Giving reading recommendations is easy. Everyone has something they’ve enjoyed they want to share with the world. However, giving a good reading recommendation is not so easy. Not because people’s recommend are not good – often it’s fantastic material – but because the key to a good reading recommendation isn’t quality but personalisation.
Before continuing, I should preface what I mean when discussing reading recommendations. I’m writing about the concept in a one-to-one context, where someone might suggest a comic to a friend, family member, or co-worker. It’s not the one-to-many context that this site operates, where there’s a robust section called “Reading Recommendations“. That context operates under different rules where personalisation isn’t possible on that scale and where the right audience finds it through various ways.
Also, while I’m discussing this through the lens of comics, much of what is discussed below can be applied to other media, such as movies, television, novels, video games, and music.
Understandably, you’ll want to share the comics you love with the world. However, just because you love something doesn’t mean that others will too. Not everyone has the exact same taste as you. In fact, you could think of taste like a complex algorithm built on what a person has been exposed to in the past, what they have and haven’t enjoyed, which is outputted like a messy patchwork quilt. Each square of that metaphorical quilt represents a different facet of their taste, some of which blend together while others contrast. While there might be some overlap, it’s unlikely it will be the same.
Personalisation is the key if you want to be successful with reading recommendations. You need to cater for the person you’re giving a reading recommendation to. Think about what kinds of stories they like, using factors like:
- The comics/graphic novels you know they’ve read before
- You can go more granular on this by thinking about the writers, artists, and themes of those books
- Other media they enjoy, whether that be movies, television shows, novels, or video games
- This could be current/recent favourites or even be informed by nostalgia
- Think about the themes and genres presented in these stories
- General interests, such as hobbies or activities
- Examples could be sports or Dungeons & Dragons.
- How they identify themselves
- This is a broad one, but this could be in terms of gender, age, sexuality,
From there, you can combine your own reading experience with what you know about that person to inform comic books and/or graphic novels that they will enjoy.
A few examples of personalised reading recommendations include:
- The Sandman for people who enjoy Neil Gaiman’s novels
- Pretty Deadly for people who like Weird Westerns
- People who play Dungeons & Dragons might like the Dungeon & Dragons comics or one of the many fantasy comics inspired by the classic tabletop RPG
You can optimise your reading suggestions further by removing personal bias. Just because you think something is bad doesn’t mean that others will – especially if it aligns with their tastes and interests. It might just mean that you’re not the target audience. Go even further by avoiding the good-bad dichotomy, as there’s a treasure trove of material that might not be perfect but contains interesting elements – aspects that might appeal to some people and not others. Where you might not like a work for one reason, that comic may have redeeming factors for another. Essentially, don’t yuck someone’s potential yum.
Okay, you’ve got a personal recommendation for someone you know. It’s the perfect read that aligns with their taste. It’s time to communicate that recommendation to them. Blurting out “you will like x” is not enough. (This is something I see a lot on Reddit or Twitter when someone asks for reading recommendations.) Every recommendation needs a “why”. That’s the hook that will get someone to read your suggestion. Otherwise, it’s just a title to them.
Give the recommendation recipient a selling point. That could be a short description of the plot or themes involved. It could even be a couple images that show off the art if it happens to be a visually impressive comic. The “why” is what will spark that intent to read, with more inputs available that could possibly align with that metaphorical patchwork quilt.
This could be as simple as “You might like x because it’s from the same creative team as y” or “You’ll like this comic because it aligns with your sense of humour”. The key is to highlight the selling point in a concise manner that piques interest. You can go into more detail if they’re unsure or want to know more about it.
Everyone appreciates a personalised reading recommendation. Just remember to think about what kinds of stories they’re interested in context with what’s been discussed above, and you’ll likely succeed in finding great reads for your family and friends.
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