I’m reading a series of books about marketing my novels. They each prioritize a central marketing principle: Know Your Target Audience.
I realize, being relatively new to the epic fantasy scene that I don’t know who these people are. I have never frequented conventions or even chat groups online. When I go to social occasions, I often ask people what are you reading right now, because sports and politics can only go so far – and real men don’t discuss work or family (as a new immigrant to the US that’s what I was told).
But when I ask the question, people rarely say epic fantasy. During the days of Harry Potter, the Inheritance series, and now The Hunger Games, a man could come out of the library closet because his children were reading them and he was showing himself to be an in-touch father.
So here is my request. If you read epic fantasy, please answer as many of the following questions as you have patience for.
1. How old are you?
2. Are you male or female?
3. Where do you live?
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
5. What is your profession?
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
9. How many books do you read a month?
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
One last favor if I may. Please pass this on to friends and family who you think might read epic fantasy and ask them to mention your name as referral. I would like to offer the first 20 people who refer 3 responders to the survey an eBook of either:
Thank you for your help. I will publish the results if I can get 50 responses.
——————————————————————————————————
Alon Shalev is the author of The Accidental Activist and A Gardener’s Tale. He has written two fantasy novels and the first reached the Quarter Finals of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award as of March 2012. More on Alon Shalev at http://www.alonshalev.com/and on Twitter (@elfwriter).
Elfwriter 
1. Just turned 64 two weeks ago.
2. Female
3. East Los Angeles area
4. MFA in English and creative writing.
5. Writer as J.M. Jeffries, Publisher-Parker Publishing Inc, busy granny
6. Yes for all three. As often as I have time.
7. I look for a unique world, engrossing characters and a story that keeps me awake at night.
8. I generally use my Kindle for reading, but if the type is large enough I will read a paperback on occasion. I also have a Nook, but don’t use as often because it’s heavier.
9. Between 4 and 10 depending on time
10. Right now, I really am enjoying George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones. I like his style of writing and I adore the characters. Another favorite author is Mindy Klasky’s Glassblower series for it’s unique story. Mercedes Lackey is another favorite.
What do you intend to do with this information?
I intend to collateral it and include in a business plan for when my novels are published. Whether conventional publishing or otherwise, the author is responsible for his/her marketing and book promotion. I want to develop a business plan that reflects who the readers are.
Thanks for your interest.
Alon
I’m probably gonna be the odd one out here, haha. Anyways, here are the answers I can give you.
27, female, Europe. Finished high school, did job training and some uni, am mostly an autodidact though. Spending most of my time writing sf/f and drawing comics, although I got a non-descript part-time day job to pay the bills. Got a blog, Twitter, and my fb page is under way (although secondary; I’m not a fan of fb).
Epic fantasy should be set in a fictional world rather than our own. It doesn’t have to be pseudo-medieval or stick to all the genre conventions, as long as it gets that epic feel across. And there should definitely be orcs. 🙂
I used to read exclusively dead tree books, but lately I’ve switched to Kindle. I do like to have my favorite books on paper, though. Ratio? *eyes bookshelf* Right now probably fifty-fifty. When I have the time I can easily read a book or two a week, when I don’t, maybe one or two a month.
JRR Tolkien’s my favorite epic fantasy author, but right now David Dalglish is putting up a good fight to claim that place, heh. They both rock, if in very different ways.
Hope that helps. Oh, and you might want to inquire about music. I know a lot of epic fantasy fans who have a taste for heavy metal (guilty as charged), so that might be an indication – not sure as to what, though.
Very true about the music. I haven’t been into rock for ages. I just ‘discovered’ Nightwish and am writing to their music all the time.
Great point.
Alon
Nightwish is great. And if you like Tolkien, you should totally check out Blind Guardian’s “Nightfall in Middle-Earth”.
Oh, love Nightwish and Blind Guardian! Sorry to derail your convo, but I am also an epic fantasy reader/author and music is what helps seal the deal. I also recommend listening to “epica” type music from groups like Two Steps from Hell and Audiomachine. They do background music for movies, games, commercials, etc, but also have albums out for the public. I really recommend their music…beautiful, powerful, and mesmerizing to write to.
Will definitely check them out, Cheryl. Thank you. I have not heard of either band or Blond Guardian.
Take care,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
2. Are you male or female?
male
3. Where do you live? Dorset Uk
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? BA
5. What is your profession? Writer/librarian
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
facebook and twitter
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Great story, strong characters and a world that has a bit of depth
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Pbk/hbk/kindle 60/10/20
9. How many books do you read a month?
2-3
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?l ooh. Tricky one that. Probably Gemmell, great characters with real flaws and humanity, excellent action and story
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1. How old are you?
42
2. Are you male or female?
Male
3. Where do you live?
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
High school graduate
5. What is your profession?
Unemployed, but used to be a hotel manager
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Yes. Although a newbie to Google + (don’t really know what I am doing there yet.)
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
Well run plot, vivid characters, NOT filled with graphic sex, minimal foul language.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
Hardcover/paperback 95%
9. How many books do you read a month?
5-7 on average
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
So…many…names! Must…think…harder…! Brain…system…error. *reboot*
Hardest question in the history of questions, man!
Currently Robin Hobb. Her three trilogies Farseer, Liveship Traders and Tawny Man are all interconnected in an incredibly well built world. She weaves each of the three books in each of those series around the other stories and brings characters to life. You can seriously feel like you have laughed and cried with these people by the end of your reading. She has a history for her world and the many cultures she has created but she doesn’t infodump and weigh the reader down with it. It just flows thru the books in snippets.
Can’t put them down. She is responsible for a fairly large sleep-debt in my life!!
As a reader of fantasy: I lover her!
As a writer of fantasy: I hate her! I am envious of how well she does it.
1. How old are you?
26
2. Are you male or female?
Female
3. Where do you live?
The SF Bay Area
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
High school, yes. I’ve made some progress towards a BA.
5. What is your profession?
English tutor/supplemental instruction leader
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Twitter and a few blogs. I used to be active on FB, but now I just check in once a week or so to see how my aunt is doing. I have Google+, but I haven’t really gotten into it at this point.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
Well, the usual elements of complex characters I can care about (even if I don’t necessarily like them), an interesting and satisfying plot, and good prose. For epic fantasy in particular, I really want a vivid setting, especially a setting that has a significant impact on the course of the story. I want stories that couldn’t be set in any other place or time and still be the same story. I tend to prefer my magic on the subtle side, but it can be more prevalent and more ostentatious as long as it has appropriate consequences.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
At this point, it’s about 70% ebooks, 30% paper.
9. How many books do you read a month?
Depends on how much I’m working. When I’m busy at work, sometimes it gets down to 1 a month. When I have more time (like now! Yay!) maybe 5 or 6. More, if my reading includes YA or middle grade books.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
Guy Gavriel Kay. I have a hard time picking favorites, but he’s amazing. He is a master of character and setting, and he hits all the points I mentioned in question 7 and then some. He is one of the very, very rare authors who can make me care so much that I cry with joy when the characters triumph.
1. How old are you? 57
2. Are you male or female? Male
3. Where do you live? Gettysburg, PA
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Two masters
5. What is your profession? Clergy
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Facebook and LiveJournal
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Seriously, I want it to be epic. I care little for a minor character’s concerns unless they directly impact the bigger picture of the story. If the bad guys are pouring over the west wall after a horrible plague killed most of the defenders, I don’t care that the heroine is miffed that the hero didn’t smile at her right. IF it’s epic fantasy, make it epic!
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). 50/50
9. How many books do you read a month? About 4
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? I have no favorite when it comes to epic fantasy. I’m more interested in the individual story.
1. How old are you?
41
2. Are you male or female?
Male
3. Where do you live?
New Hampshire, USA
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
High School only
5. What is your profession?
Freelance writer and Social Media Website developer
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Yes to all
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
An over-arching story, compelling and believable characters, many sub plots, a believable world, unique magic (if it exists).
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
25% eReader to 75% book
9. How many books do you read a month?
3-4
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
Old school I have to go with Stephen R Donaldson. His books about Thomas Covenant and the Land are some of the most unique and “hard” books I have read. For modern authors, I like Brandon Sanderson because his Mistborn series breathed new life into a genre that had been foundering for years in sameness.
Great series of questions! I’ve enjoyed reading everyone’s responses. Here are mine:
1. 50
2. Female
3. Washington DC
4. BA and Masters degree
5. Student Ministry director at church
6. Yes for all, but still trying to figure out Google+
7. I love unique and well-developed characters, surprising plot twists, and beautiful geography
8. Reading more on Kindle these days
9. I read about 5-7 books a month
10. I enjoy many of the authors mentioned already but am quite bogged down (and a bit lost) in latest George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones. I’d like to add Jill Williamson to the list of excellent authors. Her “Blood of Kings” series weaves a most compelling story!
. How old are you? 50
2. Are you male or female? male
3. Where do you live? nyc
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? 2 yrs college
5. What is your profession? writer
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? somewhat
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? compelling characters, original story
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). 70% paper
9. How many books do you read a month? varies
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? tolkien. compelling Characters and a believable world. The weight of history not even explicitly mentioned but implied and obliquely reffered to, makes the world seem so real.
1 44
2 male
3 Edinburgh, Scotland,uk
4 Finished school left at 16
5 ex bus driver now a courier
6 active on fb and twitter but I don’t read or comment on blogs
7 A good story obv, characters
that seem a bit weak at the beginning but find themselves on their journey/quest,secrecy,deception,maps are always good and even pictures of the characters through the book,creatures,magic fantastical lands but most of all a story that flows and carries the reader along with it.
8 paperback 100% not spending £15 on a HB when I can spend £8 on a PB
9 2
10 terry brooks.Why? epic stories over the years in the books and in the real world. I hope these answers are sort off what you’re looking for and good luck in the future.
This is great. Thank you, Dave.
Alon
1. Practically 27 (my birthday is Wednesday)
2. Female
3. Oklahoma
4. Graduated high school, finished a couple semesters of college, not yet decided if I want to finish.
5. Writer by desire, insurance agent out of necessity
6. Facebook, Twitter, rarely check-in at G+, yes on reading/commenting for blogs
7. Bigger than life problems with characters that are compelling.
8. 50/50 – I prefer paper books, but e-books usually fit in the budget better. I still have and abuse a library card 😀
9. Less than I used to, probably more like 2-5 now. Used to be 10-15 *sigh*. Then I became an adult.
10. Tolkien. Because I wouldn’t be a writer now if he hadn’t inspired me.
So here is my request. If you read epic fantasy, please answer as many of the following questions as you have patience for.
1. How old are you? – late 30’s
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Utah
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? – BA College (History, minor in creative writing)
5. What is your profession? – marketing
6. Facebook – yes
Twitter – yes
Google+ – no
read blogs – some
comment on blogs – almost never. But today was an exception. You are asking for help & as a marketer & fellow writer I thought I’d oblige.
7. Originality (more than an elf, dwarf, and human set off to save the world). Balance of male & female characters, strong female characters are important to me. Good characterization overall, realistic people with quirks, depth and interesting motivations. Strong world building & complex plots.
8. I prefer paper – have an iPad, never read books on it
9. 1-4 depends on work/travel schedule
10. Steven Ericson or Robin Hobb
1. How old are you?
19; 20 later this year.
2. Are you male or female?
Female.
3. Where do you live?
England (North West).
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
I finished highschool and I’m in the process of studying for a Masters degree.
5. What is your profession?
Full time student; will be a Master of Physics when I graduate.
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr are my main social networking sites. Never used Google+. I read a lot of blogs but only tend to comment when it doesn’t make me register for an account first.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
Well fleshed-out characters; unexpected plot twists; a good romance plot; interesting setting/mythological creatures; action. Sometimes darker literature with more violence.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
I ALWAYS get eBooks if they’re available. If I really want a book but it’s not available in eBook form then I’ll buy a paperback version, provided it isn’t too costly.
9. How many books do you read a month?
I usually finish books in a few days. The amount of books I read per month depends on the term time.. During Easter/Summer I can get through 8+. During exam time I don’t read.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
I have no particular favourites, but the Wheel of Time series by James Rigney was amazing. I loved the Eragon series when I was younger, too. And, of course, Tolkien. They were just gripping.
1. How old are you?
27
2. Are you male or female?
Female
3. Where do you live?
Kansas
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
High School. Few years in college, but I just couldn’t settle on a major.
5. What is your profession?
Server by day, writer pursuing traditional publication by night.
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Yup. All of the things. Yes, I totally just threw in a meme for the heck of it.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
I look for an intriguing setting that has something new to offer. I also require my characters to be interesting. Likeability is not a necessity for me if the story itself is amazing. At the moment, I prefer epic fantasy with strong female protagonists. I don’t much care for the GRRM style of epic fantasy where every single chapter is a different POV character. I do, however, love the plot.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
Both. eReader is about 90%. Hardcover/paperback about 10%. I tend to buy authors I’ve just discovered on my Kindle, then if I like them, buy the rest of their books in paper form.
9. How many books do you read a month?
This varies pretty drastically. While I’m writing a novel, 0. In between those times, I’d say about 10+.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
I don’t know if I have a favorite. Could I just list the authors who inspired my love for epic fantasy? If I did that, it’d be Robin McKinley, Terry Goodkind, and Tolkien.
1. 31
2. Male
3. Pennsylvania, USA
4. Master’s Degree
5. Writer; Day-Job: Production Artist
6. Yes sir.
7. First and foremost I’m looking for a story that excites me, grabs my attention and keeps me wanting to find out more about the world and its characters. Things that will drag me OUT of a story are more specific. If the characters are blatantly “too awesome,” meaning they succeed at everything with little or no effort and have no character growth. You can have the typical plotline of “boy gets a sword and becomes a hero” and I’ll LOVE it… so long as you make that character go from nothing to something believable.
8. I read both, and I’ll add audio books here as well. I read via Audiobook 40%, e-Reader 20%, paper-book 40%
9. 1 – 3 a month
10. I’m torn lately. It’s a toss up between Brandon Sanderson, George RR Martin and Robert Jordan.
1. How old are you? 50
2. Are you male or female? female
3. Where do you live? Golden, Colorado
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? licence in Aesthetics, But I am writing a series of novels. Fantasy fiction
5. What is your profession?Bartender
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Facebook, twitter, goodreads, my own blog, http://lisafender.blogspot.com
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? keep me wanting to turn the page! Pull me in and don’t let me go!
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). I just recently got a Nook, have read 3 books on it. I have always preferred a book that you can save on a shelf and share with others.
9. How many books do you read a month? probably 4-5
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why I have to say George R R Martin’s Fire and Ice series. (the Game of Thrones) I have read the books twice already and can’t wait for the next. I also loved Harry Potter, and the Hunger Games. I do love series!
I hope this helps! I am curious of the results!
Great questionnaire. Interesting replies so far. Here’s mine:
1. 28
2. Female
3. Cape Cod
4. high school and various additional education
5. RE agent, writer
6. yes
7. The plot and the characters need to be so gripping and complex that I’d fall asleep reading, because I couldn’t put the book down for a second. It needs to be something new. Elves, dwarves and the like are fine, but always the same. I’m a huge fan of magic in fantasy.
8. 99% paperback, 1% hardcover
9. varies
10. David Eddings. He makes you feel like you’re part of the world he created, and he makes you fall in love with the characters, regardless of whether they are the heroes or the villains. With his Belgariad he created something new, and he invented his own kind of magic.
Reblogged this on L.P.'s and commented:
An enjoyable survey.
Thank you so much.
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com/
. How old are you? Late 30’s
2. Are you male or female? female
3. Where do you live? am Irish living in London
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? BA English & Creative Writing
5. What is your profession? Writer, stay at home mum
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? FB not really, Twitter yes, google no, read and comment on blogs — about 10 blogs.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Fight between good and evil, believable characters, accessible, unexpected twists, putting your characters through the mill.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).Paperback
9. How many books do you read a month? 6 maybe
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Robin Hobb at the moment, I love the grief she put her main character through in the farseer trilogy. Totally believable too. And the great Tolkien of course. Stephen Donaldson also kept me turning the pages.
1) I am 27.
2) Male
3) Oxfordshire, England
4) I finished A-levels (18 years old)
5) I’m a police officer
6) Yes I am active on Facebook and twitter ( @shep5377). I read a lot of blogs but I don’t tend to comment much.
7) I look for something I haven’t seen before. A new magic system will intrigue me, or a new style of ‘hero’. SomethIng that breaks away from the norm.
8) I predominantly use a kindle now as it saves space and money. That is a recent thing for me, but I still read paperbacks around 20% of the time. I will never buy a hardback, not worth the extra money.
9) Depends really. I would say 2 or 3 a month on average.
10) Currently Brandon Sanderson is my favourite. This is mainly because his magic systems are unbelievably believable and utterly unique. His writing is extremely addictive.
1. 31
2. Male
3. Oregon
4. Finished up some college classes without a degree
5. Full-Time Banker, Part-Time Amateur Writer (https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/153976)
6. Facebook and twitter yes (@RickVilante) but not so much on G+ or LinkedIn. I should change that.
7. Fleshed out characters with complex, but understandable, motivations. Strong conflicts to drive the narrative. Fully realized and living worlds teeming with originality, and prose that doesn’t require study of Old English.
8. My reading is split 50% between paperbacks and ebooks.
9. About two per month. The rest of the time I’m writing.
10. I know it sounds corny, but JK without a doubt. Her books got me back into reading after a long hiatus, in which I was only interested in MMA and Video Games.
I am 34, Female, Alabama US, AA, Rep for P&G, active FB and Twitter, I look for the battle with strong morales and emotions, I use Nook, Paper Books and audio all equally just depends on how fast I want the book or if the mail is lagging then I will purchase on Nook read and store the book on my shelf, I read or listen (3000 miles month for work allows a lot of audio time) approximately 5-10 books a month, My favorite author of all time would have to be “Terry Goodkind, The Sword of Truth” hands down!
1. 28
2. Male, married
3. Canberra Australia
4. White, Muslim
5. Systems Administrator specialising in virtualisation and cloud computing.
6. Twitter – (@herodfel)
7. I really like world building and fluff. big open worlds with lots of history and unique magic systems etc – like Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time. Or big open universes with lots of history and different races, different takes on magic or psychic abilities (Warhammer 40,000/Horus Heresy). Also really enjoying stephen king’s works at the moment.
8. Listen to audio books because i can do that in bed, driving,cleaning, at work etc. Havent bought paper books in a while. Am tryign out ebooks but i miss the charm of a paper book. maybe its just nostalgia.. i dunno
9. I’d read about 5 books a month.. each an average of 400-600 pages usually.
10. current favourite is Stephen King. Recently listene to the audio book of his non-fiction work about writing novels, called “On Writing”. Its part biographic and it really blew me away.
For the record i’ve read that doing the whole “know your audience” thing can adversely affect your writing because you start trying to write what you think others want to hear rather than the genuinely cool stories that would come naturally to you and it takes something away from your writing abilities. This is the advice of some best selling authors, but each to their own. Either way, wish you the best success.
Thank you, Salmaan. I hope my writing won’t be influenced by defining my target audience, but it is a point well taken. I anticipate using this for marketing rather than creating, but I appreciate your warning and can imagine falling into such a trap.
Thanks for filling out the survey.
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com/
1. 34
2. Male
3. Pacific Northwest
4. Working on an MA.
5. Linguist
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yes.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Story, adventure, characters I can relate to, cheer for, fall in love with, live through.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? Only real books.
9. How many books do you read a month? 2
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Wow – tough question. Toss up right now. Robert Jordan is amazing. The way he paints his worlds and characters is masterful. Rothfuss is brilliant and George R.R. Martin has an terrific touch with words. Reading Sanderson now and he is a guru when it comes to design and structure. Taking points from all of them would be to design an incredible verbal artist.
29
female
currently in Budapest Hungary doing my Masters in clinical psychology, originally from Jerusalem.
active on Facebook. just joined Twitter and still trying to figure out what it’s good for.
what I look for in a book is hard to say. I think that the most important factor is character development. Creating well rounded characters that face hard choices and have to cope with difficulties in a way that is both believable and inspiring. the worse type of character is the one who never changes or grows. for example Terry Goodkind’s Richard (sword of Truth), Orson Scott Card’s Ender (Ender’s Game) and Raistlin (Dragonlance) are examples of beautifully developing characters. the rest is background in my opinion. you can have an amazingly imaginative world but if the characters are one dimensional cardboard figures the story will never lift. on the other hand, Arthur C. Clark is a master story teller and you barely remember the name of his main character (2001 space odyssey, Rendezvous with Rama) but this is an unusual exception in my view.
i think my favorite book is C. S. Friedman’s Black Sun Rising trilogy. pure perfection….
1. How old are you? 33
2. Are you male or female? female
3. Where do you live? Mesa, Arizona, USA
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? High school, and most of a Bachelor’s Degree in English
5. What is your profession? writer of fantasy novels, parent, freelance editor
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yes to all.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? I look for characters I can connect with.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Entirely hardcover/paperback. I might use an eReader if I owned one, but I don’t and it’s not in the near-future budget.
9. How many books do you read a month? Two or three. It depends on many factors.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Guy Gavriel Kay. He always makes me fall in love, always makes me cry when Things happen to his characters. On top of that, his prose is just beautiful and his worlds lush and real.
1. I’m 41 years old.
2. Female
3. Kingston, Jamaica
4. I have a Masters Degree
5. I am a Librarian
6. I am active on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Goodreads and I do sometimes comment on blogs
7. In an epic fantasy, I’m looking for complexity of plot and well fleshed out characters.
8. I have a Kindle Touch (which I love) but my reading is about 80% print and 20% Kindle
9. Depends on the length of the book, but I usually manage 2-4 books a month.
10. Tad Williams and Robert Jordan are my favourite fantasy authors, with David Eddings earning an honourable mention. I love Williams in particular because he is fearless in his ability to deliver a well thought out plot with developed characters and nary a stereotype among them. Check out his Otherland series: a masterpiece. With Jordan, it is simple an obsession with his Wheel of Time series and with Eddings the humour and suspense of his Belgariad and Mallorean series.
1. 23
2. female
3. France
4. masters degree
5. primary school teacher
6. I go every day on Facebook and Twitter. I try to answer comments as soon as I have time.
7. When I read a fancy book I try to escape, to follow adventures which never it will be possible to make in this world (except in movies:)).
8. I prefer to read books in paper version.
9. i read one-two books a month.
10. At the moment I like very much James Clemens. I am reading the volume 4 of the ” exiles and the outlaws “. I don’t grow tired of adventures of this witch!
1 – 48
2 – Male
3 – NC (USA)
4 – AAS Business Computer Programming
5 – Lead Application Developer
6 – Yes to all four
7 – Deep plotting, multiple plot lines, longer book length, and a series if possible. (Worn out on elves and fairies though.)
8 – Yes 90% eReader 10% print
9 – Varies wildly
10 – Tough one: Robert Jordan/Terry Goodkind/Robin Hobb/JRR Tolkien/C S Lewis/etc… The story’s the thing.
1. I am 25.
2. I’m a male.
3. I live in Edinburgh, Scotland.
4. I finished High School.
5. I’m an ex Royal Air Force weapon technician and a current chef.
6. I frequent Facebook and Twitter.
7. I look for a great character that I can root for, often with flaws that they overcome to save the day. I also lean towards books that take a fresh view on the genre.
8. I read my books in paperback form mostly. Unless I get into a series, in which case I will opt for the hardback as soon as it is released. I like the weight and smell of a book
9. On average, I probably read about two books a month.
10. Brent weeks. The Night Angel trilogy was a series that felt tailor made for me. It had everything I want from fantasy. The Black Prism continues that trend. He’s very good at creating characters and his magic is original.
1. 20
2. Female
3. I live in the U.S. in Maryland
4. Graduated Highschool in 2009
5. Active on Facebook, Twitter, and Blogs
6. I look for a healthy amount of fantasy creatures and a diverse variety. I also really like sword and sorcery. If it’s kind of gritty like Richard K Morgan’s ‘The Steel Remains’ then I will definitely read it, but I guess that doesn’t really qualify as epic. A community and country with depth and background or history without being over explained. I don’t like for everything to be happy and good. Every community or city has it’s bad side and it’s bad people. Including that in a story will make it more believable. I also look for Human-Creature interaction like in C.J. Cherryh’s Foriegner series and her Fortress Series.
7. 90% of the time, I am reading a paperback/hardcover rather than on an ereader.
8. My favorite epic fantasy author would have to be Terry Brooks. The reasons why? It’s because he has everything I look for in epic fantasy. There’s diverse creatures, so much culture and history. He lets you grow and change with the characters. In every chapter, they are changing more and more in little ways until they finally become who they are meant to be. Even so, my favorite series is Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy by Tad Williams. It’s the best, the kind of series that I will start reading again right after I’ve finished it.
9. I follow you on twitter, so that’s how I found out about this.
1. I am 17.
2. Male.
3. Surrey, British Columbia.
4. Not yet, but I will.
5. I’m currently a student. If everything goes well, I’m going to be a nurse.
6. Of these, Twitter and blogs. No Facebook or Google+.
7. I think the worst titles can be carried by good character development and the best overarching plots can be ruined by flat, boring characters. Epic fantasy in particular necessitates characters that are, if not interesting, at least relatable. The less firmly the setting is grounded in something resembling reality, the harder the characters have to try to be — alien characters are fine but if a title is full of them I find myself quickly losing interest.
8. Hardcover and paperback. I do want an e-reader, though.
9. I would say I finish a half-dozen on average. I’m not a very fast reader.
10. It’s hard to play favourites and I don’t know who you would term an epic fantasy author, but off of the top of my head. At one point, I really liked George R. R. Martin, but I’ve found myself disliking A Song of Ice and Fire more and more these days, and that’s really his calling card. I can’t actually say who my favourite is, unfortunately.
Clarification re: reading speed. My reading speed is variable, obviously, depending on the individual book — I finish books I enjoy much more slowly, as is the case with longer books (naturally I didn’t finish War and Peace in a week). In the past month or so I managed to finish six books, but of those I only enjoyed one or two. The others (Douglas Coupland titles) I was all but begging to end quickly.
1. 49
2. Male
3. York, England
4. BSc (Hons)
5. IT training & support
6. FB & Twitter
7. Character, Character & Character. If I don’t care about them I stop reading.
8. Books only, hard & paperback.
9. Usually only 1. Also like to intersperse with auto biographies.
10. Favorite author is Terry Brooks as he (almost) always delivers. Also fan of Alison Croggon, Eddings, Jordan & Tolkien. Favorite book is Silmarillion.
Hope this helps & good luck.
1. How old are you? 35
2. Are you male or female? male
3. Where do you live? Utah
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Bachelors, working on Masters
5. What is your profession? Social Worker
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? yes
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Great setting and plot
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Both, probably 75% of the time on an ereader and 25% hardcover/paperback
9. How many books do you read a month? 3-6
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? I like Tolkien still, but I have fond memories of the LotR from my childhood. Of contemporary I like Brandon Sanderson, Brent Weeks, and Patrick Rothfuss. I like their plotting and setting. I really appreciate books that read well. I don’t care for books where I have to parse half the sentences to figure out what is going on. I like books that read like a good crystal goblet–beautiful but still transparent. But if it can’t be both, then I’d rather it be transparent.
1. How old are you? 21
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Phx
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Getting bachelors now in history and medieval/renaissance studies
5. What is your profession? Student
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yes
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? I look for a world that I can picture and great characters that I can connect with. I also love a good story with a really good villain. I like a story that will keep me up late into the morning.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). I read on whatever is cheaper, I have a nook, but I prefer hardcover/paperback. 10/45/45
9. How many books do you read a month? Depends how much hw I have but around 4-10. depending on size of book.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? This is really tough. It changes frequently. I started reading epic with Robert Jordan’s Wheel of time series and I still love them. But i also enjoy Brandon Sanderson, L.E. Modesitt jr, Terry Goodkind, David Eddings and Stephen Lawhead. There are so many, it is very hard to pick one. But these are currently my top 6. Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson are my top 2 at the moment. I love Robert Jordan because he brings relatable characters and intertwines so many characters. He also shows the changes of his main 3 characters subtly that you read like book 6 and be amazed at the change the characters have undertaken within themselves. I love Brandon Sanderson because his epics are far different than many I have read recently. The magic systems are unique but they seem believable. His worlds and characters are also very interesting and draw me into them like Jordan. I just love all these authors!
1. How old are you?
35
2. Are you male or female?
male
3. Where do you live?
Taiwan — but was born and raised in Ontario, Canada.
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
B. Sc. (Bachelor of Science, Computer Science)
5. What is your profession?
ESL teacher
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Sporadically
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
believable characters, a good story, a magic system that makes sense, good fight/battle scenes, suspense
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
e-reader (Kobo)
9. How many books do you read a month?
When I had more time (as in, before my children were born) maybe three or four. Now, one — If I’m lucky.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
Not sure I could pick one. Steven Erikson. Roger Zelazny. Weis & Hickman. Guy Gavriel Kay. Robert Jordan. Not necessarily in that order. Guy Gavriel Kay would probably be first on the list if I absolutely had to pick one. I can’t really tell you why though. There are probably others that I really enjoy as well but just can’t think of them right now.
Now, I have to ask you a couple questions:
1) If you are “relatively new to the epic fantasy scene”, why are you writing it? Don’t they also say that you should write what you know?
2) You say “people rarely say epic fantasy” when you ask them what they read. Well, if you asked me, that’s what I would answer, because that’s about all that I read.
[…] a big Thank You to the 30+ people who filled out my survey – Who Are My Target Audience – I am going to keep tweeting it and hopefully reach my goal of 50 responses (it makes it […]
1. How old are you? 42
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Idaho
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? HS, some college
5. What is your profession? wanna be writer/artist, but currently Domestic Goddess
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yes to all
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? A world I can get lost in and believe in, engaging characters (good and evil alike), details detail details must be descriptive. Suspense and action, a believable system of magic and fantasy creatures ( make me believe that the dragons are real!)
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Hardcover/paperback
9. How many books do you read a month? 3-5
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? J.R.R. Tolkien and J.K. Rowling, they both created worlds that were so believable they felt like they really existed. Memorable characters, story telling so good you could visualize everything (without seeing the movies).
1. How old are you? 53
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Winchester, VA
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Finished High School, only 2 yrs. of college, no degree
5. What is your profession? Retail Supervisor
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yes
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Good vs. Evil with Good winning
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). eReader-80%, regular book 20%.
9. How many books do you read a month? 2 or 3 depending on there size.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Terry Brooks because the storys come alive.
1. I’m 38 years old.
2. Male.
3. Leicestershire, England.
4. Ba (Hons) literature and American studies.
5. English teacher.
6. Actively – when I have the time.
7. Characters the are believable, convincing plot, and most importantly a different ending to the other fantasy novels out there. Not sad or depressing different…simply different.
8. Both. Ratio: 90/10 on the side of paper books.
9. As many as I can fit in and around my teaching, marking, planning, assessing.
10. There are so many, I couldn’t pick one. Trudi Canavan, Tolkein, Tad Williams, Terry Brooks all because of my answer to answer 7. They fill me with a sense of being there, being the main character and living the fantasy as I’m reading it.
1. How old are you? 42
2. Are you male or female? Male
3. Where do you live? Sydney Australia
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Doing a Masters
5. What is your profession? project manager
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? On all of them, but not a google fan
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
Good plot and dialogue, interesting characters and some original ideas thrown into it all
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Ratio these days would be 95% ebook/5 hardcopy
9. How many books do you read a month? About 8
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
Probably go with David Gemmel for epic fantasy
1. 39 2. female 3. long Sault Ontario Canada 4. Grd 12 deploma 5. Retail over 20yrs at same store 6. Active on FB & Twitter 7. as few humans as possible. 8. Ereader 30% paperback 70% 9. 3 or 4 10. Many faves , Terry Brooks ,Tracy Douglass,Kelly Armstrong. Strong characters
1. 45
2. female
3. The Netherlands
4. Yes, something like a bachelors degree (not as high but near)
5. I worked in an archive
6. Facebook and Twitter read and write blogs and stories
7. Good story, with good writing. Not to much battlefields, various characters with strong female roles
I hate series which go on and on. Like Wheel of Time (Jordan) and that series of Goodkind. Started both good but much the same later on.
8 Still reading paper books
9. depends on the volumes, at least 2
10. Tad Williams, Terry Pratchett and Roger Zelazny. Why?? Williams: Complex sometimes but always a good story, characters I love and original.
Pratchett: humor in a world that hold the reader a mirror. Hysterical funny.
Zelazny: Amber… do I need to say more? Well his other books (this Immortal, Roadsigns – I hope this book has the same title as in Dutch – ) are also good.
1. How old are you?
20.
2. Are you male or female?
Female.
3. Where do you live?
Hungary.
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
I’m currently going for my Bachelors Degree.
5. What is your profession?
Right now I’m working as a museum volunteer, otherwise unemployed – a student.
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
I frequent Twitter and read, sometimes comment on blogs.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
An intriguing story, which makes me feel something (anything, really: anger, fear, sympathy, etc.) and become a part of it; characters I can relate to or connect with. Something that keeps me interested.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio)
I prefer to read paperback copies.
9. How many books do you read a month?
One, recently. But I think what matters is how many pages you read a month. For example,. you can’t really compare a George R.R. Martin book (ca. 1000 pages) with a general fiction story.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
George R.R. Martin replaced my past favourites, because I simply admire the complex word and “real” characters he managed to create, not to mention all the twists! If a book can keep my excited and nervous about the outcome, how my favourites will fare, I’m sold.
1. How old are you? 45
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Lincolnshire UK
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? BEd(hons) Literature, & Media and Communication Studies
5. What is your profession? Head of Special School
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Twitter mainly – sometimes Facebook, often read blogs, don’t always comment though.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Awe and Wonder, a relationship with the planet, values, well rounded characters.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Ebook 85% the rest in paperback/hardcover
9. How many books do you read a month? Depends – it averages out at about 8 or 9 a month.
10. Who is your favourite epic fantasy author? Why? I don’t have a favourite author if I am honest. I love to try new authors all the time. The story sells the book rather than the author for me.
1. How old are you? 33
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Essex, UK
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? BSc Degree in Environmental Science
5. What is your profession? Business Analyst
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Twitter mainly, on Google+ and Pinterest, also comment on blogs and forums.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Elves, druids or swordsmen, adventure, a character you can relate to, magic used in a unique way, the story needs to be able to pull you into a world that grips, teases and engulfs you and no flamin dragons.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). E-reader Kindle on iPad 90% Paperback 10%
9. How many books do you read a month? 3 or 4 depending on epic length of book, read thriller & horror as well as fantasy,
10. Who is your favourite epic fantasy author? Terry Brooks I’ve read all of his books. Patrick Rothfuss is a close second at the moment.
1. How old are you? For my safety, I prefer not to say.
2. Are you male or female? female
3. Where do you live? Northwestern United States
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Bachelors
5. What is your profession? Phone sex operator
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? I am active on twitter read, Write, and comment on blogs
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? A story that takes place in a believable working society
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). 80%paperback 20% hardback
9. How many books do you read a month? 16-20
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? I don’t have one, most authors fail at my first criteria and the ones who succeed cannot maintain my interest through multiple novels. I usually lose interest after the 2nd or 3rd book.
I will understand if my vague answers are not helpful and you prefer to remove this response. For my safety, I cannot answer more precisely.
Your responses are very helpful. Thank you for doing this.
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com/
I’m a 60 year old, female, Eastern Canada, High School with numerous University courses, Admin. Asst., active on FB, Twitter, Wattpadd, gmail, Google+1,& I do Blogg. I look for good writing that will hold my attention, well developed characters and interesting background – fantasy or otherwise. I have read recently the George RR Martin books and Tolkien’s. My first love is Mystery however if well developed I will read anything. Normally I will read 4 to 6 books a month. Prefer paper to ebook. (If they can get “New book smell in spray can” I would read more ebooks. 98% – 2%..I know that will change. I will read a good Fantasy if recommended by others. I hope that this will help you!!
1. How old are you?
almost 67
2. Are you male or female?
male
3. Where do you live?
near San Francisco but lived the first 60 years of my life in Southern California
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
MFA
5. What is your profession?
Retired English teacher and not published author, editor, publisher
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Yes
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
This is a tough one. Well, I measure all epic fantasy novels against “The Lord of the Rings”
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
all three – I’ve read maybe three or four books on my Kindle since I bought it late in 2011 while listening to a half dozen audio books, reading several paperbacks and a few hardcovers.
A guestemate ratio
10% Kindle
20% audio
35% paperback
35% hardcover
9. How many books do you read a month?
two to five (if we count the audio books) but they are not all fantasy
When I was a child and teen I often read two books a day and many of them were epic fantasy. For example, I read everything I could that Andre Norton wrote—so many I lost count long ago.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
J. R. Tolkien because I read “The Hobbit” and the “Lord of the Rings” three times and have watched the films three times. In addition, my favorite epic fantasy author when I was in high school was Ursula K. Le Guin’s Earth Sea Trilogy and many more. I watch a lot of epic fantasy movies too such as “Game of Thrones”. Another film favorite is “Avatar”–I’ve seen it twice and will see it again.
1. How old are you? 35
2. Are you male or female? F
3. Where do you live? Italy
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Degree
5. What is your profession? Advertising mng
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? yes, I am and do
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? the magic of of the plot
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). paperback
9. How many books do you read a month? depends on my time
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Don’t have, I read whatever I can
1. Age 58
2. Male
3. Live in Kent, England
4. Dropped out of Journalism college and finished One year of technical college (Social Dynamics)
5. Retired equestrian journalist & photographer – now writer
6. Active on Facebook, Twitter, write/read and comment on blogs
7. Complex absorbing storyline, unusual & rounded characters, believable world/society and well-set up surprises
8. Paperback 90%; hardback 10%
9. Two as slow reader + writing is demanding job!!
10. Discovered J.R.R Tolkien in 1969 and my world changed forever as reader & writer; Anna McCaffrey as she gave dragons personalities & an origin; Robin
Hobb as her worlds & writing are so rich & complex – wish I could write like her; currently finally reading Katherine Kerr’s Deverry series and discovering
what I’ve missed.
1. How old are you? 43
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? UK
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Bachelors Degree in archaeology
5. What is your profession? Assistant manager in health service
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Too active!
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Well-rounded characters. Interesting, original ideas and plots. Not too much focus on ‘quests’ either.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). All either paperback / hardback
9. How many books do you read a month? Three or four, all sorts of subjects
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Probably Raymond Feist. I love the whole Riftwar Saga and the way that the two civilisations are so different, and the way some of the characters evolve and grow over time.
Readers of Fantasy are always more diverse than I think! Here are my responses. BTW, I love the cover of
1. How old are you? 28
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Bristol, UK
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? degree in English
5. What is your profession? Stay At Home Mum
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yes
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Interesting female characters, humour, an immersive world and a plot where a lot is at stake, something with genuine feeling in it.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Read more paper books than ebooks
9. How many books do you read a month? 2 on average
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Just getting into Adrian Tchaikovksy’s Shadows of the Apt series, it’s so imaginative it blows me away.
I meant to say, I love the cover of A Gardener’s Tale- doh!
Thank you.
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com/
1. How old are you?
31
2. Are you male or female?
Female
3. Where do you live?
Washington State, USA
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
Finished HS, some college
5. What is your profession?
Customer Service, Author
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
FB & T, yes. G+, rarely. Blogs, read daily & comment occasionally.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
A captivating story and compelling characters.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
Both – usually a 50-50 ratio though lately it’s been 70-30 Kindle heavy.
9. How many books do you read a month?
If I’m busy socially, as few as 3 or 4. If I’m not as many as 20. It usually takes me a day to read a novel.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
J.K. Rowling – Though she’s YA she built a world that is so real that it’s almost a part of life.
1. 22
2. Male
3. Near Liverpool, England
4. High school only
5. Currently unemployed. Hoping to be an author.
6. Active on Facebook and Twitter. No to the rest. Although I will read a blog if it interests me enough!
7. Quite new to fantasy genre, but would have to have an interesting character with a personality, interesting and original plots, make me want to read more!
8. 100% books. Never get an e-reader. I do not want want to read a screen. KEEP THE BOOK ALIVE!!
9. At the moment about 5-10. Not all fantasy.
10. Like I say, I am quite new to fantasy, but Terry Goodkind was what first sparked my interest. Have to say that it can get a bit repetitive at times, still love it though. Would thoroughly recommend J.V.Jones’ ‘Book Of Words’ trilogy. Fantastic read, great characters, energetic plots. Ready to start her ‘Sword Of Shadows’ series now!
Hope this helps and good luck.
1. How old are you?
47
2. Are you male or female?
Male
3. Where do you live?
San Francisco
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
Bachelor’s Degree
5. What is your profession?
software engineer
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Yes
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
Characters I care about, stories that keep me from putting the book down at 1am when my eyelids insist I do otherwise.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
Yes.. currently about 1:1.
9. How many books do you read a month?
2
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
Jack Vance. The Lyonesse trilogy just nails it on characters and story. (But a caveat: the most recent books I’ve read vary, and are non-epic-fantasy novels by Jim Butcher, John Scalzi, Scott Lynch, Matthew Woodring Stover, Ari Marmell and Jon Sprunk).
1. How old are you? 46
2. Are you male or female?female
3. Where do you live? Arizona, USA
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? BS
5. What is your profession? Therapeutic Recreation currently unemployed caring for elderly parent.
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?yes all to one degree or another
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?Characters I can love and respect and face their adventures and conflicts in a way that gives me excitement and hope.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).E books on computer, hardback and paperback and audio book. Right now audio is majority as I can multitask.
9. How many books do you read a month? varies on the month and the books
things like Way of Kings take a bit of time. I guess average 20 plus.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
My favorite fantasy author is not epic fantasy. J.K. Rowling. People in their 80’s and target audience children and all ages between have been touched by her work. I love not only the epic good vs. evil and the main character and close friends but also how she works in the plight of the the house elves and heroic qualities of side characters and how even the horrible Malfoy’s love their son. She fits a lot of human foibles into various characters that are all distinct and makes a fantasy that can be enjoyed on various levels. Magic Love that magic.
I totally understand. J.K. Rowling raised the bar (if not redefined it). As you said, she engaged people of all ages. Truly special.
Thank you for filling out the survey.
Alon
htpp://www.alonshalev.com/
[…] the survey that many of you filled out for me (Defining My Target Audience), the importance of characters figured highly. I wonder whether this is specific to our genre but I […]
1. How old are you?
30
2. Are you male or female?
Female
3. Where do you live?
Kansas
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
Bachelors of Science
5. What is your profession?
Writer, formerly analytical chemist
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Yes to all.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
Well-written characters. I have trouble making it through a book if I find the characters unbelievable, even in a fantasy setting. There is a certain currently popular dystopian trilogy which I barely made it through the first book of because the characters were so horribly written. Couldn’t forgive that.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
I read print books. I’ve started reading on my new tablet recently, but I feel no connection to the books like I do with print.
9. How many books do you read a month?
4-5. I used to read 4-5 a week, but not since having kids.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
Tolkien. I strive for his level of world-building in my own writing. I’ve read The Hobbit every year for the last 10 years, and his writing is my go-to for whenever I can’t find anything interesting to read.
1. How old are you? 30
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? New York
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Bachelors
5. What is your profession? Writer
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? FB, Twitter, blogs
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Good story, characters that I can fall in love with
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). E-reader
9. How many books do you read a month? 2-3. Have to have time to write, too!
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? I’m going to jump on the Rowling bandwagon, though Tolkein is obviously king.
Age? 23.
Sex? Female.
Location? New Zealand.
Education? Bachelors.
Profession? Teacher.
Social networking? Facebook, Twitter, Google+.
What do I look for? Characters that I can actually care about.
Book or eReader? Kindle.
How many? Probably about 15.
Favourite Author? Jacqueline Carey. She created characters, a world and a plot that I could immerse myself in. Her writing contained more words than were actually written. There was much more going on than was being experienced by the protagonist.
1. How old are you? 29
2. Are you male or female? male
3. Where do you live? Spain
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Actually i conclude my thesis.
5. What is your profession? Unemployment but i am a historian.
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? FB, Twitter, blogs Yes i use a twitter account, a facebook account, but i am not acustom to the blogs, is new for me.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? It is a complicate question, i suppose i look for the figth between good and evil, heros a character with good heart.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). I read the classical book in paper.
9. How many books do you read a month? I have not read 4 books i believe that i decline 🙂 but i read all genre, not only epic fantasy.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? It is very difficult but i lik the Inklings group Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and other writers are George Mac Donald, Chesterton, Belloc, Margaret Weiss, and Tracy Hickman.
Having read this I believed it was very informative. I appreciate you finding the time and energy to put this short article together. I once again find myself spending way too much time both reading and posting comments. But so what, it was still worth it!
Not my favorite song Julian has ever belted out, but I like that he attempted it. Great vocals and classic song equals pretty good stuff overall. I love to hear the results of the old mixing with new, sometimes it’s a homerun, sometimes it’s total shit but you never know what you will get.
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1. 29 1/2
2. Female
3. Texas!
4. finished MA
5. Instructor/Private Tutor
6. Active on blogs and Twitter
7. At this stage in my life, I’m pretty tired of elves and dwarves and dragons and white guys with swords. I want to read epic fantasy that’s rooted somewhere outside medieval Europe, and I really REALLY want to read about characters who aren’t all young, white, thin, straight, handsome, and special.
8. Still reading on paper for the most part
9. Maybe 2 or 3 fiction books in a month – nonfiction research for my own writing is eating a lot of my page-time
10. Weis & Hickman – Dragonlance was good in middle school, but what stole my soul was their “Rose of the Prophet” trilogy. I had NO IDEA that you were “allowed” to write fantasy in a non-Western setting, or have multiple conflicting heroes/viewpoints in the same story, or let the good guys behave badly. I gather it’s not the be-all end-all of fantasy works, but it electrified the larval writer within me.
A little late to the party, but hope my answers still help…
1. How old are you?
21
2. Are you male or female?
Female
3. Where do you live?
Washington State
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
I’ve completed high school and just graduated community college with an associates. I’m transferring this fall to a four-year university.
5. What is your profession?
Part time sales associate at a large department store, full time student.
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Facebook and twitter, yes. I also use a few other websites to connect with friends, such as hexrpg.com (Harry Potter RPG).
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
While believable and engaging characters are a must, I think I really look for a story that can span a long period of time within the books. I really enjoy starting with one epic, and being introduced to characters and stories that appear in the past and future of the world within a novel.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
I’ve only ever read hardcovers and paperbacks.
9. How many books do you read a month?
During the summer months, somewhere between four and six. While I’m enrolled in classes, I’m usually limited to one or two.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
In terms of epic fantasy, Terry Brooks is my absolute favorite. His ability to write through thousands of years within a series is amazing, and each of his characters are believable and filled with both flaws and strengths. Another author that writes stories through several generations of characters well is Tamora Pierce. I wouldn’t call her works epic fantasy, but her books are what opened the door to the genre for me.
A little late to the party, but hope my answers still help…
1. How old are you?
21
2. Are you male or female?
Female
3. Where do you live?
Washington State
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
I\’ve completed high school and just graduated community college with an associates. I\’m transferring this fall to a four-year university.
5. What is your profession?
Part time sales associate at a large department store, full time student.
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Facebook and twitter, yes. I also use a few other websites to connect with friends, such as hexrpg.com (Harry Potter RPG).
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
While believable and engaging characters are a must, I think I really look for a story that can span a long period of time within the books. I really enjoy starting with one epic, and being introduced to characters and stories that appear in the past and future of the world within a novel.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
I\’ve only ever read hardcovers and paperbacks.
9. How many books do you read a month?
During the summer months, somewhere between four and six. While I\’m enrolled in classes, I\’m usually limited to one or two.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
In terms of epic fantasy, Terry Brooks is my absolute favorite. His ability to write through thousands of years within a series is amazing, and each of his characters are believable and filled with both flaws and strengths. Another author that writes stories through several generations of characters well is Tamora Pierce. I wouldn\’t call her works epic fantasy, but her books are what opened the door to the genre for me.
1. 27
2. Male
3. Northern CA
4. Bachelor’s
5. Accountant
6. Facebook, Twitter
7. Military strategy, occupation/trade descriptions, intriguing and developed world
8. E-Reader 60%, paperback 30%, hardcover 10%
9. 1
10. Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time, engaging characters and robust world with plenty of background.
Thank you, Jacob. Much appreciated.
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com/
1. How old are you?
21
2. Are you male or female?
Female
3. Where do you live?
Belgium, Europe
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
I’m getting my Masters Degree in 3 years.
5. What is your profession?
University student and I work in a restaurant in the weekend to earn some money.
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
I’m active on Facebook and Twitter and I write a blog. I read and comment on other blogs too.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
A beautifully created world, some really well written characters, scenario’s that keep you reading. I have to be able to say: “I just can’t stop reading, I want to know what happens next!”
Oh, also very important: no cliché’s! There must be some new elements to the story, I hate it when I have the feeling that I’ve read part of the book already because it resembles another book.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
Paperback. I used to buy Hardcover but it got to expensive.
9. How many books do you read a month?
That depends on the books.
400 pages per book: 4 or 5 a month.
400 – 900 pages per book: 2 a month
More than 900 pages: 1 a month.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
At this point, I would have to go with Raymond E. Feist or James Clemens and George R.R. Martin. The first two were the first fantasy series I read, and I’m still in love with the stories and worlds they both created. Martin just stole my heart with his A song of Ice and Fire series. But I still have a lot of authors to discover!
Thank you for taking the time to fill out the survey. It is proving really important for me.
Best,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
I’m a 13 years old Dutch girl. I have twitter, but I don’t comment much, but I read most things. I read most paperback or hardcover, just because I havent a divece I can use for e-books. How many books, I have no idea. I think 5 or more. (if I read a Dutch book I read faster than if I read an English one. I read mostly English, because often they are orginal in English and the orginal is always better than the translation. My favorite writer is J.R.R Tolkien. Because the books ar full of meaning, so deeply thouching. So wonderful to read and so interessting. His tales means much. Not only the storys but also the meaning of his words. I just love his work. I also likee the work of C.S. Lewis and Christopher Paolini(not sure if Ispell his name good)
sorry I wasnt finished but clicked on post comment. sorry. I want to read Game of Thrones, but I may not read them from my parents. In a good story I want well written characters and a complete and wonderful world. Much background information. And adventures. Not want to stop reading. just saying, sorry I have to read on. Complete in the world of the author and the book. And about how many books I read I said 5 or more but I think I read like 8 or more. I read fast.
By the way, sorry for my mistakes in English. Hope its clear enough to understand. I also read much historical books. Im a great freak, fan of the Arthurian Legend. 😉
Thank you, Morgana Pendragon. I appreciate you taking the time to write and your comments are great and perfectly understandable. I think it is amazing that you read these books in English. Tolkien and Paolini write with an extended vocabulary. My son who is also 13 read them from the age of 9 (see my post The Power of Paolini).
Anyway, thank you for your insightful comments. Please continue to read my blog (I post every Saturday) and share your thoughts.
Best,
Alon (elfwriter)
http://www.alonshalev.com
[…] forth and find your target audience,” I was told and I posted a questionnaire that many of you were kind enough to answer (if you […]
1. How old are you? 21
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Austin, TX
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Bachelors Degree so far
5. What is your profession? self employed
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yes to all
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? adventure, character depth, interesting magic
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Both, but primarily paperback
9. How many books do you read a month? I have no idea. At least 1. I read all sorts of books of varying lengths and rarely just 1 at a time.
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Call me cliche, but JK Rowling for sure. I always have and always will be a big Harry Potter fan. She just integrated plot, with side plot, with deep and interesting characters, with back story, humor, with serious, with familiar, with unique so well together. There was a good flow – like it was real life, and not a book – which is difficult to manage with fantasy.
I hope this helps!
Thanks, Courtney. I also love J K Rowling – nothing cliche in that. What she did was amazing. Aprreciate you filling ou the survey.
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
[…] define my target audience and had a big surprise. To begin with, there were the 100+ who filled out my survey – thank you all – and I began to discover a group of passionate and richly imaginative […]
1. How old are you?
37
2. Are you male or female?
Male
3. Where do you live?
Nottingham, England
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
Nope
5. What is your profession?
Salesman/Fund-raiser/Writer/Events Manager (I’m busy!)
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Active on FB & Twitter & LinkedIn – less so on G+ – I read blogs but very rarely comment
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
I read a lot of fantasy books but the ones I really enjoy are the ones that teach me something new. That could be a new spin on an old theme or a clever way of explaining something. I guess what I really mean is that there are a lot of cliches in fantasy books, because they are popular, but whilst stories like that are ok and enjoyable – the ones that take you somewhere new are far more exciting.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
Paperback. Always.
9. How many books do you read a month?
1-4
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
Unfair! I have to say probably the most pleasure I have had whilst reading is probably Terry Pratchett but David Gemmell comes a really close second. Because I also write, I really enjoy what each writer can teach me about writing.
Pratchett taught me about invention of an old theme
George RR Martin taught me about depth of character in supporting roles
Stephen King taught me about simplicity of language and being accessible to readers
Tolkien taught me the opposite – elaborative, flowery, delightful fantasy prose
Terry Brooks taught me about having a well-worked story that had no loose ends or unnecessary scenes so the story flies along
Gemmell taught me about humanity and heroism – where they differ and where they are the same
There is something new to be learned from each book and each writer and that is why the fantasy genre appeals to me. I once won a quiz game (Trivial Pursuits) on the final question which was about an ancient Chinese assassin deterrent used by the Imperial family, beating my 3 opponents – 2 of which were University professors. How did I know this random, obscure fact? I have Terry Pratchett to thank for that and his book Interesting Times!
Thank you so much, Toby. I am a big Pratchett and Brooks fan and totally identify with your list of what we can learn from the ‘greats.’ May I steal your idea for a blog post? I will, of course, give you total credit for the idea (unless you prefer me not to, of course).
Take care,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
Yeah no worries Alon. Link me up up when you’re done 😊
Oh man. I just wrote you a long response and totally lost it! Thank you for a great list – I love Pratchett and Brooks for the same reasons you do. I would love to write a blog post based on this idea 9what my top 10 fantasy authors taught me). Obviously, I will give you the credit for the idea 9unless you don’t want me to of course).
Thanks for the thoughtful answers.Here’s to more Dicsworld and Shannara.
Best,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
Yeah sounds great. I got the message and replied.
. How old are you? 47
2. Are you male or female? female
3. Where do you live? colorado
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? masters
5. What is your profession? writer
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? all
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? adventure, fun, characters I connect to
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). eReader almost exclusively
9. How many books do you read a month? 5
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? too many to name bur for the reasons listed above.
Thank you, Betsy. Really appreciate you taking the time to respond.
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
1. 46
2. Female
3. Aurora CO
4. Some college (still aiming for bachelor’s degree)
5. Housewife, not yet published writer
6. Facebook & twitter. I read but rarely comment on blogs.
7. Depth of characters and excellent writing (easy to read but complex stories without getting too complicated) hope that makes sense.
8. 50% paperbacks, 25% Kindle, 25% audiobooks
9. 3-5 depending on the books.
10. Tolkien and Guy Gavriel Kay. Both for beautiful writing and great characters.
1. 46
2. Female
3. Aurora CO
4. Some college (still aiming for bachelor’s degree)
5. Housewife, not yet published writer
6. Facebook & twitter. I read but rarely comment on blogs.
7. Depth of characters and excellent writing (easy to read but complex stories without getting unnecessarily complicated) hope that makes sense.
8. 50% paperbacks, 25% Kindle, 25% audiobooks
9. 3-5 depending on the books.
10. Tolkien and Guy Gavriel Kay. Both for beautiful writing and great characters.
Thank you for answering, Rupa. Good luck with your writing and your studies.
Depth of characters and excellent writing (easy to read but complex stories without getting unnecessarily complicated) – very clear and something to strive for.
Take care,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
1. How old are you?
41
2. Are you male or female?
Female
3. Where do you live?
Canada and India
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? and 5. What is your profession?
I’m a neurosurgeon. (I’m also working on the first two books of my epic fantasy series.)
5. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
Facebook: Yes, a lot. Have deactivated temporarily to save time, but I intend to return. Twitter: Used to hate it, but have begun it’s slowly growing on me. Google+: I do keep an account, but seldom use it. Blog: I have my own blog, and I used to read other blogs too, but lately I have reduced my blog-visits, mainly because most blogs I’ve come across are geared toward YA or paranormal romance (neither of which interest me), and hardly anyone deals with epic fantasy. In fact, coming across your blog was a breath of fresh air.
6. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
A vivid and believable setting pulsing with a sense of a past, multiple POVs, and a complex story on a truly epic scale. A sense of wonder, adventure, and courage. Internally consistent magic. I love complex, driven characters, but stop reading if they become too ‘voicey’ in epic fantasy – I prefer them to serve the bigger story instead of hogging the limelight. Similarly, I stop enjoying if romance becomes too big an element. A sprinkle of it is fine, like with Aragorn-Arwen and Eowyn-Faramir. But I throw the book aside if it takes the centre stage. I also look askance at elves/dwarves/dragons/fairies. Not that I will absolutely avoid them, but they must try really hard to entice me before I start finding them cliché or derivative. Anything too New Agey is also a no-no for me. (As you can see, what I don’t want in epic fantasy is as important as what I do want!)
7. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
Nowadays mostly on eReader to start with, but I also end up buying a hard copy when I really love a book.
8. How many books do you read a month?
Varies wildly.
9. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author?
Tolkien, for introducing me to Middle-earth, and for being single-handedly responsible for my love for epic fantasy.
Ursula Le Guin, for spellbinding settings, compelling characters, beautiful prose. George R R Martin, for vibrant storytelling, robust language, and characters that come alive.
Patrick Rothfuss and Guy Gavriel Kay, for the enchanting flow of their language. Brandon Sanderson, for his original and intricate magic systems.
Thank you, Swati. Appreciate your help.
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
1. How old are you? 50
2. Are you male or female? Male
3. Where do you live? Omaha, NE
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Bachelors Degree
5. What is your profession? Systems Engineer
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yepper
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Great characters, fun story
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). 50% Audio, 30% hardcover/paperback, 20% Kindle
9. How many books do you read a month? 4-5
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Terry Brooks, his books are what I grew up on
Thanks for filling out the survey, Ken. I absolutely love Terry Brooks.
Take care,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
1. How old are you?
30
2. Are you male or female?
Male
3. Where do you live?
Sofia, Bulgaria
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree?
Masters
5. What is your profession?
Translator
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs?
FB, Goodreads, I have my own fantasy website and I am chairman of a club
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book?
Awesome characters, epic storylines, lots of magic and mayhem
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio).
eBooks mainly
9. How many books do you read a month?
err, 4-5?
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why?
Gav Thorpe, because elves are my favorite creatures and nobody writes them like he does in the Sundering trilogy of Warhammer.
Thanks, Alex. I’m, going to check out Gav Thorpe.
Take care,
ALon
http://www.alonshalev.com
1. How old are you? 28
2. Are you male or female? Female
3. Where do you live? Indiana
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Bachelors
5. What is your profession? Education
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yes and yes and yes
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? Elves & strong women
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). Both
9. How many books do you read a month? 2-3
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Tolkien and G. R. R. Martin. Realistic fantasy worlds, world building, and awesome fantastical elements.
Hope that helps!
Thank you, Kylie. When I wrote my first draft of At The Walls Of Galbrieth, I was lucky to have a number of women in my writer’s group who pushed me to make my female characters stronger and less stereotypical. I’m so glad they did.
Thanks for your feedback,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
Always happy to offer feedback and share helpful opinions:)
1. How old are you? 36
2. Are you male or female? Male
3. Where do you live? West coast of Ireland
4. Did you finish High School / Bachelors Degree / Masters Degree? Bachelors
5. What is your profession? Online business consultant
6. Are you active on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, read and comment on blogs? Yep.
7. What do you look for in an epic fantasy book? I’m looking for something big, interesting worlds and characters, but I’ll be honest, also not too far out of main stream. E.g. I love Feist, Sanderson, Jordan. I thought the first books from Scott Lynch and Patrick Rothfuss were super.
8. Do you read books on an eReader or as a hardcover/paperback? (if both, please assign a ratio). I read Fiction on eReader 95% of the time now.
(Non-fiction 95% hard copy as it’s more likely I want to skip back and forth, unlike fiction which is straight-through).
9. How many books do you read a month? Some months none, some months between 5 and 15 fiction (particularly if I get into a series).
10. Who is your favorite epic fantasy author? Why? Probably Feist because it’s an epic world he created, but an easy read. (Counterpoint: I’m not at all a fan of Erikson and similar as I get enough mental challenges in my day job.)
Thank you, Alastair. I get that about wanting an easy read.
Best,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
1. Just turned 30.
2. Male, however as a teenage I was regularly mistaken for female.
3. Eugene, OR
4. Dropped out before completing an English degree. I do not regret not finishing.
5. I work as a cook in upscale restaurants.
6. Yes.
7. Characters. I need to be moved. I’m looking for books that will make me cry. I love books with worlds as complex as our own.
8. Mostly paperbacks, but i get hardcovers of the stuff I’m very excited about. Have never read a book on an E-reader.
9. Somewhere between 4-10. Mostly novels, with a little non-fiction and quite a bit of short fictions as well.
10. Steven Erikson, because of of his focus on compassion.
Alon! Shalom! It’s been forever and I’m glad to see that your writing career seems to be really taking off…I know I’m a bit late to the party, but I hope this info helps!!
1. Not-yet-30 (29)
2. Male
3. Oakland…but possibly moving to LA for grad school
4. Got my BA, currently applying for MA
5. Work in guitar manufacturing and Jewish education
6. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
7. Well-written prose (bleh, Michael Sullivan), at least one likeable protagonist (get it together, Rothfuss), decent world-building, character development, an engaging story, and a unique hard magic system.
8. I try to finish 1 audiobook and 1 physical book per month
9. 1-4, depending.
10. It was Robert Jordan. His prose, worldbuilding, character development, moral ambiguities, unique magic system, et al were unparalleled and drew me into his decades-long series. However, man, Sanderson seems to be the current master of the craft as he learned a lot from taking over The Wheel of Time Series. Can’t wait to get through his Steelheart and Stormlight series!
Thanks, Jamie. Good to hear from you. Let me know what you decide. Would hate for the Bay Area to lose you, but it sounds exciting. Yeah to Jordan and Sanderson – absolutely the current stars.
Take care,
Alon
http://www.alonshalev.com
31
male
Columbus, OH
Bachelor’s
author/office drone
facebook, Twitter, blogs
i want read about real people in amazing situations, and i want to wonder and to hurt along with them
paper books
probably just 1
Still Tolkein, but gotta mention Dave Duncan