Suffering from TMI

TMI: Too Much Information.

I started reading a new book last night -- my first by a much-published, award-winning author . . . and, most likely, my last. There might be a good story in there somewhere, but it's buried in Too Much background info.

I won't go into specifics because . . . well, because I don't want to make enemies of her or her fans, but sheesh! It's like reading a textbook. We know waaaay more about the hero's and the heroine's occupations than anyone who doesn't actually do the jobs should be forced to learn. We've been inundated with history -- of the location, the central aspect of the story, and numerous current events. It's all written in a dry, dull way, and because of its inclusion, the author's wasted pages that could have been devoted to the developing romance. I'm halfway through the book (okay, so I started skimming the boring stuff on about page 40) and I don't feel as if I know or understand either character. It's a sad thing when you've read 180 pages of a book billed as a romance and can't remember whether "Susie" is the heroine or her sister!!!

This isn't the first time I've come across this problem, of course. One memorable book a few years ago (and I won't name names here either!) was a sharp, funny contemporary set in Louisiana with a Cajun hero. The interaction between him and the heroine was entertaining, he was hot and sexy -- and did I mention hot?? -- and the author wasn't overdoing the Cajun dialect as authors with Cajun characters so often do.

When suddenly, right in the middle of one of those sharp, funny scenes, the hero goes into schoolteacher mode. "The Cajuns are descendants of the Acadiens, who originally lived in Nova Scotia. In 18-blah blah, they were forced to relocate . . ." It went on for a full page -- the condensed history of how the Cajuns got to Louisiana. (If I have what few facts I've mentioned wrong, sue me.) It yanked me out of the story so fast that I almost got whiplash.

Maybe I'm not the typical reader, but when I want to know what time it is, I don't want to be told how to make a watch. Choose a few careful details to give a sense of authenticity, but don't feel obligated to use every bit of the research you've done. Just tell us what we need to know to understand your story, please! Rachel8:41 AM