A subject that I find rather fascinating, oddly enough. I used to love reading the blurbs in the back of a paperback when I was younger – you don’t get it so much these days but that little snapshot of a novel has always been something I want to read. But what makes a blurb a good one? Afraid I’m not imparting secrets here, since I find writing blurbs a difficult exercise even when I wrote the damn book – i’m just interested in how they vary and how people approach them. I know some who don’t even read the blurb, they go off recommendations and don’t want their opinion coloured – others, like me will buy a book off a good blurb. I was always put off buying The Eye of the World by the hideous artwork, but something about the snippet on the back – not even a blurb that one – grabbed my imagination and I had to buy it.
I suspect the Name of the Wind blurb has sold more than a few copies by itself, but it’s an art I find elusive. usually my first runs are over-long and over-detailed and I have to try and boil them down into something interesting over a dozen edits. I try to avoid as many fantasy names as possible, certainly the complicated ones that have put me off other books in the past, but as readers, what does it for you? What puts you off?
Are there books you’ve bought on the strength of the blurb? Ones you’ve not bothered with for the same reason? I’m reading the blurb for Way of Kings and, though everyone says it’s great, I just can’t bring myself to care off the back of that blurb. For me there are too many names, too many details and too many questions. Unsurprisingly, having met the man and realised how clever he is, I tend to find Adam Roberts blurbs hugely intriguing, and Joe Abercrombie’s all tend to be good because they sound the way he speaks and he’s an entertaining guy, but there are so many that I just don’t care about. Now I’m planning a new series, I’ve got a while handful sitting in a file waiting to be refined – but how to do them so it’s not just for my own entertainment…?
I don’t really trust them – especially when they’re within the same publisher. I understand that authors won’t be dishonest on a blurb, and I’m sure this is overly cynical, but, whatever. There it is.
The reverse, of course, is whenever I see that an author I like has blurbed a book that’s not in the same publisher/agent/stable, I take it at face value and will actually buy a book ’cause of that (latest I can think of – William Gibson on Lauren Beukes’ Zoo City)
Sorry – not what I meant there, by blurb I meant the description of the book on the back of a book, not the blurb quotes!
I don’t really trust them – especially when they’re within the same publisher. I understand that authors won’t be dishonest on a blurb, and I’m sure this is overly cynical, but, whatever. There it is.
The reverse, of course, is whenever I see that an author I like has blurbed a book that’s not in the same publisher/agent/stable, I take it at face value and will actually buy a book ’cause of that (latest I can think of – William Gibson on Lauren Beukes’ Zoo City)
Sorry – not what I meant there, by blurb I meant the description of the book on the back of a book, not the blurb quotes!
When I first look at a blurb, I’m looking for basic information–is this book the kind of thing I read? (Any mention of vampires makes me put it down immediately.)
If it passes that test, I want to be intrigued. Mention of something special in the world, something about the main character that makes me want to find out about him/her.
I know when I first picked up your book, the blurb made me think it might be good (very right!), so clearly you’re not as bad at it as you think. I don’t remember the blurb now, though. I’ll have to look at Way of the Kings when I go into work tonight to see what the blurb is like. I loved that book, but I don’t remember now what made me pick it up other than that a friend recommended it.
Well that’s good to hear. I think my problem is the first few drafts have far too much information so i’m always trying to cut that down.
blurbs
Buy it for the blurbs? Uhhhhh…not really. It does make me open it to glance at the foreward. Then I make my decision.
By the way..how’s the progress? There really isn’t much out there. Any suggestion for us dragon followers? Just something to tide me over till you’re finished.
Re: blurbs
to tide you over? depends what you’ve read already i guess. Adrian Tchaikovsky?
When I first look at a blurb, I’m looking for basic information–is this book the kind of thing I read? (Any mention of vampires makes me put it down immediately.)
If it passes that test, I want to be intrigued. Mention of something special in the world, something about the main character that makes me want to find out about him/her.
I know when I first picked up your book, the blurb made me think it might be good (very right!), so clearly you’re not as bad at it as you think. I don’t remember the blurb now, though. I’ll have to look at Way of the Kings when I go into work tonight to see what the blurb is like. I loved that book, but I don’t remember now what made me pick it up other than that a friend recommended it.
Well that’s good to hear. I think my problem is the first few drafts have far too much information so i’m always trying to cut that down.
blurbs
Buy it for the blurbs? Uhhhhh…not really. It does make me open it to glance at the foreward. Then I make my decision.
By the way..how’s the progress? There really isn’t much out there. Any suggestion for us dragon followers? Just something to tide me over till you’re finished.
Re: blurbs
to tide you over? depends what you’ve read already i guess. Adrian Tchaikovsky?
I live off blurbs. They are what ultimately cause me to pick up one novel vs. another when I am picking up something to review for my blog.
However, I actually use cover-quotes just as much. If I see something with a quote by Erikson, Abercrombie, Cook, etc. I automatically grab it.
As for Way of Kings, I’m slightly partial to the author (him being a good friend, and me being one of his alpha readers) so I never actually get to see any blurbs of his books until I buy an actual copy after the fact. It’s a solid novel though (not his best, but pretty good).
As for your novels, I didn’t read the blurbs. At Worldcon in 2008 Lou said your stuff was like Erikson, so I didn’t need any more info. Of course it took me a while to pick them up, but I never actually read any blurb of yours.
Geez…it sounds like I don’t even read them, even though I usually do.
;0) you keep telling people they’re good, you can read as little as you like!
I live off blurbs. They are what ultimately cause me to pick up one novel vs. another when I am picking up something to review for my blog.
However, I actually use cover-quotes just as much. If I see something with a quote by Erikson, Abercrombie, Cook, etc. I automatically grab it.
As for Way of Kings, I’m slightly partial to the author (him being a good friend, and me being one of his alpha readers) so I never actually get to see any blurbs of his books until I buy an actual copy after the fact. It’s a solid novel though (not his best, but pretty good).
As for your novels, I didn’t read the blurbs. At Worldcon in 2008 Lou said your stuff was like Erikson, so I didn’t need any more info. Of course it took me a while to pick them up, but I never actually read any blurb of yours.
Geez…it sounds like I don’t even read them, even though I usually do.
;0) you keep telling people they’re good, you can read as little as you like!
Since the dawning of the bright new internet age, i’m not sure whether the blurb has any real impact on me. Though it is often copied into the product description so i guess it’s still relevant.
I do remember picking up my first Terry Pratchett book [Mort] from the local library purely based on the blurb though…
SO i guess for me, considering picking up a book by an author I haven’t read before, it’s part of the process but not a be-all-end-all.
Though one of my favorate books of recent years has an interesting blurb… The Lies of Locke Lamorre. I swear the blurb describes and entirely different book to the one i read [the one i read being much better.]
Because of stuff like that, I had always thought that the blurb was written by the publisher/marketing.
Learn something new every day eh.
I think, although I’m not sure, that the UK Locke blurb was, I’m sure, written by the UK publisher – it sounds like their voice and isn’t the same as the US one. It does vary a lot as to who writes the blurb – Gollancz always ask the writer to do the first swing I believe, but I’ve worked at some companies where it’s the assistants or the agents even who’ve written the blurb.
I guess it depends if they’re any good at it! Might be that some don’t want to, but since I love the form, I’m keen to do mine! ;0)
Since the dawning of the bright new internet age, i’m not sure whether the blurb has any real impact on me. Though it is often copied into the product description so i guess it’s still relevant.
I do remember picking up my first Terry Pratchett book [Mort] from the local library purely based on the blurb though…
SO i guess for me, considering picking up a book by an author I haven’t read before, it’s part of the process but not a be-all-end-all.
Though one of my favorate books of recent years has an interesting blurb… The Lies of Locke Lamorre. I swear the blurb describes and entirely different book to the one i read [the one i read being much better.]
Because of stuff like that, I had always thought that the blurb was written by the publisher/marketing.
Learn something new every day eh.
I think, although I’m not sure, that the UK Locke blurb was, I’m sure, written by the UK publisher – it sounds like their voice and isn’t the same as the US one. It does vary a lot as to who writes the blurb – Gollancz always ask the writer to do the first swing I believe, but I’ve worked at some companies where it’s the assistants or the agents even who’ve written the blurb.
I guess it depends if they’re any good at it! Might be that some don’t want to, but since I love the form, I’m keen to do mine! ;0)
I have pretty much no friends who read books frequently, so when i go searching for a new book to read at the library its with no recommendations or anything. All i have to narrow down my search first off is the genres i read. So the blurb is a big part of my own personal choosing of whether or not to read a book, along with cover art (i know that might sound a little weird, but if you have a cool picture on the front, or you title is in a funky looking font, ill pick up your book and read the blurb, which is actually how i picked up stormcaller in the first place i think).
Excellent! Remember any where the blurb particularly grabbed you?
From memory, the blurb for the Night Watch did, which led to me reading the rest of the series which was a very enjoyable read and the blurb for painted man by terry brooks. There are probably others as well but i cant remember as i spend a lot of time in the library lol. Mind you i have also been led astray by good blurbs into reading bad books (well, i dont wanna say bad, but books i personally didnt like) causing me to struggle through it to the end.
Well yes, but getting people to buy the book is the current concern – i’ll worry about being a better writer afterwards! Night Watch and Painted Man are good examples yes.
I would buy all of them if they actually sold them here. But only the libraries have them. Its really annoying. Also, i agree with (if this is what you were trying to say) that when a lot of the invented names of places and people are put in the blurb it kinda puts me off. Cant really place why but it does.
Yeah, can’t pin it down properly either. It’s not as if I shouldn’t be tolerant of a lot of random names and places!
I have pretty much no friends who read books frequently, so when i go searching for a new book to read at the library its with no recommendations or anything. All i have to narrow down my search first off is the genres i read. So the blurb is a big part of my own personal choosing of whether or not to read a book, along with cover art (i know that might sound a little weird, but if you have a cool picture on the front, or you title is in a funky looking font, ill pick up your book and read the blurb, which is actually how i picked up stormcaller in the first place i think).
Excellent! Remember any where the blurb particularly grabbed you?
From memory, the blurb for the Night Watch did, which led to me reading the rest of the series which was a very enjoyable read and the blurb for painted man by terry brooks. There are probably others as well but i cant remember as i spend a lot of time in the library lol. Mind you i have also been led astray by good blurbs into reading bad books (well, i dont wanna say bad, but books i personally didnt like) causing me to struggle through it to the end.
Well yes, but getting people to buy the book is the current concern – i’ll worry about being a better writer afterwards! Night Watch and Painted Man are good examples yes.
I would buy all of them if they actually sold them here. But only the libraries have them. Its really annoying. Also, i agree with (if this is what you were trying to say) that when a lot of the invented names of places and people are put in the blurb it kinda puts me off. Cant really place why but it does.
Yeah, can’t pin it down properly either. It’s not as if I shouldn’t be tolerant of a lot of random names and places!