In an earlier post, I told you about virtual libraries that most states have for their citizens. As a matter of fact, I've found online libraries for 44 states now, if you want to check it out at Facts for Fiction.
In Georgia's virtual library (GALILEO), we have a great resource called NoveList. Its main focus is to help readers find books similar to ones they've read and enjoyed, or find other authors that will remind them of their favorites. As a fiction writer, I've found another great use for it.
Have you ever been advised to find houses that publish books similar to yours? Or maybe in a book proposal, you want to refer to successful novels that share certain qualities with yours. Maybe you're just curious what's out there that's like your work in progress. NoveList is a great source for that.
You can, of course, just browse the Author Read-Alikes or its other features. But it also has a really cool feature where you can "describe a plot" and have it pull up a list that fits the bill.
For example, awhile back I had a new story idea involving time travel. Is time travel an acceptable topic in the Christian fiction market, I wondered? Has anyone done it before? So I entered time travel and Christian fiction as my search terms, and quickly found that Randy Ingermanson, Nancy Moser and other Christian novelists had indeed tackled that subject. But mine has a sort of psychological suspense to it. I tried psychological suspense and time travel and came up with Kindred by Octavia Butler.
I've checked for NoveList in some of the other virtual libraries in the Facts for Fiction list. Some seem to have it and some don't. If you're one of the unfortunate ones whose state doesn't offer it, don't despair. I'll bet your public library has some kind of resource for finding "read-alikes" and books that have certain plots or themes. Just ask your local librarian, and she (or he) can probably point you in the right direction.
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Great link! thanks--
ReplyDeleteCool! Thanks, Robin.
ReplyDeleteNovelList is pretty easy to use too. I highly recommend it!
ReplyDeleteI guess I'm missing something. I went to the link you provided for Georgia's virtual library and couldn't find NovelList. Can you tell me where I go once I get to the home page? Thanks! Miralee
ReplyDeleteMiralee (and others), Georgia's library (GALILEO) has some stuff that guests can access, but you have to have a Georgia password for NoveList. Did you try the Facts for Fiction link to see if I added your state's virtual library? Then you can check and see if it has NoveList.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone wants to tell me their state, I'll take a look and see if they have NoveList or something similar. Thanks for trying it out. (I'm hoping that one day we'll have one big U.S. virtual library that everybody can use. That'll be much easier--and fun!)
Yay! I found my state!! Thanks so much for the great resource. In my college days, I worked in an interlibrary loan department and later as a Reference Assistant. Too bad that was back in the days of DOS. Also too bad my memory can't conjure up all the great resources I must have known existed back then. LOL
ReplyDelete