 by Camela Thompson A book that is predominately a thriller with paranormal content and elements of romance has a target demographic of women in their mid-20's to late-40's. When I heard that my 90-year-old grandfather was going to read my book, I'll be honest: I was worried. He doesn't like movies or television shows that are violent or have sexual content. He doesn't even tolerate strong language. How could he possibly like a thriller with vampires and sex? When my mom called me with updates, I would yell "make him skip chapters 46 and 47!" I could just picture him getting to that part of my book and throwing it down in disgust. He kept reading. He read ALL of the book. And he actually liked it.
Photo on the right was taken by Cecillia B Photography - we won't talk about how many years lapsed between them I'll never forget the first time I saw him after he finished my book. He picked it up and started quoting his favorite lines. I nearly fell over.
I'm not delusional. I know a lot of this has to do with him being proud of the accomplishment rather than actual enjoyment of the content. Except... this is the same man who wanted to know why I didn't get an A if I came home with an A-. If he didn't like it, he'd still be proud of me. But I would know about it. When I asked if my grandfather would like to beta read for book two, he signed up. Getting the first third of the book back was exciting. Grandpa is a grammar ninja and has a knack for remembering the rules that escape me. What impacted me even more was that he was willing to support me as a writer. In an author chat, a person posed the question: "Who would you want to read your book?" Some people chose a famous author, but many listed family members who were either unwilling or unable to read their book. I feel so lucky to have a grandfather who is willing to wade into the paranormal to support his granddaughter's writing. Do you have a book related moment you shared with family members that strengthened your bond?
4 Comments
Rosalie Royan
1/5/2015 11:48:06 pm
This isn't comparable because I was nine or ten. However, my family was the kind that didn't really even say “good job" if I got good grades. In fourth grade my teacher assigned a short story based off of a picture and I actually thought she'd be annoyed because it was three times the length of any one else's but besides that didn't think much of it. However, during a parent-teacher conference she handed it back to my father saying it was the best thing she'd read from a ten year old and when my dad read it he was stunned and talked about how good it was for about a week which was the first positive feedback I'd gotten on anything so it felt really good. Not quite the same as a book though, haha. 1/6/2015 12:33:52 am
I would argue that since compliments were spare and it left a lasting impression, it is completely comparable. That must have felt wonderful to watch him be so filled with pride.
E J Frost
1/28/2015 02:39:36 am
This is a brilliant story, Camela. My grandparents have passed on, sadly, but my mother, who reads widely of biographies and factual histories but never, ever science-fiction, bought, read and reviewed my sci-fi/romance without telling me. I found her review on Amazon and nearly fainted. 1/28/2015 12:07:54 pm
Thank you for stopping by and telling us about your wonderful mother! She sounds so supportive. I love that she didn't tell you she was going to read your work and surprised you. My mom was certain that she would not like what I wrote because of the genre. It was obvious she was invested when she started calling to try to get spoilers. We are both lucky to have people who support us! Leave a Reply. |
Camela ThompsonFreelance writer and Dark urban fantasy author featuring vampires with bite. My BooksCategories
All
Archives
July 2020
|
RSS Feed