Readers and writers often refer to novels in a binary way. They think of them as being either commercial (popular) or literary (artful). It’s a false dichotomy that sets you up to feel defensive, no matter what you write. It fails to recognize the extreme (and exciting) diversity in contemporary writing. And it underestimates readers. Quality of writing and quality of story make magic when they are the right mix at the right time, but quality is as hard to pin down as beauty or talent. Wherever your tastes and talents are on the continuum, from bestselling romance to winners of Le Prix Goncourt, there’s something to be learned at every interval, from Elmore Leonard to Paul Auster, from Shades of Gray to The Underground Railroad.