Fan Mail Protocol by Alexis Walker

Back when I started reading romance novels, more years ago than I care to count, I had six favorite authors that I just couldn’t get enough of. I devoured their books faster than they could ever put them out.  Yet, it never occurred to me to send them a note about how much I loved their writing.  Of course, back then there was no such thing as the internet (yes, I am that old), and sending fan mail meant a formal letter sent to the publisher because there was no way to get the author’s address. 

Today everything has changed. With email addresses and websites it makes it so much easier to send a quick note saying how much I enjoyed a book.  And now I actually want to send out that note especially to those authors in my writing groups where I know how hard they have worked to get that great story to publication.   

After sending out these little notes for years and getting very nice replies back, I started to think (it happens on occasion), is there a protocol when it comes to fan mail?  I looked back at some of the responses I had received from authors to see if any particular email of mine garnered any particular response.  Well, that turned out to be a fruitless task as all the authors were very appreciative of what I wrote.  So I took my questions to the proverbial horse’s mouth and asked some authors about fan mail.  Here is what I have gleaned.

First and foremost, romance authors love fan mail.  It was great to learn that 99% of the fan mail is positive. Roz Denny Fox shared a sample of a particularly poignant email.  “. . . one that stands out was from someone who was homeless when they read my book, A Cowboy At Heart, that dealt with some homeless kids.  She said the story gave her hope at a time when life wasn't good for her, and she since had turned her life around and wanted me to know that my story had an impact on her.”

On the other hand, negative fan mail ranged from constructive to nasty to just plain picky.  According to Carrie Weaver “occasionally readers may not agree with what a character did, but they always state their reasons in a respectful way.  Even dissenting opinions can open up a great dialogue.” Jennifer Ashley has actually had three or four emails that told her she “sucked.”  “I've heard some authors talk about some very nasty email they get. I think though, that it's in the minority (we just remember the sting!).”  Roz feels fortunate to have only received one bad letter, but she was convinced by the profanity in the letter that the writer had other problems far more serious than her novel.  Erin Quinn had a fan tell her she wrote her book wrong: “she'd loved my book, but she didn't think I should have written it the way I did. I had dual story lines (Whispers) and so she decided she should read the book by taking the story lines apart and read first the present and then the past instead of woven together.” That had to have been a difficult task. Donna Hatch has been lucky enough to get the good fan mail by the perfectionist, “I loved your book but I found a couple of typos.”  Donna’s feelings on that? “Those drive me crazy since few if any books ever have zero typos!”

This whole idea of both good and bad fan mail made me wonder, so I asked what was the strangest fan mail an author had ever received. Responses to this ran from mildly entertaining to just plain weird.  Wendy Ely had someone who wanted her to drop everything and write a sequel so the fan could have something else great to read.  Jennifer read on an author’s blog “that a reader complained that she [the author] used too many prime numbers in her novel. (The author was not aware she used any numbers at all.)” Huh? Erin had the runner-up for weirdest fan mail: “someone told me they loved my book and then told me all of her medical problems so I'd understand why reading was so important. The thing is, they were really obscure medical problems so it wasn't like she loved to read because she was bedridden (I'm talking about warts and spastic bowel syndrome and lovely little things like that).”  But the winner of this race through Wonderland was Jennifer who said “The strangest [fan mail] was from the woman who told me she enjoyed having online sex with people while her husband was across the room watching TV. (This was an email in response to one of my tamer books, not my erotic romance.)” 

Okay, so back to reality.  Readers don’t always get introduced to an author through her most recently published book.  Many times they get an older book from a friend or the library, or they buy a new book but see that it’s the third in a trilogy and (like me) refuse to read it until they get the first two and read them in order.  Since I have done this a lot, the last scenario, I wondered if authors still wanted to hear from a fan when she read something not recently published.  The resounding answer from all was “absolutely!”  Then my question became, do authors prefer to receive detailed praise such as "You nailed the hero's motivation for being a recluse and the solution to the lovers' conflict was brilliant!" or is something along the lines of “I loved your book!  Can’t wait for the next one,” equally gratifying?  Every author was happy with either.  For Donna some detail did trump the general comments, “I'm narcissistic enough to love anything positive, but specific is a bigger thrill. It's especially fun when they tell me who they thought the killer was.” Erin is easy to please. “Simple and pure adulation is all I care about.J  ‘Loved your book’ is enough to make me do a happy dance.  ‘Couldn't put it down’ causes the same reaction.”  Carrie particularly likes to hear about what fans thought of her characters and Roz is thrilled when the fans can relate the story “to something in their own life,” or they talk about the “characters as if they're real people.”  Jennifer makes a good point about the specificity of fan mail, “Some people aren't good at articulating what they liked--they just say "I loved it!" And that's fine with me!”

With all these good, bad and strange emails coming in that are both general and specific in their admiration/criticism of an author’s work, how do the authors keep up with them? Or do they?  I’m not sure if it’s the romance genre in general or these wonderful authors specifically, but I was surprised to hear that they answer every email if they possibly can.  Obviously some authors get more than others, making it difficult, but they still try even if they are late on a response.  For Erin, getting fan mail is very important.  “It's all that keeps me going sometimes.  I live for the day I get so much it's a pain but can't imagine I'll ever not love it.”  Roz does more than thank some of her fans, “I respond to all mail, even the letters that come from prisoners.  I'm lucky in that the people I hear from in prisons tell me about the time they have on their hands to maybe write their book.  I send them information on how-to writing books.  Several write back to thank me.  Most I never hear from again.”  As for the bad fan mail . . . I like Jennifer’s solution.  “If it's very hateful, I use the power of the delete key.” 

So what else, as an avid reader of romance, do I need to know from these great ladies about sending my sincere compliments on their fine work?  Erin says to keep the fan mail coming and Wendy loves talking to people about her stories via the internet.  Jennifer is finding many people commenting on her books through Facebook and Twitter so email is no longer the only alternative to snail mail.  Those mediums, in fact, are probably great for a quick, “Loved your book,” comment.   Roz truly enjoys getting fan mail, “I like hearing about their families and their lives.”  And Donna is thrilled to know that there are people out there reading her books besides her friends and family who “feel obligated to.”  As for Carrie, she says, “Please keep those comments coming! Writing is such a solitary pursuit and sometimes it seems as if I send my stories out into this great void.  It's always nice to know that people are actually reading my books and enjoying them.”

So what is the protocol for fan mail?  The one definite rule I learned through this research is to SEND IT!  Also, be courteous.  Specificity is a plus, but not necessary and sending fan mail no matter how long the book’s been out is still very much welcomed. I know without a doubt, that every romance writer out there, like myself, is also a romance reader. So hopefully this little foray into the world of fan mail will help us craft our next complimentary email to that wonderful author who whisked us away into a world of romance and happily ever after.  After all, these authors are our friends, compatriots, and role models and would love to hear from us.  So don’t agonize over your next fan mail, just SEND IT!

Special thanks to Jennifer Ashley, Wendy Ely, Roz Denny Fox, Donna Hatch, Erin Quinn, and Carrie Weaver for their participation!

 Published in "del Corazón" November, 2009