Every theory has its pet names. What does Formalism think of literature, authors, and readers?
What is literature?
A work of literature is made up of a whole bunch of literary "devices" that function to defamiliarize the familiar. Literature gives us a fresh pair of eyes to see the world with. Yahoo!
What is an author?
An author is someone who makes the familiar unfamiliar. But if we're Formalists, we're not interested in who an author is. We're just interested how they write. Who cares about the author's psychology or history or physiognomy? Let's get down to language.
What is a reader?
A reader is someone who analyzes the form of a literary text. We pay attention to what devices a writer uses to make us laugh, or cry, or hold our breath. And we never look beyond the text itself to find answers to our questions. That is a big no-no. As long as you stick with the forms of defamiliarization that make the text come to life and the world look shiny and new, you're succeeding as a reader, Formalism-style.