Do you give authors a second chance?
Julie:
I think I used to be a lot more patient and would have been willing to give an author or series a second chance, but lately I’m just overstimulated with my TBR and all the awesome books out there, so if I’m not happy with a style or author for a very specific reason, I might just be done. This can be changed though, I mean if someone recommends another book and says it is really good and I’ll probably like it, I would be willing to give that author another try. Also, if I read a first in a series that wasn’t too great, but I’m told the rest of the series gets awesome, I would be willing to keep going. I guess it depends on why I thought about giving up on the author in the first place. Is the author one of those authors behaving badly? Then I’m out. I’m not supporting that kind of drama. Am I just upset because the book I read was poorly edited and I had to pay for it? Well, maybe the author learned from that experience and got professional editing help for their future books. So I might not be out completely, but I might be out for a time. How’s that for a yes/no answer?
Rose:
I usually do not, as a rule, give authors a second chance. It is not because I am mean or anything, or really that difficult to impress. It is just that there are soooo many books on my TBR list that if an author does not impress me with the first book I read by him or her, then I usually do not give them a second chance. Sometimes, if an author is especially well liked by some reviewers or friends or bloggers that I really respect and tend to like reading the same thing, then will CONSIDER giving the author a second chance. One author I am currently thinking about giving a second chance to is Jessica Sorensen. I have heard great things about her books, but I did not like The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden. So who knows…. perhaps, because everyone seems to like her books, I will give her another shot. What about you? Any authors worth a second chance on your list???
[…] Chapter Break’s discussion on whether or not to give authors a second chance. […]
For me, it depends on “what they did” the first time. If it’s something specific to the book, then I’d be more willing to try again, but if it’s smutty or filled with bad language, I’m done with that author.
Thanks for sharing this at Booknificent Thursday last week! Hope to see you again this week.
Tina
Tina at Mommynificent recently posted…Young Knights of the Round Table: The King’s Ransom Book Blast
Good point Tina, it really does depend on why you didn’t like that author’s first work.
I typically don’t consider the author too much when picking a book, unless it’s an author who’s books I really disliked (or really loved) in the past. I probably should consider authors more when choosing what to read since it will probably help me get rid of some of the books on my TBR that I will most likely dislike. Great topic!
Jessica @ Strung Out On Books recently posted…Reading Progress for #BtHReadathon
Well, that is good that you do not consider authors when choosing a book, because then you end up giving authors another chance even without meaning to 🙂
Not usually, no. But maybe I should. I read the J.K. Rowling book, Casual Vacancy, and I HATED IT. Like, really felt depressed and let down by it. But I loved (loved, loved, LOVED) the Harry Potter series. It would have been unfortunate if I read Casual Vacancy first and didn’t want to read any more from her, because I would have missed out on something awesome. But usually, I’m just too busy to give an author a second chance!
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Ooh I DNF’d Casual Vacancy. I only read it because I liked HP. So it would be awful if someone didn’t read HP series because they tried to read CV first. But I’m with you, I’m just too busy to be giving everyone second chances heh.
I read that whole darn book waiting for it to turn around and it never did. The ending? Awful.
Carrie recently posted…Wordy Wednesday
I probably made it through less than a third before saying buh-bye.
[…] Rose and Julie want to know if you give authors second chances. […]
It really depends on how much I disliked the first book I read by the author! If I’m willing to give the author a second chance I definitely won’t buy the book, but will look around at different reviews and ask friends who have read it to see what there thoughts were! Based on the feedback I get I’ll think about if I’ll give the author a second chance or not! Thanks for sharing the question at Booknificent Thursday! 🙂
You’re right Laura, it does depend on why you didn’t like the author’s first book you read. Thanks for sharing your thoughts 🙂
I think it would depend on if I thought the book I’d read by the author was fairly good or if I absolutely hated it. There have been a few books where I liked it alright – it didn’t knock my socks off – but I picked up the next in the series. And then there are books where there is no way I’m ever gonna read anything else by this author. (not a fan of William Faulkner, for example 🙂
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Yea good point. If you totally hated it, there’s little reason to try again. If the book was so-so, there’s hope the next one will be better.
via their books I always try to give each book its own thing. So just because I don’t like one book via that author doesnt mean I won’t like another. As for the authors attitude thats another thing. Which I don’t give second chances. Ive had to many authors come at me for a bad review I even had one try and sue me.
wow! Yeah, if an author came after me, I do not believe I would ever purchase another one of his or her books every again! Heck, I probably wouldn’t even read a copy of it if it was free. I do not purposely try to seek out author behaving badly, but if the authors does it TO me or in front of me, then yeah, no second chances… without an apology of course 🙂 I mean, we all make mistakes…
I usually give authors a second chance, but definitely not with an older book of theirs, but only in their newer and upcoming ones, because it only could mean they have improved since their first book that I didn’t like. I want to see if they have learned from whatever mistakes they had or from whatever flaw their books had, and how they will deliver the stories this time. It usually turns out pretty well! Like I didn’t exactly like the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead, but I tried her Gameboard of the Gods and now I’m a legit fan!
Faye @ The Social Potato recently posted…ARC Review: Magnolia by Kristi Cook
I think that is a good strategy to go by, Faye. If the book is a debut, then, yeah, the author could improve and therefore, a second chance might be a good idea… but if this author has published 15 books and the first book I read was his or her 15th? yeah, I am not giving a second go round…. I think that I tend to really dislike false dialogue. So long as the characters seem real to me, act real, feel real, TALK real, then I can get into the book. If an author cannot write dialogue or develop his/her characters… I’m out.
I do sometimes. Really depends on why the first go round didn’t work for me, ya know? But a lot of the times I’ve just got too many others I want to read and already like so they may get a chance again but not something I’m gonna rush out to do.
anna (herding cats & burning soup) recently posted…Review/ Quote-tastic (62)– Is this…turning you on?! Lay it Down (Desert Dogs #1) by Cara McKenna
yeah, this is understandable. While I do intend to give Jessica Sorensen another chance, I am not putting her at the top of my TBR list.
I tend to be a my-first-impression-is-my-lasting-impression kind of girl when it comes to reading. Although, like Rose, I might give an author another go if someone I know really loves them.
Interesting post!:)
Sunny Smith recently posted…Summer Post: What Makes a Summer Read?
Thanks Sunny! First impression are certainly important and tend to be lasting!
I plan to give second chances, but it doesn’t always work out that way, if that makes sense. I’ll still put their books on my tbr if I’m interested with the intention of reading them, but sometimes they just never make it to the “up next” or “currently reading” slot. But I won’t hesitate to pick up a book by an author I’ve read before and loved and then read and been disappointed by. I’ll just make sure the book is suited to me. Great post!
Berls @ Fantasy is More Fun recently posted…#COYER-SV Update | Can you believe it’s August?
oh, now that is an interesting distinction you’ve just made there… If I have read a book by an author and loved it and then read another book and not liked it, I do NOT hesitate to pick up another book by this same author, I just make sure it sounds like a book I would like… HOwever, if my first impression of the author is not great, I am less likely to want to read another book by them.
I think it definitely depends on what we didn’t like about the author’s first book. If it’s the characters I disliked, I definitely would consider giving her books a second try since characters change with every book. If it’s the writing, I’d definitely consider giving it a second try, but I’m probably not as likely to, since usually an author can’t really change their writing, and if you disliked it the first time, you’ll probably dislike it a second too.
Of course, there’s always exceptions. For instance, if you read a summary and it screams “you” – even if it’s an author whose book you previously disliked – I’d still definitely give it a try.
I always try to keep an open mind when reading books by authors, and I try to play it by ear. Great discussion! <3
Zoe @ The Infinite To-Read Shelf recently posted…Heir of Fire Review + Giveaway!
well said. I do try to keep an open mind and I also think that sometimes we might not like a book due to something going on in our personal lives at the moment. For instance, I have this FRIEND that seems to not like ANY decent read I recommend to her right now… she is preggers… so go figure… hahah but yeah, keeping an open mind is always good. thanks for sharing!
Yes, always. You just never know! 😉
I will say that often times an author’s first book is not nearly as good as his or her third book… or subsequent books..
I have, but I’m pretty picky about it. Both times I can recall, it has paid off for me. Sometimes it isn’t the writing, but the story, so when the story is something I’m more interested in, I get more out of it. But I agree with Rose, there are SO many books out there it is hard to go back to something you have a higher chance of not liking.
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I just got done saying the same thing on another comment here… Sometimes, if the writing style is basically good, but the plot is uninteresting to me, all it takes if for the next book to be set in a time or place that I DO find interesting in order for me to pick that author back up for a second look.
Hmm.. I can’t really think of an example that’s applicable to me here. Although I have my authors that I read almost no matter what – I can’t think of authors that I don’t give second chances to.
Scratch that. Stephanie Meyer. 😉
April @ The Steadfast Reader recently posted…Spread the Love 2.0: Week Twenty-Six
HA! Touche!
hahaha… funny. Yeah, I really do not think I would read any more of her books… that made me laugh.
Usually I don’t give authors a second chance. It’s hard though to not give them a second chance. In the case of His Dark Materials, I tried reading the series several times and it just didn’t click. Then one day, I picked up The Golden Compass and it blew me away. I devoured the other two books. It’s a tough call. Perhaps it is important to identify the reason for disliking the author (writing style, author behavior, etc.) before dismissing their novels.
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Good point. I think if I did not like the story line, it is possible I might like a different book by the same author. But if the dialogue was bad or the writing style seemed clunky to me, then, no, I usually do not want to give that author a second chance.
Unfortunately for me, I am very forgetful- especially when it comes to names. So, unintentionally, I’m sure I have and will give authors (maybe even books…) a second chance based on said forgetfulness…But, I will usually not, purposefully, give a book a second chance, but maybe an author. Now that I have become more active on Goodreads, I do mark down books rather quickly so I can use that for my memory back up 🙂
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I know what you mean about forgetting what authors you may have read or even forgetting books that you have read. I once bought this book twice and read it twice and still, it draws my eye whenever I find myself at the book store. The book wasn’t even that good! LOL. I can’t seem to remember that I read it already, own two copies and that it was kind of boring… I can’t even remember the name of the book to type in here… go figure
It depends I guess… if I have tried just one book from the author and series, and I see a different book/series that sounds like I might like it and then some of my fellow bloggers tell me it’s good, I’ll probably will give it a try, but if on that try I’m disappointed again… then probably not anymore!
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seems like sound reasoning…