What Hooks Me is such a broad topic, so Julie plans to talk about four common aspects of the books she loves: voice, character, world building, plot and pace.
Voice
Voice is the hardest to pin down. Many vaguely say, "I know it when I see it." Julie likens it to knowing when an instrument is in tune. Great books can reach beyond genre through a great voice.
The one-on-one connection a reader has with the voice is key.
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| Betty Bunny Loves Chocolate Cake by Michael B. Kaplan |
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Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
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Introducing memorable characters, ones that will stick in your mind, is key to a great book.
A character's personality should not be flat, or one note. A character shouldn't be perfect. Great characters are unique and special in some way. They're not cliche.
A great character is one we like to talk and think about.
Examples of memorable characters:
Isabelle in Fortune's Magic Farm.
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| Fortune's Magic Farm by Suzanne Selfors |
Violet from Iron Hearted Violet.
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| Iron Hearted Violet by Kelly Barnhill |
World Building
The world tells us what the character's life is like. Some of these worlds become like another character in the story.
Some questions that should be asked about your world: Why are we here? Is it necessary? What makes it unique? How does the character's view interact with the world?
A few of Julie's favorite world building authors/books:
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| Princess Academy by Shannon Hale |
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| Fathomless by Jackson Pearce |
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The Golden Compass by Phillip Pulman
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Plot and Pacing
So once you have all these things, then what? Plot shows how your characters are tested. The key is balancing conflict and development, and the pace needs to move along at a reasonable clip.
A great question to ask yourself about each page of your book: What happens here, and does it need to?
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Bitter End by Jennifer Brown
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The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
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| Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn |
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