to do with the current theme of this blog: Organization.  The answer, of course, is absolutely nothing.

I always wanted to be a rebel!

Glenys O'Connell is the author of several mystery & romance novels with good reader reviews; her long-awaited (in her dreams) book based on her creative writing course: Naked Writing: The No Frills Way to Write Your Book, will soon be published. Her 'brand' is Romance Can Be Murder, which tells you a lot about her.... Learn more here.

Women of Achievement: Louisa May Alcott

LITTLE WOMEN

One of the most beloved books of my youth, Little Women, was written by Louisa May Alcott. The story chronicled the lives of four sisters. Louisa May Alcott pulled me into their world. Blessed with a vivid imagination and the drive to shine, Ms Alcott wanted to be famous from an early age.

When writing a story I love to create women characters that are strong, willful, stubborn, loyal…a woman just like Louisa May Alcott. The irony of writing about strong willful women in historicals is that it was difficult for women with these characteristics in the past. Women were looked down upon during this time if opinionated and independent. 

Although I’m not certain whether it was a conscious choice for Louisa to be different, I’m confident she chose to be herself. Perhaps it was being one of four sisters that drove her. Perhaps it was growing up in poverty. Perhaps it was her ambition. Whatever the reason, I believe because of her strength and determination she was able to achieve much in her life, leaving behind a legacy to be admired.

Her father might not have provided well for the material needs of his family, he did have connections. The Alcotts were within the inner circle of the Transcendentalist movement. Louisa’s father, Bronson, was best friends to Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. The influence of these men on her writing is undeniable, but writing wasn’t Louisa’s first plan to become rich and famous.

Louisa wanted to become an actress. Knowing that Little Women was based loosely on her on life and ‘Jo’ fashioned on herself, this information isn’t shocking. It is also not shocking to discover that her fame and fortune came from writing. What I found most fascinating and admirable was Louisa herself.

Louisa May Alcott was a woman of action and much more than an author. Louisa was a staunch abolitionist and supported racial equality. Saying this, one needs to remember the times Louisa grew up in. Abolitionists weren’t popular anywhere. Remember Louisa was raised outside of Boston, Massachusetts. Even there abolitionists were only tolerated. Most people of the era, even those who opposed slavery, still considered themselves above slaves even if they were free. Louisa’s family was part of the Underground Railroad. At times, her family hid runaway slaves in their home.

When the Civil War broke out, Louisa served as a nurse in the army. She tended patients in Washington. She assisted patients even holding the hands of soldiers dying from long and painful deaths. Her nursing these soldiers cost her her own health. She contracted typhoid fever and was treated for it with calomel (a mercury derivative) which hurt her physically and affected her for the rest of her life.

After she made her fame and fortune, Louisa set up a home for orphaned newsboys and told stories to the needy. She campaigned for women’s suffrage. She vowed when she was younger to be rich, and famous, and happy before I die. She fulfilled that vow and took on her family’s financial burden.

Louisa never married although there are rumors of a romance with a young man called “Laddie” when she was in Europe. We will never know for certain because she took that part out of her journal. One of Louisa’s friend Julian Hawthorne, Nathaniel Hawthorne’s son, said about Louisa. “Did she ever have a love affair? We never knew; yet how could a nature so imaginative, romantic and passionate escape it?”

Because Louisa took on the financial responsibility for her family, marrying would have caused a dilemma for her. A woman at that time would have become a shadow of her husband with no economic or legal identity. Did she sacrifice herself for her family? That I can’t answer.

Louisa’s fortune was set with the publication of Little Women when she was 35. She had finally achieved the fame and fortune she had sought.

She died twenty years later and is buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery by her parents. It is also the resting place of other notables such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Elizabeth Alcott.

She is renowned for her writings, but she was much more than an author. She was a woman of action. One to be long admired for her achievements.

You will find my next release, The Judas Kiss, out this coming January with Whiskey Creek Press. A historical romance. I’m excited because it’s the first in the Tides of Charleston series. You will find my other books, Dream Walker and Patriot Secrets, at most ebook stores. Follow me on Facebook- Novel Works is my fan page where I recommend books, authors, blogs… I’m also on Twitter @jhines340.