Stephenie Meyer: I Am YOUR Reader I read the blogs of some writers, and they sometimes give writing advice. They talk about readers & reviewers, beta readers & critiquers and if someone has nothing good to say about your book/manuscript, then they are not your reader.
So, Stephenie Meyer ... I am YOUR reader. And I'm looking forward to Midnight Sun whenever you get around to finishing it. [No Pressure.] As well as any other books from Edward's POV you might write.
Listen to what the people who LOVE your work have to say about it. (To hell with the ones who hate it—they’re not your market and you’ll kill your writing trying to satisfy them.)
Reading amateur reviews of the Sookie books, I find it so frustrating that many people get angry and suggest the story should change because they are unhappy with the way it was written (one example is when Sookie was brutally tortured and some people complained that it was "too dark"). As a writer, do these criticisms annoy you? I know, as a reader, that I feel like some people can't enjoy a story unless it goes exactly the way they want it. Personally, I love the series as a whole, especially when an unexpected twist surprises me. – September 07, 2011 12:44 PM
Charlaine Harris:
I try not to read those reviews, because . I'm the queen of my own universe. – September 07, 2011 1:11 PM
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Here There Be Blog Trolls–How to Spot Them & What To Do
Re: Stephenie Meyer: I Am YOUR Reader The Twilight Saga:
The Official Illustrated Guide by Stephenie Meyer
Page 32
Every book has its audience. . . . You can't expect it to get everybody.
The book shouldn't make sense to some people, because we're all different. And thank goodness. How boring would it be if we all felt the same way about every book?
Page 33
People bring so many of their own expectations to the table that a story can't really please everyone.
That’s what it’s about. Really moving some readers, even if their numbers are few. If other people don’t get it, fine. Listen to those who do. Those are your people.
Robustness is when you care more about the few who like your work than the multitude who hates it (artists); fragility is when you care more about the few who hate your work than the multitude who loves it (politicians).
I write for myself. What does it matter what people think? If they love it, great! I'm elated! If not, then they should read something they love, and feel happy. Life is too short to read books you don't like.
... writers have been trained to sound the same. Serious writer voice stories have paragraphs that are of uniform length, sentences that rarely have contractions, a lot of passive voice (!), and very few conjunctions. Things like dashes and parenthesis are used judiciously—as in so rarely that most stories don’t even have them. ... ...
... ... ... ... ...
... Writers should be using ellipsis and dashes. They should be misusing certain English words because these writers are supposed to be writing from the point of view of someone who either doesn’t speak the language or who thinks in a totally different way (as in thinks in colors instead of words). Descriptions should be varied. Perspective should be skewed. ... ...
... ... ... ... ...
... If you write in your own voice, you will discover one thing: readers will react. Some readers will hate your work with a fiery passion. Others will adore your work with equal passion.
That’s the great thing about original writing: it incites a strong response. No one will ever call your writing competent or bland. They’ll have an opinion about it, and that opinion will be as strong as your stories, as strong as your voice. ... ...
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Like broadcasters of old, writers have been trained to sound the same. Serious writer voice stories have paragraphs that are of uniform length, sentences that rarely have contractions, a lot of passive voice (!), and very few conjunctions. Things like dashes and parenthesis are used judiciously—as in so rarely that most stories don’t even have them.
Walsh said one of the things she found surprising about the books was “the way she utilized such literacy devices as dashes, ellipses and fragments to help create a sense of urgency or tension or to help the reader delve deeper into a character's thoughts. I think it was the English teacher in me that found joy in these discoveries. I never would have looked so deeply at the texts had it not been for this project, so I am incredibly grateful to have been given the opportunity.” ...
... ... ... ... ...
First, according to Blasingame, Meyer’s skill at “conjuring caring and intertwining between her protagonist, Bella, and young women readers is undeniable.” She also has been successful because she writes with detailed description, Blasingame said.
“She avoids passive voice and opens sentences with what she wants the reader to see and know first, getting right to the action of the sentence.”
Blasingame added, “In every sentence, Meyer leads with the picture that she wants in the reader’s mind and then moves on to the sentence’s action, described by verbs that are spot-on accurate for conveying exactly what she wants the reader to experience through Bella.”
In a nutshell: Don't bother making changes for those who hate your work ... they don't get it, so their advice is worthless. Only consider advice from those who love your work.
Re: Stephenie Meyer: I Am YOUR Reader Writers should write for themselves. No one can make _all_ readers happy, so don't worry that your story has to be _all_ things to _all_ readers ... leave the unhappy readers to find the stories they much prefer.
Writing for Readers Posted on August 14, 2005 by Holly Lisle
http://hollylisle.com/writing-for-readers/
And I'm looking forward to Midnight Sun whenever you get around to finishing it. 
[No Pressure.] As well as any other books from Edward's POV you might write.
