I re-released a title recently, Secrets From the Edge, and one of the reviews got me thinking. I sometimes do that! 😛 I always find picking reader’s brains interesting, and I’d enjoy hearing from you on something. Hopefully, you don’t mind that I too have opinions about things. I’m an author, but I’m also human. A curious human.
Secrets From the Edge was originally written in 2015. In those days, I never wrote dual POV. I always wrote from only one point of view, and it didn’t occur to me to show the other character’s thoughts. As a reader, I’ve never needed two POV’s, so I didn’t think to do it. I don’t think all books need it. I think sometimes the story is best seen from one character POV because knowing too much about the other character ruins things. For example, I wrote Omega Kidnapped and I didn’t want anyone understanding too much about the alpha, Jack, who kidnaps the omega, Carter. I wanted Jack to seem dangerous. Unpredictable. If you know he has sympathy for Carter, he loses that edge that I felt was necessary to give the story more suspense. But some reviewers drop stars if they don’t get to see both POV’s. That’s frustrating from an author’s side because we don’t do things without a lot of thought. If I don’t give you both POV’s I’ve thought long and hard about that. I MEANT TO DO THAT! 😀
I’ve also run into this drop-star-thing with epilogues. I NEVER did epilogues when I first started publishing. I don’t really like reading epilogues. None of the thousands of books I read growing up ever had epilogues. If the book ended with the two people in love, I assumed they’d live happily ever after. I didn’t need to see them canoodling and shopping together to feel like they would make it. lol Obviously the modern reader has changed. Many readers drop stars if there isn’t an epilogue.
Let me be clear, readers and reviewers can think and feel however they want. Be sure you read that again because I don’t want anyone misreading that and thinking I don’t think readers have a right to think whatever they want about my stories. Readers have every right to want epilogues and dual points of view. How the book hits them is just how it hits them, and that is that. But, I have a right to feel how I feel too. This publishing thing is a partnership of sorts. Authors and readers need each other. This isn’t a one-way street, and no one side’s opinion means more than the other’s. That’s one reason I like hearing what you guys think; there is no one opinion or right answer here. 🙂
So, where do you stand on this? Do you need or enjoy epilogues? Maybe you can take them or leave them? Do you hate books that don’t have epilogues or dual POV’s? Or do you not care?
Feel free to comment and RESPECTFULLY share your opinions with me! 🙂
S.C.