The single most important piece of advice I can give an author is to READ. Step into the mind of your customer – your readers! – and devour as much as you can. What do you like as a reader? What don’t you like? Which characters make you smile, frown? Which characters are you compelled to read on about even though you don’t like them? What plots have been done to death? What plots can you do differently? What books are winning prizes, what books are flying off shelves – and a lot of the time they aren’t the same!
Researching your reader isn’t just for the marketers, but for the author too – and if you’re an indie author, you’ll be wearing both hats anyway! – as knowledge of the market is invaluable.
Not only will you find out about your fellow authors and your readers, you’ll also find ouy so much about yourself as a writer.
So why wait to start your education? I have the perfect thriller to kick you off!
‘You can’t blame a lion for being a lion. An animal has no wickedness; it knows only how to survive. But a man who fancies himself a lion to excuse his depravity? Well, he’s no more than a predator.’
I was over-the-moon excited when I was asked to join the blog tour for the debut pulse-racing thriller by Katherine St John. It’s a dramatic read with all the components that a thriller needs; suspense, uncertainty, dynamic characters and one helluva twist! Set on the supposedly idyllic environs of a luxury yacht in the Riveria, an exclusive birthday celebration turns sour as secrets unfurl and the night turns ugly. Although the gorgeous locations had me yearning for a holiday – lockdown blues taking full effect! – you do not want to go on holiday with these girls! (And the only lion I want to come across is our little one snoozing above…🐱)
A compulsive masterpiece of thriller writing, I couldn’t put it down and neither will you!
The Lion’s Den by Katherine St. John is published by Headline, eBook out now.
Thank you to the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. #gifted
Rebecca Millar Editorial 
Its so true to be a good writer you have to be a good reader.
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Isn’t it just!
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Great advice. Often the characters I get attached to are those I really shoudn’t. That guilty pleasure feeling is hard to describe.
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It’s totally understandable – you’ve put so much hard work into creating those characters, why shouldn’t you be attached. But you’ve got to do what’s best for them and the story. And who’s to say they can’t come back in another? There is obviously something about that character that means you aren’t quite finished with them yet!
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