For me, novels coalesce into being, rather than arrive fully formed.
It's true, reading too many novels makes you go blind.
I'm a novelist, that's how I make my livelihood, and I concentrate on the novels.
I'm certainly a plot and character man. Themes, structure, style - they're valid components of a novel and you can't complete the book without them. But I think what propels me as a reader is plot and character.