Not because of the writing--because of the actual book.I'm reading Anna Dressed in Blood right now. I've been reading it for more than a week, which is rare for me--I usually tear though a book in a few days. I'm really trying to enjoy it. But...
...but the text is a dark red--almost brown. Like a russet. I get that it is supposed to look like it is written in blood, which is a wonderful idea and a beautiful and different foreshadowing tool. But...
...but every time I'm reading, all I'm thinking is...
the text is red
the text is red
the text is red
I'm just over halfway though and I don't want to give up on it just because of the text, but I can't seem to get past it.
I've had this issue before, but never to this degree. I don't care for books that have pages with a deckled edge. Like Wolfsbane--I'm always slightly disappointed when I see this, but it doesn't stop me from reading/buying a book.
Are there things about certain books that annoy you? Does it ever stop you from reading?
If you self-publish, did you think about these things when creating your book? Do you wish you had done something differently when putting your book together?
20 comments:
I have a really hard time reading large print books. I don't know why, but sometimes someone will give me a book, and it'll be large print and it takes me forever to read it.
I have Anna Dressed In Blood on my reading list, so I'll have to watch out for the red.
:-)
Megan--I agree! I think the large print is hard, for me at least, because my eyes have to travel so far to understand the words--usually giving me a headache from the effort. If you can get past the red text, Anna does seem fairly good!
Shiver and Linger were printed in colored text, and that WAS a bit distracting.
But you know what I hate? When there are symbols with the chapter headers or in the margins, and I know they're supposed to mean something but I can't figure out what. It makes me feel like I'm not intelligent enough to read the book. And I don't like to feel dumb!
Oh, that would annoy me too. I don't like pages with decorations on them either. Or font that is much different from the standard Courier or Times Roman. It might not stop me from reading, but it would irritate me through it.
I think the font colour would bother me. Black please it works well. ;)
I know Shatter Me has some cross outs in the book, so that might bother me a bit.
If it gets too distracting, I stop reading. My eyes can't take it. Don't frown on the big print--it will come in handy when we're old.
Hmm... as a graphic designer, I'd like to smack whoever had the red text idea. That's a HUGE no-no and a way to NOT sell books!
Novelties like that, are normally those trying blaze trails with ideas and normally get lost in the sea of ridiculousness. *sigh*
That would be a bit distracting! Shiver was printed in dark blue but it was so dark that it really hard to tell unless you looked, so it didn't bug me. I carefully weigh everything like this when moving a book into the design stage. It's so important for readers to enjoy the overall experience.
That was the main reason I didn't pick up Anna Dressed in Blood, actually. I'll probably get it on my Nook eventually, but the font color was just weird. I prefer my books to be in an easily-read font printed in black. Otherwise I get distracted. :)
Dark red text? I don't think I could get used to that, LOL.
I can see why red text would be distracting. Cute idea, though. Shame it didn't work.
I'm not a fan of deckled edges too. Neither am I a fan of cheap paper that makes it difficult to open the book without breaking its spine.
Oh dear, that's not a good sign when something so fundamental as text is interfering with reading. I did read Shiver but completely forgot there was colored text, so obviously it didn't bother me that much. But I am completely distracted by fancy fonts. The more basic the better, please! Then I'm purely engaged in the writing, not the way it looks. You're right, the moment something looks different - even if it looks cool - it becomes more the focus and a constant interruption to the story :s
Great post!
Gina--You know--I didn't think about the symbols for the chapters, but that is so true. The triangle for Nightshade completely confused me. It wasn't until I started the second in the series that I got it.
Christine--It usually doesn't stop me from reading either--but it is amazing how simple something can be that stops me from getting completely enveloped.
ladonna--You're right--I'm sure I'll be asking for the big print in not too long!
Mandi--Basic is best. I'm sure all those unique ideas should cool in theory. And it makes me wonder what the author thought. I'm sure she didn't get all that much of a say about the text color.
Heather--The text in Shiver didn't bother me as much. Perhaps it was the cool color--like black--as opposed to a warm color.
J--It never occurred to me that it would be different on a Nook. Good idea to wait!
Claire--I'm still trying to get used to it. Maybe by the end.
Charmalot--So true. And I really wish I wasn't distracted, because the book seems very good!
Deckled edges! When I am King of Publishing (never), I will destroy the machines that deckle edges and then banish their creators!
Seriously. Some of us like to flip through our books looking for something we missed.
Other than that? I can't think of anything that's bothered me. And even the cursed deckle hasn't stopped me from reading a book.
When I first wrote my book (it's in verse) I took a lot of care with each poem's structure on the page. Then as the whole thing came together I was distracted by the poems and the way they looked so I decided to write prose poems instead. Needless to say, I'm glad I did. I find it easier on the eyes now and perhaps it flows more smoothly.
I can see where the red print would be very distracting. Unlike the other commenters, I DO like large print. Very much. It's much much easier on my tired old eyes. I loathe the microscopic print found in some older books.
Whenever I read a book that lacks standard punctuation, I have a hard time. My brain keeps wanting to fill in all the missing quotation marks and such.
I don't particularly like novels that use different fonts for each character and their POV. I get what their trying to do, but it's sort of distracting.
Samantha
Writing Through College
I've never read a book in anything other than black text. I do think that red text would drive me batty.
Yes! I'm reading a book now, Icefall, by Matthew Kirby, in hardback. And the cover is squeaky! It sets my teeth on edge! I should just remove the cover, but I'm afraid I'll lose it or it will get all crumpled. I keep thinking, if anybody at Scholastic had bothered to read a prototype of this book, they would have noticed.... And it's kind of sad, because it's a good book, and I'm thinking this author put so much time into it--only to end up with a squeaky cover! Arghhh.
but I like the deckled edges.... :(
Post a Comment