The "It" Author

No, I don't mean Stephen King, at least not specifically. "It" authors are like the "It Girl" of bygone days-the star that has a quality we can't really define. People just say the person has got "it".

I just finished a book by Tim Hallinan, and I'm pretty sure he's got "it". I didn't like the characters much, not even the protagonist. They're into a world I find distasteful, and they make some really bad choices, to use psycho-speak. There might even have been holes in the plot. However, I read right up to the end, because Hallinan has "it", that vague quality that makes a reader, once she's started, want to read on.

Of course, not everyone likes every author's work. The above-mentioned Stephen King definitely has "it" (pun intended) but not for me. Other authors that readers rave about leave me less than thrilled, too. At the same time, I respond to authors that make my friends look at me funny. ("You LIKE that stuff?")

I recognize personal differences of opinion on what is good reading. Still, there is an "it" quality to the best books that attracts readers and makes them run around telling other people how great an author is. "It" makes fans wait breathlessly for an author's next book and makes them a little sad when they finally get it and finish too quickly, so there's a year to wait for another.

I'm pleased when people tell me that a book of mine grabbed them, kept them reading, and made them anxious for the next one. The best books have got "it", and the best authors seem to find "it" every time.