When browsing the internet for books, reviews have seduced me occasionally, resulting in disastrous purchases. I concluded that personal recommendations (despite differing tastes) are more reliable. During the past twelve months, I have often used the 'Look Inside' feature when contemplating the purchase of a book that outwardly appeals. I consider this facility to be the 'internet alternative' to browsing in a bookshop or the local library.
What can one learn from a few pages? I imagine that readers apply various criteria to what tempts them to buy or not to buy a specific book, whether it be the genre, the cover, author's reputation, back cover blurb / synopsis or some reviewer's critique in a Sunday supplement. On Amazon, much of this criteria is available with, in some cases, the additional opportunity to take a peek inside. Maybe a personal checklist to 'score' the extract would be useful, thereby ensuring that the book meets one's requirements.
If potential purchasers of books via the internet regularly use this feature as an important guide, surely authors should realise the potential of this 'shop window' for their work. However, I am still amazed at how the opening chapters of some books that I have viewed lack quality, accuracy and the magic of page-turning compulsion.
In the case of my latest novel, the final draft and edit suggested it to be ready for publication. I downloaded the PDF version to my Kindle, giving me the opportunity to read the complete novel as a reader as opposed to the distraction of absorbing the material through the clinical eyes of the writer. Though I was satisfied with the manuscript, something disturbed me about the introductory chapters. Unwittingly, I had taken the 'Look Inside' approach to my own book.
There is still no guarantee that it will generate mega sales, but at least the process enabled me to make last-minute adjustments to improve the final version. Now, it is for the readers to decide.
James R. Vance April 2013
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