I am an agented and as yet unpublished author. I write five days a week and believe in timelines and outlines. There is no muse. There is craft, hard work, and preparation. If you don't know where your story is going, you haven't thought about it enough.
I read everything character driven regardless of genre. I love my Sookie, my Harry Dresden, and lots of magic and swords and explosions. But I like cowboys and space ships too. I would read about a steampunk talking duck if the character were compelling.