Three studies investigated the nature of the author-reader relationship during discourse comprehension and production, as well as the influence of selected factors on the author-reader relationship. The first study produced data indicating that the relationship is susceptible to subtle variations in the identity of the author. In those situations when readers were familiar with the topic and likely to identify with the author, they were more likely to recall more and be more critical of their reading. The second study demonstrated how topic familiarity and discourse style influenced the relationship across successful and less successful reading experiences. The more successful readers were more self-initiating with respect to their role as readers and their sense of what the author was trying to do than were less successful readers. The third study highlighted how shifts in the author-reader relationship were manifested for both readers and writers. Taken together, the data afford a description of how readers negotiate meaning with a sense of who the author is and what he or she is trying to do. The data suggest that successful readers approach texts with two sets of concerns: what the author is trying to get them to think and do and what they themselves deem they need to do. (Materials used in the studies are appended.) (FL)