Sheltering the dream and protecting the dreamer: the role of place and space in the online interactions of fiction authors and readers

Abstract

Fiction authors and readers have traditionally interacted through the mediation of a 3rd party (e.g. a publisher or agent), at events such as book signings or author readings. Held in physical spaces (e.g. bookshops or libraries), these events enable authors to discuss their book, and readers to ask them questions. In recent years, online social networking sites have introduced a new environment for direct, two-way interactions without this traditional mediation. Our understanding of how this change impacts authors and readers, and the role technology now plays as mediator, is currently limited. This paper describes a qualitative interview study held with six authors and six readers of Genre Fiction. The study revealed that neither party sees great benefit to interacting directly online - a finding partially explainable by the differences in how physical places and online spaces are structured to support their interactions. We drew on space and place research to develop an HCI perspective of the impact of this change. This paper contributes an enriched understanding of fiction author and reader interactions; in particular why they do not often interact directly - or wish to. We also demonstrate the usefulness of space and place theory in understanding the boundaries which divide author and reader.