What do readers want? There are many readers who have their preferences for stories, like a sweet happily ever after. Some like little to no angst, while others want you to rip their hearts out. Basically, I think all readers just want a good story.

I was speaking to a few readers while I was in Australia this past month, and it really did boil down to a good story. Do not be mistaken that our readers are going to accept some piece of crap that is just dumped out there. Nope, they want you to work for their loyalty and their hard-earned dollars, as you should. We writers are asking them to shell out money for our work, and it shouldn’t be just mindless fluff we serve up on a plate.

Ahhh, but where does that leave the poor writer? In case anyone doesn’t know, this job is hard. It can really take its toll on you. But back to my question: what about the writer?

I think I’ve finally got it now, and goodness knows it took a while. It goes back to the story. A good story. A stellar story. A story where the characters jump off the page at you. Those characters who make you want to meet them, see where they go, meet the people they meet. That is what makes a good story, or at least it is to me.

So, back to what about the writer? For the writer to be able to really do those types of stories, they need to write what they want, need to write. If they don’t feel, see, hear, taste, and smell their characters, their stories tend to fall a bit short, at least that is what I’ve noticed about my own writing.

“Let me get this straight: he’s writing a story with incest, father and son incest, with ménage, and he then kills a main character? Well, it was nice knowing you Max Vos.”

That is a quote from another author about my book Going Home. Yeah, I pushed all the buttons on that one. However, it was a story that practically wrote itself. Those characters felt real. They came across as real people. Of course, it was based off a true story, but still, it is how the writer makes the reader feel about a story. Isn’t that what the reader ultimately wants? To feel? To be involved in those lives, those adventures, those people? It is escapism at its finest, if you ask me.

Some readers may have noticed that I like secondary characters. Or, that is what they often think. It isn’t that I actually like those characters, but they are needed. How many people do you know who have no one else in their lives but there partners, lovers, or love interests? I don’t know of anyone who lives in such a vacuum. Other people, whether we like it or not, are part of our lives. They should be in books, too, don’t you think?

For me, it is those people who really make stories fun and interesting. Sometimes we like ‘em and sometimes we don’t, but they add texture and life to a story. Well, that’s my take on it anyway. So yeah, I spend a lot of time on those people. Not because I just feel I need to throw in some odd-ball character, they need to have a place in the main characters’ lives.

I have to admit, I do like it when someone tells me they cried over one of my stories. Why? It tells me I made them feel something. It tells me I did my job. It also tells me that I was able to deliver a good story. Okay, I like it when they laugh so hard they piss themselves, too. I mean, who wouldn’t right? And yes, I’ve had readers tell me both. Oh, and let’s not forget blowing coffee all over their computer or Kindle. Yeah, that really makes my day. I do have a habit of making people, in real life, blow beverages through their nose. I’ve been told that scotch really hurts. He he he

If I can write those kind of words and get those types of reactions, then I’m on the right track. If at any time, I write something and that particular story doesn’t get at least one of those reactions, then I need to stop and figure out what is wrong, because it ain’t working.

So readers, keep on reading, and writers keep on writing your stories.

Max