thoughtful
deird1 wrote a really fascinating article about something she terms "the Vegemite Effect,", which is so accurate and earnest that it should just about be required reading. Because she's right. The short precis:"No matter how good something is, if you were expecting something else, you'll hate it."
People ask me periodically why I chose to be Mira Grant for my science fiction when I was already happily myself for my urban fantasy. My standard answer is all about marketing and branding and setting expectations, and all of this is completely true...but the real answer is all about Vegemite. People who like me for me were going to know that I was Mira Grant, because it was an open secret, and they were the ones who'd just be expecting my words. People who like my urban fantasy weren't going to pick up a book by someone else expecting magic and hijinks. And once Mira established a readership of her own, people who liked science and zombies weren't going to up my books expecting the dead to walk.
The Vegemite effect explains a great deal about how we approach media of all types, not just books, but comics, movies, and television. There's a lot to think about. And if you've ever wondered why sometimes I say "this is salty" repeatedly before I hand you something...
...well, there you go.
September 25 2012, 17:54:18 UTC 4 years ago
I first encountered you under the nom-de-wordprocessor Mira Grant, and when I had read the Hugo nominated novel, and the second in the trilogy (which I took care to order in time so that I could read straight on from Feed), I moused around to find out if you had written anything else.
(A friend once remarked that "all" she asked of her food was that it would surprise and delight her. Feed did that for me. I had not had high hopes of the subject matter, but I was unwilling to cast a vote for the novel category unless I had read everything nominated. I was really glad of that decision!)
Still, I just bought one book under the name Seanan McGuire, wondering whether I would enjoy the fantasy as much. I enjoyed the first couple of chapters of Rosemary and Rue enough to buy all the others in the series then available. My enjoyment of the series increased as, it seemed to me, you got into your stride.
I do get the reason for using a separate name, and it may have turned out to work well for you, but it may slightly tend to hide your light under a bushel, in that it is less immediately obvious that the same person has written different types of stories in ways that match the individual story rather well.
There are a few writers for whom it doesn't matter what they write, I will want to take a look, in the hope and expectation that it will be interesting. You are one of those. To my perception, the quality of storytelling stands out well enough that one name might have worked well for you - though we cannot now know for sure. Still, this does allow you to play the good and evil twins off against each other - now who is which?
September 26 2012, 14:58:22 UTC 4 years ago