I recently read a book from 2005 that I found on my shelf. It was an anthology with one author I'd read (Toni Blake) and two others that were new to me. I don't usually read anthologies or shorts because of the types of projects I do at LR&M, but every once in awhile I take time out for some pleasure reading and an anthology fits the bill. They are the perfect reads for just before bed when you want to read, but can't stay up all night with the latest and greatest. They are also a favorite on my Palm when I'm standing in line at the store, bank or whatever -- so I DO read them. Just not often. But I digress.
Backlists. Normally we only post reviews for books released within the past two years. Those are the books in stores, the ones being discussed, the ones we sometimes line up the night of a release to buy. When an author is new to us, for instance Pamela Clare for me with her MacKinnon's Rangers series, I got hooked and immediately began looking for her backlist. I know I'm not the only one who does that. If I was, backlists wouldn't exist to the extent they do.
With our economy lately I've seen more and more stories about people going to the library for books. Readers are looking for something to carry them to a better time and place, forget their problems for awhile and relax. The thing is for as good as the libraries can be, for the hottest books there is almost always a waiting list (try 112 at my local library for Twilight this week) and for new releases there is, at least where I live, a $.50 to $1.00 fee to borrow the book.
So you've found an author who is new for you. You sat there through the whole weekend reading his or her book (like I did recently when I read Ms. Clare's Untamed) and want more. Since I read both Surrender and Untamed and Connor (the third brother's story) isn't out for awhile, if I need a "Clare-fix" there is her backlist! The books may not be the latest buzz on discussion lists or among your reader friends, but if you like an author's writing it more than fills that need. It was actually through a backlist book that I stumbled on to Kelley Armstrong, that would be Bitten, and I was hooked. Ended up reading all of her books released to date and looking forward to the Summoning.
There are any number of authors out there with new releases and if you are going the library route right now, maybe they have them and maybe they don't, consider their backlists. You may need to go to their publisher sites to find them -- and many of the small presses have sales going at any given time. With an ebook you have instant gratification -- it's going right to your reader and you don't have to wait a few weeks to get them into your hands.
Or as in my case, where I picked up the Taking Care of Business anthology because I had read and enjoyed Toni Blake, I stumbled on to LuAnn McLane and am now digging around for more by her. (What a hoot to read! Dang she's funny!).
So, when you find an author new to you, do you dig into their backlist? Who have you read that you've done this?
9 comments:
I really enjoyed that book as well. I bought it because of Toni Blake as well. I went on Blake rampage there for a bit. I thought Driven was really good. It was a toss up between Driven and Brushstrokes as my favorite.
The most memorable to me was Linda Howard. I had just discovered her Mr. Perfect and enjoyed it so much I felt the overwhelming urge to read her other books. There were other treasures to be found for me in Diamond Bay, Midnight Rainbow, her paranormal romantic suspense Son of the Morning, etc. The number of titles would be too long for me to list.
Also with delving into a backlist, you can see some of the changes the writing has undergone and that is fun, too.
Kay Hooper began as an author of spicy funny romance under Loveswept. I remember chuckling at her humor but most recently I see her stories are paranormal romantic suspense. And I have enjoyed them, too.
Read for the fun of it? You're kidding (g). Since I started writing four years ago, I had to stop reading for pleasure. But I agree with the premise. Once readers find an author they like, they come back for more. My wife belongs to a reading group and all of then search for back lists when they find a new author they like. I've had several readers buy off my small backlist and ask for autograph plates for each release. Come to think of it, I have done it myself. A friend author sent me a copy of one of her books (Noble Sacrifice by Ciara Gold) and once I read it I was hooked. I traded her copy for copy between my and her backlist.
Michael Davis
Davisstories.com
I have to say if I read a current book and enjoyed an author's style of writing, I definitly check out their back list.
For example, I read one of Bertrice Small's Historical romances and loved it so much I checked out her entire backlist (and it was extensive) and ended up reading all (and getting them all for my personal collection) of them. Another author I enjoyed and ended up grabbing their back list was Nora Roberts. I loved a few of books and ended up stumblingon one of her JD Robb books and I was blown away. I delved in and never looked back.
I love backlists because it gives a reader a chance to continue to enjoy an author's earlier work and maybe they might find other books by other authors in the back of them (youknow, those ads for books coming soon, etc that MMP have) and you might be pleasently surprised to find an author you may not even look at but stumble upon.
Dawn
I started out reading the Harlequin Temptation line so when I discovered single title releases, I was almost always looking up an author's backlist after reading one novel.
I remember reading "Nobody's Baby But Mine" by Susan Elizabeth Phillips (from a recommendation at Amazon.com) and then having to go back and find out about all her novels from the Chicago Stars series and any book she had ever written. I am happy to say that I have them all, though there are still a few of the titles that I have yet to read, more of the early novels she wrote. But there is a great sense of satisfaction when you have completed a backlist search and can say you have all the titles from the author.
I find that used bookstores can be great places to begin these searches as they many times have some of the older romance titles available at a better price than you would find them online.
Maame
A backlist is actually how I started reading romances. Up until about 8 years ago, I had never read romance, only horror and supsense. I thought romances were for old ladies...lol. Well I picked up a novel in an airport bookstore, High Energy by Dara Joy and was hooked. I had to have all of her previous releases. Dara's Matrix series is what hooked me on paranormal romance and I've never looked back.
Dee:)
I'm a huge believer in the importance of a backlist, simply because I KNOW how I read. When I discover an author that I enjoy, I always go back and see what else they've written. I suspect others do the same.
This is why I am an advocate of 'leave your book where they are after that contract expires', because readers DO go looking for what else is out there. If they can't find it because it has been delisted, or has had a title change or some such, then you've just lost a potential sale, not to mention the reader who won't be back until maybe there is something new.
Ellen
I really enjoy hunting down the backlist of an author. Sometimes it's really hard because I have always to discover author were most of the backlist is out-of-print. When that happens it can take years to get the complete backlist, especially as I live overseas. I still remember my quest to get all the Tall Dark & Dangerous books by Suz Brockmann, that was long before they were reprinted. Sometimes that drives you crazy, but it's also fun.
Bray -- I like Toni's books -- I took a look on Amazon and there's only used copies available and this one is a keeper,
Lil, one of the reasons I like doing the packages and the retrospectives is because I can see and look at the changes in an author's writing. What is fun is when I have the chance to interview them and ask them how they see those changes.
They definitely open you to all kinds of great possibilities.
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