We’ve been thrilled to hear your thoughts on the refreshed NoveList experience — thank you for continuing to share what’s working, what’s not, and what you’d love to see next. In my June post, The Story That Never Ends, I shared how your feedback helps shape the future of NoveList. Your voice truly guides our path forward, and we’re so glad you’re part of this journey.
This is the third installment in our “Your Voices Heard” series. If you missed the earlier posts, you can catch up here: Your Voices Heard: On Local Collections and Your Voices Heard: On Curated Lists.
Quick Recap: What You’ve Told Us
We’ve been listening closely, and here are five recurring themes from your feedback:
- Local collections matter, and many of you weren’t aware you could connect your library’s holdings to NoveList. We explored that in Your Voices Heard: On Local Collections.
- Curated Lists are a favorite, especially our “For Fans Of” lists. You’re asking for easier ways to browse them. We covered that in Your Voices Heard: On Curated Lists.
- Story Elements are powerful, but navigating them in the new layout has been a bit tricky. That’s today’s focus.
- The new design looks great, but a few features aren’t functioning as smoothly as before. We’re actively refining those.
- Printing and sharing tools are key, and you’d love even more flexibility. We’re on it!
Let’s Talk Story Elements
Story elements are at the heart of how NoveList connects readers with books they’ll love. They go beyond basic metadata to describe the full reading experience: The tone, the themes, the characters, and more. Here’s a quick overview of what they include:
- Appeals: The mood, pacing, and narrative style (aka how the story feels)
- Genres: The type of story, e.g., mystery, fantasy, romance, etc.
- Themes: The deeper patterns and tropes that resonate with readers
- Subjects: The core topics or issues the story explores
- Identities: Both the characters in the stories and the authors who write them
- Time and Place: When and where the story unfolds
Together, these elements help readers discover books that match their interests, preferences, and moods, whether they’re craving a fast-paced thriller or a cozy, character-driven tale.
How to Explore Story Elements in NoveList
There are several ways to delve into story elements — some are playful, while others are more precise. Here’s a quick guide:
- Try the Interactive Mixer: Right on the homepage, you’ll find a fun tool that lets you mix and match story elements to generate book lists. Swap out to refresh the list and discover something new.
- Filter Your Search Results: After running a search, click “All filters” to narrow your results by genre, theme, appeal, and more.
- Explore Detail Pages: Every book, author, and series page includes story elements. Click any set of terms to launch a new search based on that mix.
- Browse the Story Elements Indexes: Under “Discover NoveList,” you’ll find lists of our thousands of story elements. Bonus: They’re all clickable, so feel free to explore!
- Use the Search Box: If you're a pro and know exactly what you’re looking for, type it in directly (e.g., Gossipy) to find matching titles.
Want a deeper dive? Visit this page: NoveList – Finding Your Next Read with Story Elements.
What’s Coming Next
We’re working on several improvements based on your feedback:
- Better grouping and display: Many of you miss seeing story elements organized by category. We’re redesigning that experience to make it clearer and more intuitive.
- Revamped Appeal Mixer: You’ve told us you miss the old appeal mixer, and we’re excited to bring you a new version that’s even more dynamic and user-friendly.
More to Come
We’ll be covering the remaining feedback themes in upcoming posts, so stay tuned! In the meantime, we’d love to keep the conversation going. Here’s how you can reach us:
- In NoveList: Use the “Share Feedback” link in the “How Do I?” menu.
- Email: novelist@ebsco.com
- Website: multiple options for getting in touch
Thanks for Being Part of the Story
Your insights help us build a better NoveList — not just for you, but for every reader who finds their next great read. We’re grateful for your partnership and excited to continue improving together.
Until next time, happy exploring, and may your next book be exactly what you’re looking for.
Danielle Borasky is Vice President of NoveList. She is currently reading The Grand Paloma Resort by Cleyvis Natera.
