In the Reader Spotlight series we ask our smart, diverse and multi-talented readers what makes them tick, and what they're seeing in Spun Yarn manuscripts. Our readers span the gamut of literary taste, so expect to see a little bit of everything! 

By day, Shareca is an English teacher and tutor, and is about to begin her MFA in film studies. Because that’s not enough, she also runs a Comic Book and Gaming Aficionado website at The Daily Fandom and is a longtime reader for us here at The Spun Yarn! She reads everything, but especially Young Adult, Poetry, and Mystery/Thriller.

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The Spun Yarn: Shareca, you have been with us since 2017. Why do you do it, and what about reading for us do you find rewarding?

Shareca:   My favorite aspect of the reading experience is getting to partake in the editing process. I love being able to help writers, as I am one myself. I love the fact that I can help shape a story or at the very least, give advice from my perspective as a totally new reader. It makes me feel wonderful knowing that I was a part of someone’s process. 

The Spun Yarn: You've seen a lot of manuscripts come through. In your experience, what is one thing that's hard for authors to get right?

Shareca: Can I choose two? Endings and beginnings. It’s like an essay: you either love to write introductions and hate to write conclusions or vice versa. It is astonishingly hard to grip a reader at the beginning of the story and to leave the reader with a hard-hitting life analysis at the end. You know, the stories that really make you consider your mortality. I think that’s the most troublesome part of writing. There’s never a definite way to do beginnings or endings, but I wish there were! 

The Spun Yarn: You are a passionate gamer and comic book fan, and have turned these passions into a business, is that right? Tell us about it!

Shareca: Yes! I run The Daily Fandom, I do a lot more comic book reading than gaming these days (adult life, sadly). It has been a wondrous experience to teach myself a ton of development quirks over the past two years. It was something I didn’t foresee myself doing, but one thing led to another and the former owner couldn’t take on the website anymore and I just said, “let’s do it.” Since then, I have been “doing it.” 

The Spun Yarn: Where do you live, and what do you love about living there?

Shareca: I live in Fresno, CA. I love the weather here — that’s my favorite aspect. Also, it’s a small town in California so I don’t have to deal with the traffic as much (thank goodness!) The weather, however, is my ultimate favorite reason to be here. I live about 3-4 hours max from everything in California and it’s nice to be able to drive anywhere in under 5 hours!

The Spun Yarn: You love to read, and like other passionate readers are probably on the lookout for your next favorite book. What are you in the mood to read right now, or what kind of book would you love to read that you haven't found yet?

Shareca: A healthy, romantic, dreamy, sort of detective story. I love detective stories and I feel like we don’t get much in the genre of Sherlock and Drew. I am always missing detective love stories. I haven’t found one that has gripped me yet, one day I will.

The Spun Yarn: You’re right, we could really use more classic detective narratives. Stick around, and maybe someone reading this will send us one for you!