What kind of story do you want to read?

And I mean that in the broadest sense. Can be in terms of character relationship types you want to see, a concept or premise, a particular genre blend you'd like to read, whatever. Basically if you had the chance to tell an author what you wanted to read and they'd write something awesome with what you asked for in it, what would some of those things be?

Don't give an entire story summery just some general, key elements. Also not all elements have to be for the same story.

edited 11th Dec '11 1:22:43 AM by NoirGrimoir

Action girls and yuri.

The more the merrier.

I dunno. I prefer speculative fiction of all kinds to more mundane fare, but I'll read(edit:)/play/watch the latter anyway if things pique my interest.

I'm not particularly fond of pure romance or slice-of-life fiction, and I prefer science fiction to fantasy.

I'm currently in the process of reading The Fountainhead, which has successfully lived up to my expectations of being a morally reprehensible but acceptably diverting piece of fiction I only chose to read to better understand Bioshock, so if that tells you anything about my likes and dislikes on fiction, good for you.

Edit: I forgot, graphic novels and comic books. I prefer American comic books to Japanese manga—and in fact I've never read a manga. I loved Spider Man and the Marvel Universe as a kid (never particularly liked DC, but they're alright), and now I'm getting into more mature stuff like Alan Moore. I don't get to read these as often as conventional books, though, unfortunately.

edited 11th Dec '11 1:24:42 AM by USAF713

Didactic, subtle, philosophical, and erotic. The particulars of genre and medium don't really matter, so long as something is produced with skill and assiduity.

Like a certain Supreme Court Justice, I can't describe it but I know it when I see it.

What Yuri Strike said, plus some Magitek or Urban Fantasy.

edited 11th Dec '11 3:02:43 AM by Rynnec

I like urban fantasy as well.

Nature heroes beating the crap out of evil humans using their nature powers? Bull's eye!

Well first for me is drama. I want to empathize with the characters, connect with them. For that, they should be interesting and deep. I like seeing how they deal with emotional issues such as revenge, All of the Other Reindeer, envy, Et Tu, Brute? etc. Then of course finding answers to them they never before expected.

Next are suspensful situations. Which especially includes creative fights with an emphasis on creative. Yes, more than just blood and explosions. You read any works by Masashi Kishimoto or Yoshihiro Togashi? Yeah! kneel down and worship them.

Then of course I like comedy. Like with characters who have really exaggerated quirks. My favorite are when the authors are able to play a characters trait for both drama and laughs, two birds with one stone. Like arrogance and being easily afraid.

Other personl Author Appeal include supernatural powers and if the work is graphical, at least some characters who are nice to look at. Boys, girls, whichever.

Yes I am very picky.

@ USAF 713 Yeah, never read manga before says much about you preferring american comics over manga.

edited 11th Dec '11 4:29:43 AM by PsychoFreaX

Stories that draw you in, make you think. Stories that have an encompassing broad world behind them that let you see the trees on the side of the footpath, view the stars from other worlds, bear witness or take part in grand events that can change the overworld as a whole.

In short I'm fond of deep, epic works.

Urban fantasy, post-medieval fantasy, and YA non-action based thrillers (no Action Heroes) as genres.

LGBT love triangles is something I'm yet to encounter, but would love to read too.

A good Urban Fantasy would be very welcome, or even a cyberpunk setting. It's not too often that I read one of those that really grabs me. And like Chihuaua 0, an LGBT romance that's not played for fanservice or a moral message is something I'd really like to read.

Spec-fic. Big epic. Protagonists actually involved in combat. I also like settings in which the available military power is largely concentrated in individuals, such that One-Man Army is a normal and accepted facet of warfare; that makes everything...interesting.

About a hero that isn't special that fights enemies that are special

Genre-wise, I adore spec-fiction, especially modern speculative kitchen-sink settings (which by extension means I read a lot of works that feature All Myths Are True and Magitek). I adore most Punk Punk settings, especially Steampunk, Clockpunk, and Dieselpunk. I also recently have been getting into eastern-inspired spec-fic (the ones that aren't necessarily Eastern but feature classic Anime and Manga tropes). I also love Film Noir-inspired things, as well as speculative spins on it (Supernatural Mystery, for example). I am, and always will be, a diehard fan of the Superhero genre.

Story-wise, I like stories to be epically-proportioned and small-scaled. What I mean by that is grand, save-the-universe adventures with earthly, human themes. Sometime while defending reality from destruction you still have to deal with your own social anxiety, that sort of thing. I normally prefer works which feature a healthy dose of both humor and drama, as humorless stories become stale and dramaless stories become cheap. I have an unhealthy obsession with GeodesicCasts.

I'm going to side with a lot of others here: something epic.

Like Tolkien or Star Wars or something. Just new. And preferably without it trying to be too realistic/gritty. Honestly, I want to see little spaceships take on massive capital ships, WIN, and be believable characters at the same time.

Humorous adult fiction that doesn't rely on romance, sex, parenting, or daily life at work.

Intelligent adult fiction that doesn't rely on big words or obscure concepts but instead emphasizes the difference between how adults think and how children and teenagers think. Namely, planning for the future using experience from their past.

Fantasy fiction for adults that is neither gritty nor a parody.

Fantasy fiction for children that is neither blatantly educational nor sugar-coated fluff.

A parody of a work, written by the author of the original work.

I have trouble taking most "epic" works seriously. I'd rather read about three very well fleshed out characters than the adventures of entire races of semi-magical creatures.

edited 11th Dec '11 12:04:04 PM by kashchei

I want to read something kinda like War and Peace, but ten times longer.

...Do you plan to finish it post-humously?

~megabook is published~

"...and in other news, we have received word that the United States Congress has authorized tree harvesting in all national parks, following an unexpected and total revival of the lumber industry. The economy has began to recover as millions of new jobs are being created by the newly-expanding lumber industry, and it is predicted that America will be a tree-less nation within the year. All of this seems to be connected to a new book that was published in the last month, with a page count of... oh, we're still counting, but it's a lot..."

I doubt even Major Tom's dream publishing house will be willing to publish that kind novel—not in one book, anyways. More like a series, but not a stand-alone.

It would really be easier to list what kinds of stories I wouldn't want to read. I've always had pretty broad tastes in fiction.

Although the kinds of stories I'd want to write is a much narrower list. There's plenty of things I enjoy reading that I wouldn't actually want to do myself.

I don't think that exists...

There is if you take books published in sequential form.

How long is War and Peace—vicinity 300k words? I'm pretty sure something 3m words exists—entirety of Undocumented Features is that long, anyway. (Fanfics have inured me to super-long things. I just say "It's not as long as Shinji And Warhammer40k, how's that bad?")