Which are the best books to read? Different people have different opinions. This is because taste and preferences are subjective. However, all great books contain the essential elements required to keep a reader interested. When writing a book, you have to keep these elements in mind. If you are not aware of these elements, here are a few shared by renowned authors like Suhel Seth:

1 ) Gripping the reader’s attention
Whenever you write a book, you have to ensure that you are able to grip the attention of the reader. If the book fails to catch hold of the reader’s attention, the reader might lose interest in the book. As a result, the person might just leave the book in between and start reading another one. Hence, a book should always have some ‘gripping’ elements that keep the readers interested till the end.

2 ) Keeping an engaging plot
A book should have an engaging plot. If the plot feels stuck in one place and does not move forward, your readers will start losing interest. You do not have to necessarily move it in a linear manner. It can move forward, backward, or even skip in between but the plot has to move. This will keep the reader engaged till the end because the person will always be interested to know what happened next. All great books always keep the readers engaged.

3 ) The writing style should not be confusing
People often get confused when following conversations between characters when they are not clearly written. Hence, you need to state them clearly. Although following the conventional style is not required, it should be easy to understand. A confusing writing style can be annoying to the readers.

4 ) Try to paint a picture when introducing your characters
The characters are one of the main elements of the book. When describing the main characters, try to provide intricate details so that a reader can easily paint a picture of the characters in his or her mind. This will allow the readers to understand the characters better and empathise with them. As a result, the readers will get more interested in the book.


5 ) The ending should be satisfying
Even if a book has the aforementioned points, it may fail to create any impact on a reader’s mind if the ending is not good. A poor ending can make the entire story fall flat. Hence, paying attention to the ending of the book is very essential. However, giving your book a satisfying ending does not necessarily mean giving a ‘happily ever after’ ending. A great ending is one that is impactful and creates a sensation of completeness in the reader’s mind.