Tag Archives: authors

An Interview with Mac Black

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007 (2) Today I am proud to welcome Author Mac Black to Readful Things. If you have not had the pleasure of meeting him yet, here is your chance. Mac truly is an amazing author and has the best sense of humour of anyone I know. Please welcome him and don’t forget to check out his books!
1. When did you first get the idea that you were going to be a writer?
It certainly was not planned in any way nor was it ever a lifelong ambition. About three years ago it sneaked up on me when I bought a new PC. Now, I might as well admit it. I am at a certain age, an age that permits me to look back with wisdom. Yes, Ionia, I am mature (though ‘almost fossilised’ my family think is much more appropriate!) I was given a book on Genealogy and a suggestion, by my elder daughter, that I should read the book and use the internet to create a family tree, and stay out of trouble. So, I did. Now, don’t we all secretly hope that we’ll stumble on skeletons in the family cupboard? And did I? Yes …but that’s another story. Meantime daughter number two had a special birthday coming up. For a present: “Print the family tree …on a tablecloth, please …a plastic one!” (She has three small boys!) With no idea how to do that, I came up with an alternative – I would write a little book about the family, and I did. A tad too creative with my imagination I was. To be honest, this became my first work of fiction, but don’t tell the family; and the book’s title? ‘This is NOT a plastic tablecloth.’ Well… I thought it was clever!

Who or what inspired you to come up with the character Derek? Can you tell us a bit about the books he is featured in?
I found I’d actually enjoyed my first writing experience, and was curious about whether I was capable of doing something more but, this time, non-factual and original. Several attempts at creating a serious story were failures – even I was unimpressed. What about humour? Never in my life have I been able to tell a joke properly but I was involved a while ago in amateur theatre in mainly comedy roles, so the challenge I set myself was to attempt humorous fiction. The nickname for a character occurred first, ‘Sweaty’, not the most glamorous name. I then had to decide why he would be called that. The surname created for him was ‘Toozlethwaite’ and the way ‘Thwaity’ is pronounced by lisping youngsters gave me a reason to be proud of ‘Sweaty’, and so I was started. Would he be a hero; or something else? I chose something else, and because humour usually develops from mishap, I used some fairly basic run-of-the-mill activities as the plot but, in doing so, I have made a poor guy called Derek Toozlethwaite suffer severely …in four stories. Occasionally I feel guilty about that…

How did you choose which way you were going to publish?


When I began I knew little about the business of either publishing or self-publishing. Trying to find someone to become interested in what I’d written would be a real challenge and seemed unlikely to be successful, knowing that some people try for years. So, I was grateful then and still am, when the eighth publisher I contacted smiled, and offered to publish my books without charge, and being a Scotsman… This small independent organisation has taken a chance with me, UP Publications Ltd. and they do not have a large PR system like the larger publishers. It is a small team with the industrious multi-talented manager arranging all the formalities of my publication needs, and an excellent editor to keep me on the straight and narrow, and, a nice one, artwork able to be done in-house. Although I have an editor I do a great deal of the editing myself, and nowadays actually enjoy that part almost as much as the writing.

 Would you have done anything different now that you are able to look back on your publishing journey?
I doubt it. So far, it has been a very interesting and enjoyable experience for me, and I’ve learned a lot along the way but I still lack confidence in my ability to tackle self-publishing. I appreciate the help of experts and prefer to rely on them. In other words, to use a good Scottish term – I am a big feartie! (A coward, for those that don’t know the term…) and sadly my technical expertise is stretched at just producing the words on the computer. ‘Spell-check’ and I have become very good friends.

What is the name of your work in progress and what is it about?
The fourth ‘Derek’ story is completed and is with my editor just now, ‘Derek’s Good Relations’, waiting a publication date. I am giving this established character a rest for the moment, he deserves it, and I am now working on a final edit of ‘Lofty Issues’, a story that does not involve Derek. This one is a tragicomic tale of a Glasgow family and how they stumble on some family secrets, thanks to a ‘Treasure Hunt’ created by a dead Granny, and involves a gun, diamonds and bagpipes, and …skeletons are discovered in this family’s cupboard. Now, how is that for starters?

Who are some of your favourite authors?
Selecting a book for me can be influenced by the cover or the ambiguity of the title and does not have to be by a well-known author, and I am rarely disappointed. However authors such as Ian Rankin, Henning Mankell, Jo Nesbo, Alan Bennett, and Donna Leon give me many hours of pleasure. I enjoy autobiographies too, but not those I suspect to be written by ghost writers for celebrities. A Scottish author of long ago, called Neil Munro, wrote short stories of gentle humour about the crew of a Clyde puffer vessel, and every so often it is nice to re-read these; written in the days when books were created the hard way by authors who had to use pen and ink…

Any advice you can give to others looking to publish?


Try to remain optimistic. The world is a big place and there are lots of people out there who read, so surely someone will take a liking to your masterpiece. I think that luck can play a big part in how you succeed and sometimes you have to create your own. Although I still prefer to read a story on paper, rather than on an e-book, the marketplace nowadays gives plenty of scope (to those who are more technically skilled and braver than I) and gives you the chance to do your own thing, and help you achieve fame, electronically.

How important do you see reviews as being and why?
It gives feedback. It can be difficult to know what readers in general think of your work. How often are readers inclined to comment back to an author? Not often, I’d say, and friends, I suspect, try to be kind and tell you what you hope to hear. Reading what an independent reviewer says about your writing is a measure; a good review and it is a boost to your morale; a bad one, though disappointing, might send you in a better direction, though you could perhaps ignore it. A review might also influence the public to go beyond the book title. That would help and, as writers, don’t our egos require others to read our works and lavish us with praise? (Sorry, got carried away – wishful thinking!)

What has been the most difficult part of your writing journey?
Creating answers for interviews? No… Quite simply, it has been making the world aware that my books exist. Whether the books are well written or not, unfortunately the chances of someone stumbling on them in the web pages of Amazon, or Waterstone’s, or WH Smith’s, or Barnes and Noble, etc. are slight. So how can it be done? Newspaper articles are one way, but another is to find a friendly blogger who might take pity, or better still, one who likes the books and is willing to encourage others? Know anyone you could recommend, Ionia…?

Where can we find your books and personal website?
My website: www.macblack.info/Books/
My publisher’s website: www.uppublications.ltd.uk/ and books can be purchased there.
I can also be contacted at macblack.author@gmail.com.
Each book is available on line as paperback from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Waterstone’s, and WH Smith’s, etc. (and on Kindle from Amazon).
And I might as well give you the book titles too. ‘Please…Call me Derek’; ‘Derek’s in Trouble’; ‘Derek’s Revenge’. As has been suggested, that although each story has been written as a self contained tale, to read them in sequence makes you more familiar with Derek’s disturbingly developing life. You might even get to like him…

Any final thoughts?
As has been suggested many times before by those wiser than me, and even older: Remain optimistic; keep plugging away even though you may seem to be getting nowhere; but most importantly – don’t give up the day job!

Marketing/self publishing with Harry Steinman

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Doors & Windows 004When you first begin anything, there is cause to be frightened of the unknown. Searching out unfamiliar territory and trying to get everything you need lined out for a new book project is no exception. Usually, if a door closes a window will open. Harry Steinman is here to give you some ideas about how to bypass the window and the door and knock out a wall instead. Need funding to get that book going? Here are some ideas.

The Kindness of Strangers:

How To Fund a Self-Published Novel With Kickstarter

By Harry Steinman, a One-Hit Wonder

Like it or lump it: self-publishing costs money. Every element of your book must be excellent. You must spend your hard-earned shekels or your book will look amateurish.

Good things are rarely cheap, and cheap things are rarely good. Don’t skimp on buying the expertise you need, and don’t publish unless your writing is as good as the work of the design and production experts you hire. You’re book is up against almost 2 million eBooks and nearly 30 million hard cover and paperback books—and that’s on Amazon alone. If you’re going to go head-to-head against 32 million other works, yours has to be letter-perfect.

First, a quick review of what I spent. Some of my purchases were ill-considered—I didn’t follow my eBook-focused strategy and wasted money on printing. (I should have handed paper books to a POD printer.)

1. Structural edit: $1200
2. Line and copy editing: $740
3. ISBN #s (purchase of 10): $250
4. Bar Code (for point-of-purchase price scanning): $25
5. Design and print bookmarks: $70
6. eBook conversion: $150
7. Print ARCs: $100
8. Cover and interior design: $1500
9. Shipping: $220
10. Print 500 books: $1873

Total: $6128.

My original budget was $5000 and I set out to raise half that through a program called Kickstarter.

Kickstarter http://www.kickstarter.com/hello is a website that helps people raise money for creative projects. Each creator—artists, writers, sculptors, inventors, filmmakers, musicians, and others—provides potential sponsors with information about his or her project, including a brief video pitch. Sponsors make pledges on the Kickstarter website. If the artist meets the funding goal on time, pledges are collected and transferred to the artist, less a 5% fee to Kickstarter. Amazon Payments charges a fee of 3 to 5% for collection and disbursement of funds. Sponsors enjoy the security of knowing that pledges aren’t collected if the funding goal isn’t met.

On July 13, 2012, I launched a $2500 Kickstarter project. During the 30-day pledge-raising period, my project that raised $3,027. Direct contributions raised an additional $1,185 for a total of $4,212. After fees, I grossed $3,909. After paying for the rewards to backers, collateral materials, and shipping, I netted about $3400—a bit more than half the cost of self-publishing Little Deadly Things. http://littledeadlythings.com/

So, how do you use Kickstarter to raise funds for your self-publishing project? Hard work plus a few basics is all you need. Here’s what I learned.

Write a damned good book and a perfect Kickstarter pitch. Twelve percent of my funding—one out of every eight dollars—came from strangers browsing Kickstarter for interesting projects. Indifferent pitches produce few pledges. Here is mine: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/littledeadlythings/help-publish-little-deadly-things

Aim low. Set a funding goal that you can attain or exceed. If you fall short of your goal, your project will not be funded.
End your project on the second weekend of the month. The first paycheck of the month pays the bills. The second check is more disposable. Don’t end a project at month end, when the money’s spent.

Short projects work better than long ones. Maintain a sense of urgency, and stay focused. Most successful projects are open for thirty days.

Backers help people they like. People you know won’t care about your project so much as they will care about you. They don’t have to like your book to support you. You’re looking for a pledge, not a pat on the back.

Everybody likes a hero. Nobody likes a mooch. Use social networks wisely. For months, I posted daily on Facebook about my novel’s progress. The posts were very brief, always with a photo. I worked very hard on writing short, interesting entries. People experienced my journey vicariously and, by leaving comments and “liking” my posts, followers developed the habit of being supportive. That meant that I needed to mention my Kickstarter project only three times—not enough to annoy, but enough that one-third of my pledges came through the Little Deadly Things’ Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/LittleDeadlyThings
You must have a project video. It doesn’t have to be fancy. Check out the LDT video. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/littledeadlythings/help-publish-little-deadly-things It’s clearly home grown, but it worked. An extremely simple video from writer Kelly Thompson, raised over three times her $8000 goal. Check it out: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/532638631/the-girl-who-would-be-king

Keep your video short. 238 people clicked on my five-minute video, but only 20% watched to the end. Your video should be well under three minutes.

Communicate well. Successful projects require strategic Updates. Too few, too many, or overly long Updates can mean failure. Short sentences and paragraphs are easier to read, and photos draw the eye. Here’s an example: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/littledeadlythings/help-publish-little-deadly-things/posts/296142

Rewards rule! The perceived value of the reward should approximate the size of the pledge. Browse Kickstarter to see what other project creators offer.

Rewards, II. You must include low-dollar value rewards. Nearly one out of three of my Kickstarter backers pledged $10. Their reward was an eBook, (which carried no inventory or shipping costs).

Rewards, III. International backers prefer eBook rewards due to extra shipping costs and customs fees. If you ship print books internationally, indicate “Gift” on the customs form to avoid customs fees charged to the backer.

Rewards rule, IV. Shipping is the tail that wags the dog. I underestimated these costs. Also, I offered posters as one of the rewards. I had to purchase mailing tubes and extra postage. Wish I’d thought that through!

Do NOT kick in your own money in order to hit your goal. It may be considered money-laundering. Get caught, and your project will be taken down and the pledges cancelled.

Compliment Kickstarter with direct mail. One-third of my support came from people who do not frequent the internet. Bone up on how to write a fund-raising appeal. Ask local shopkeepers how they handle requests for donations. Six percent of my proceeds came from shops I patronize.

Support one of the nation’s premier young writers program. Read Little Deadly Things. Little Deadly Things funds a quarterly scholarship for the Grubstreet Young Adults Writers Program. http://www.grubstreet.org/index.php?id=22 You can help YAWP—and read a damned good novel—with your purchase. Buy from the LDT site, or from Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/Little-Deadly-Things-ebook/dp/B0093O0UBI Or borrow the Kindle version free, from the Amazon Prime Lending Library. (Amazon pays me a royalty for each loan. It’s a good deal!)

Kickstarter is a heckuva lot of work. But it’s worthwhile. Best of all, it will make you a better writer.

Next week: the magic and mystery of cover design and interior design. Don’t miss it!

cover

A Kindle best-seller

on sale on Amazon or www.littledeadlythings.com

Every purchase supports the Young Adult Writers Program at grubstreet.org

Stonefly by Scott J. Holliday

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I do a lot of book reviews, but choose to preface very few with a personal message. This one I have to. This is one of my very favourite books of the year so far. If you have not checked out this book yet, you are doing yourself a disservice. I highly recommend this and am seriously looking forward to the next book!

You can find Scott here:

http://www.scottjholliday.com/

Here is the description from Goodreads:

Jacob Duke has come back to Braketon­—a sleepy, backwoods town bordering Dover, the mental institution where he spent his formative years. Jacob’s intention is to enjoy Braketon’s woods and water for the first time as a free man, but he soon discovers that Dover isn’t through with him yet. Driven by a curse that compels him to grant any wish he hears, Jacob is drawn back into his disturbing former life by a young boy’s desire to see his own father dead.

Complicating things are Lori Nelson, Jacob’s friend-with-benefits who continues to put new boyfriends in his path, and Motown, Jacob’s friend from his years at Dover, who carries a secret that rocks Jacob’s foundation and makes him question his own morality.

Stonefly is a suspense thriller that rockets to a surprising, but satisfying end. Stay tuned for the second book in the series, entitled Broken Horizon.

ebook
Published June 1st 2013 by Haley Road Publishing
ISBN13
9780988555426
edition language
English
original title
Stonefly: Book one of the Jacob Duke series
series
Jacob Duke #1

Here are my thoughts on this lovely novel:

This book may have the most original plot that I have seen so far this year. When I first read the blurb for this, I was a bit concerned that it might go off in the sillies since the character would more or less be like a genie. Thankfully, I was wrong. Not only was it not silly, but it was gripping, well written and engaging from start to finish.

One of the things that made this book so enjoyable for me was the quirkiness of the main character. He is dealing with a blessing/curse situation that he inherited and has no control over. He has spent years trying to hide from the power he has to no avail, and it has created a pretty sad life for him to have to endure.

There is a lot of good humour in this book and after getting to know the main character for a couple of chapters, you can’t help but love him and feel bad for his unfortunate situation. He was such a realistic character that at times I forgot I was reading and felt as if I were walking in his shoes. It was easy to care for him.

The one thing I did notice about this novel that I thought could have been worked over a bit was the places where the main character flashed back to earlier events. The writing was still good, but the timing was often bad. Just when another scene would get interesting it would cut away, therefore dissolving the tension somewhat of what would have otherwise been a stellar scene.

Overall this was a very fun and exciting book that gripped at my emotions, made me laugh and had a very surprising ending. I am very much looking forward to the next book in the series.

This Review is based on a digital Galley from Netgalley.

You said HUH?

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fantasy-moon

So, hands down, my favourite genre is, was and always will be fantasy. I love to read it, to think about it, to

watch movies themed with it. I love magical worlds and creative characters. I read other stuff too,

obviously, but fantasy will always be my first love.

This being said, the following letter is to fantasy (and sci-fi)  authors.

Dear Author, (No one specific)

I am your loyal reader. I enjoy when you come up with original characters and name them accordingly. I find that getting lost in the amazing worlds you create makes my life a better, less stressful place.

It is because I love thee that I feel the need to make you aware of the following: You simply must stop naming your characters things that I cannot pronounce. I know you don’t want your characters to be named Jim and Martha. I don’t want them to be either. Still, I find it much easier to read about the incredible adventures of Nara and Lex than I do about leirfgewyfgey and skjdhfbthxy.

Seriously. Allow me to give you and example (completely fake not real characters made up by me.)

Nara looked at Lex.  He heard the noise as well. He didn’t say anything, but she could tell from the subtle tilt of his head that he was aware of the sound. The silence of the cave had been so complete, that even the small scraping sound seemed loud to Nara’s sensitive ears. “Stay behind me,” Lex demanded. Nara shrugged. “I’m the one with the weapon.” In one swift movement, Lex  spun around grabbing the scabbard from Nara’s hip. “Not anymore.”

Nara let out a sigh. She should have turned him into a toad while she still had the chance.

Now again.

Leirfgewyfgey looked at skjdhfbthxy. He heard the noise as well. He didn’t say anything, but she could tell from the subtle tilt of his head that he was aware of the sound. The silence of the cave had been so complete, that even the small scraping sound seemed loud to Leirfgewyfgey ‘s sensitive ears. “Stay behind me,” skjdhfbthxy  demanded. Leirfgewyfgey shrugged. “I’m the one with the weapon.” In one swift movement skjdhfbthxy  spun around, grabbing the scabbard from Leirfgewyfgey ‘s hip. “Not anymore.”

Leirfgewyfgey let out a sigh. She should have turned him into a toad while she still had the chance.

The same paragraph, only difference the character names. When I read the first one, I do not stumble around and get lost. I can read it in about 30 seconds.

When I read the second one, I get stuck. How is that pronounced? My lack of ability to easily say and remember the name hinders my ability to care what is going on in the story.

When was the last time you saw a fantasy saga make it big? Like really big?

Like Frodo big. Do you suppose we would still be talking about Frodo and Sam and Hobbits if they had been

Frakdhgflqyg and sajehrfuyfru and hobineskewiskerofitsujms?

                                                                                                                                                                                                     Me either.

Thank you,

Your dedicated reader,

Ionia Martin

Photo Credit:

<a href=”http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=28860&picture=fantasy-moon”>Fantasy Moon</a> by Anne Lowe

Marketing/Self Publishing with Harry Steinman

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Sometimes Self Publishing can make you feel like a tiny boat in a big ocean. It is always a good idea to be prepared and know what you are getting yourself into before jumping into anything, and Harry Steinman is here to help you navigate. He makes a rather funny looking compass, but he always points you in the right direction. He missed last week, so quiet your applause and give him some crap before you tell him how helpful he is. I do.

 

 

Pantser or Planner? Part Two.

Preparing to Self-Publish

by Harry Steinman, a Guy Who Did a

Few Things Right

 

     Last post described tasks that an author seeking to self-publish    must consider.

                      This post covers a few more.

Quick review: if you self-publish, you must develop a publishing strategy that distinguishes between eBook and print. You need a budget and should read the fine print of any vendor agreements. Pay heed to the requirements of major reviewers such as Kirkus or Publishers Weekly. Understand the significance of ISBN ownership.  Cover design is crucial and I promised more on that topic shortly. I promised suggestions on how to create an Amazon strategy that includes the Kindle Select Program. I promised to share a copy of my timeline and budget…in exchange for an honest review of Little Deadly Things on Amazon. (Contact me for a review copy.)  Finally, I promised another post, due last week.

I missed my deadline. Apologies. There was the matter of oral surgery, a periodontist and a trowel. Two days later, I endured a spinal injection that involved a hypodermic needle the size of a turkey baster. Then I packed seventeen years’ possessions into a 17’ moving truck, drove an hour, unloaded and collapsed.

No exaggeration, except the trowel.

            Back to your self-publishing to-do list. You should include the following tasks in your planning timeline:                     

           

1.     Solicit blurbs for your back cover from writers and from experts on the topic of your book. For example, one of my back-cover blurbs was from a PhD in chemistry since LDT deals with nanotechnology. Most contributors will not mind if you edit or punch up their blurb, but do review those edits with the contributors.

2.     Use a professional photographer for your author photo. You’ll need a high-resolution version and a lower-resolution version, and color and B&W. Remember that the photo will appear on some websites as a thumbnail, so size and clarity is vital.

3.     Manage your electronic presence, Part I. Acquire a URL for your book title so that no one else takes it. But concentrate your web efforts on an author site, not a site for a specific book. I didn’t do this and now I have a nice site, for my novel.  www.littledeadlythings.com  But what happens when I publish the next book? I’ll need a site for each novel, or have to migrate the LDT site to an author site. I should have created an author site. That way I could have different pages for different books.

4.     Manage your electronic presence, Part II. Create a Facebook page for your book, one that’s separate from your personal FB page. Love it or hate it, Facebook is the center of the social media universe. My novel’s FB page had measurable commercial value. (My Facebook ads produced no measureable effect on sales.)

5.     Manage your EP, Part III. Set up an Amazon author page with a brief bio and that professional photo you created. (Ditto for Goodreads if you wish to inhabit that world.) For inspiration, browse other writers’ author pages on Amazon. Look at the “Book Descriptions”, and, “From the author” sections. Format yours using lots of white space to make it easier to read. Nobody reads unbroken hunks of text. Ditto, long paragraphs. Be aware that you will need to use some HTML for line breaks, bold, italic, etc. It’s pretty easy to learn the basics. Check out LDT for one example of formatting. While you’re on the page, purchase a few copies. http://www.amazon.com/Little-Deadly-Things-ebook/dp/B0093O0UBI

6.     Manage your EP, Part IV. Set up Google Alerts for the topics covered in your book. This will help you identify constituencies with which you may wish to begin conversations as part of your marketing. Set up Google Alerts for your name and your book’s name. It’s pretty cool to see your name.

7.     Print bookmarks and hand ‘em out like candy. Note well! Do not forget contact info on the bookmark. (I did!) Carry bookmarks with you and give ‘em out to everyone you meet. I invariably ask people, “Do you like to read books?” then present a bookmark and 15-second spiel. Have fun with it.

8.     Arrange for the conversion of your novel to eBook format, MOBI for Kindle and EPUB for the rest of the universe. There are expensive and inexpensive vendors. I chose a very good, very fast and very inexpensive vendor ($150) and was very happy. Proof your book after conversion. There are likely to be a few errors in translation. For example, the title of one of my chapters is, “Gray Goo”. The converted version read, “Gray God”.

9.     Hire a second copy editor to find errors that your copy editor missed, and to find the mistakes you introduced because you just couldn’t leave the final manuscript alone. Some readers are intolerant of errors and their reviews highlight typos in unequivocal language. Sheesh!

10.  Plan your Launch Party. You deserve one helluva celebration. Some launch parties are obligatory events with forced gaiety—think, baby showers—so make yours special. I invited experts from fields that were mentioned in my novel to speak at my launch. Some of the themes in Little Deadly Things included child abuse, nanotechnology, water pollution and cleanup, animal behavior and dog training. The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals allowed me to use its training room, a very large and inviting space, at no charge, for the launch.  I’d volunteered for the organization, so they knew me, and I was happy to share my publicity. A popular radio personality MC’d as a favor to me because I’d done some favors for his family. A local restaurant chain catered at a discount and provided a few freebie coupons as door prizes. I purchased a couple tee shirts from the MSPCA for door prizes.
 The speakers will draw their own followers—and that means book and Amazon reviews from the party-goers.

If you do these tasks, and the ones mentioned in my last post—and if you do them more skillfully than I did—you’ll do an excellent job of self-publishing.

Next week: how to finance the whole megillah.

info@littledeadlythings.com 

www.facebook.com/littledeadlythings

cover

A Kindle best-seller

on sale on Amazon or www.littledeadlythings.com

Every purchase supports the Young Adult Writers Program at grubstreet.org

Captive at Christmas by Danielle Taylor

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Captive at Christmas (Captive Hearts #1)

 

If you have not met the lovely Danielle Taylor yet, please go say hello to her here:

http://authordtaylor.wordpress.com/
 
It doesn’t need to be Christmas to read this steamy novella…

When her life seems to be falling into pieces, Hannah Magnus decides to spend Christmas away from her Vancouver home. She crosses the border into Washington State and locates the idyllic cabin that will serve as her home for the next two weeks.

Mackenzie Dunlop is a man of action and reaction. A creation of his past and his profession. When he travels to the cabin he’ll be in until the repairs on his house are complete, there’s a surprise waiting…and Mac loathes surprises.

Thrown together in the least likely of circumstances, Mac and Hannah find solace in each other after a harrowing event. But once they leave, will they be able to get on with their lives apart?

***NOTE: This is a romance with a little erotica thrown in, not a full blown erotic novella.***–Description from Goodreads

 
Kindle Edition, 138 pages
Published February 2013
ASIN
B00BFMJDW8
edition language
English
series
Captive Hearts #1

 

 

Captive at Christmas by Danielle Taylor

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am not a huge fan of erotica. I’m not really a fan of erotica at all in fact, so for me to give an erotic novella a 4.5 star thumbs up it must be pretty impressive. In this case, it is.

Danielle Taylor has created characters that manage to capture your attention right away. I love when characters meet under unusual circumstances, and these two definitely do. There is no seen this, done this before in this novella and I liked the direction the author took the plot.

I was particularly fond of the female lead, as she is sassy and intelligent and yet also soft and feminine the way a good female main character should be.

There is a lot of steam in this book and there are some well written sex scenes, but it is not the average mindless sex of many writings that fall into the erotica category.

The dialogue was well done and felt like real conversation and in some cases it was my favourite part of the story. This is a relatively short read that can be easily managed in one sitting. I think it would be a nice escape any time of the year, not just at Christmas.

The reason for the 4.5 stars rather than five, is that I felt there were parts of this story that could have been fleshed out more. I would have liked to have known more about how the characters felt and what they were thinking in some of the situations. This may just have been because I found myself enjoying the story so much I didn’t wish for it to end.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read with lively characters that never let me down. I would happily read another book by this author, she obviously knows what she is doing when it comes to love, romance and writing unforgettable characters.

A hilarious kick in the saddlebags

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As a book reviewer I tend to get overwhelmed at times and the reviews come a bit slowly. What usually annoys me is when people get in a hurry for me to get to their book and start asking me about their position in my book list. In this case, rather than be annoyed, I laughed myself silly. In case you have not heard of him yet, may I introduce Mr. Mac Black. He is working on a series of books about Derek and the various trouble he finds. You can check out the books

HERE

HERE

and

HERE

So in my email inbox this morning, this is what I found. You can’t argue with his logic.

Ionia, dear Ionia, is it possible that you
Have forgotten about dear Derek – still standing in a queue?
Your multi-tasking well-filled day I know must keep you busy.
The things you do (so few you don’t) are inclined to make me dizzy!
Being a bloggerextraordinaire @ readfulthingsdotcom
Should be more than enough for any sane person, but you go on and on…
You cannot stop, it seems to me. If you aren’t writing tales
Of fiction, then it is verse that rhymes. The tempo never fails.
Pianoforte is then combined with running a marathon!

Are you sleepless daily from daybreak until the next day’s dawn?
Taking and sharing photographs, done while running, book in hand,
Achieving shots with no sign of blur: that I cannot understand…
But being a mummy with four kids – is that what gets you through?
Are they the ones who do the blogs? Is it nothing to do with you?
How can you achieve the impossible and still have time to eat?
Absorbing all the books you read, and that is no mean feat,
With each one reviewed eventually, dissected oh so well,
An author waiting hopefully for whatever truth you tell.

The only thing I find that’s odd is to do with books you keep
For future reading and review – it must be quite a heap!
And to have a stack of books upstanding taller than yourself
Must be a danger! Have you thought of buying yourself a shelf?

A final word from Derek T: he knows you are working well.
You’ll get around to mentioning him, and help his books to sell?
From me, a special thanks for all the things you blog each day
It makes Scotland and America seem not so far away
Forgive my little try at verse. You don’t have to answer back
But I know that you cannot stop yourself. Yours, so sincerely: Mac.

 

 

***It appears he has me pegged. I did answer him. I also nearly giggled myself into oblivion. I would like to thank Mac for giving me another reason to enjoy doing this each day, and you too Derek. Also, I’d like to take a moment to remind everyone that authors are some of the hardest working people there are and ask that you check out Mac’s books.

My Life After Now by Jessica Verdi

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Lucy just had the worst week ever. Seriously, mega bad. And suddenly, it’s all too much—she wants out. Out of her house, out of her head, out of her life. She wants to be a whole new Lucy. So she does something the old Lucy would never dream of.

And now her life will never be the same. Now, how will she be able to have a boyfriend? What will she tell her friends? How will she face her family?

Now her life is completely different…every moment is a gift. Because now she might not have many moments left.–Description from Goodreads

Paperback, 287 pages
Published April 2nd 2013 by Sourcebooks Fire
ISBN
1402277857 (ISBN13: 9781402277856)
edition language
English

My Thoughts:

This book is heartbreaking, beautiful and the kind of novel will stay with you possibly even forever. I do not think I will ever hear about this subject again without thinking of this character.

I wasn’t sure what I would think of this book when I first started reading it. This is difficult subject matter and I thought it might be too sad to read. It turns out that it is pretty realistic, but it is written in such a way that it offers you hope for the young woman that is the main character.

You struggle with her as she learns the truth of her situation, learns about her options and the disease itself. You are there as she discovers that her life may not end abruptly and without warning as she first feared. This is an incredibly moving book with many different facets that make it interesting.

The family dynamic is wonderful. The parents are supportive of her and try to improve her situation with understanding and compassion, yet the author also gave them time to grieve and react to the news of their daughter’s illness. I thought the relationship the main character shared with her birth mother was tragic, but also resulted in a beautiful gift that made this story even more worth reading.

The romance is plausible and the author did a superior job of making the here today gone tomorrow feeling of high school relationships shine through. It takes talent for an adult to write as a teen, and Jessica Verdi did it wonderfully.

The only thing I would say that I would have liked to see and perhaps wasn’t quite explored enough, is that it is not always the one night stand or the creepy guy who sleeps around that can be the cause of this disease. I felt it would have been important to focus on the possibility of her ex boyfriend being someone who should have been tested for the disease. I also found it very hard to believe that one of the characters would have kept her mouth shut about what she knew in a certain situation when she had been built up as a spoiled brat who hated the main character.

All in all, this was an amazing book. It deserves a read. If you have a teenager, it might be a good choice. This book covers some harsh reality, but in a way that I think would speak to a teen audience in such a manner that they could not only understand, but also relate to.

Very well done.

This review is based on a digital ARC.

It is official! I’m a lunatic

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Violet Balloon 2   The good news is, I have an entire

team of other

lunatics along for the ride with me!

 

The Community Story Board is officially open! Are

you a writer? Would you like the chance to feature

your work? We have a brand new blog for that.

Everyone please visit The Community Story Board

to find out how!

http://neverendingstorydepository.wordpress.com/

 

You can find our submission guidelines here:

http://neverendingstorydepository.wordpress.com/submission-guidelines-submit-your-work/

 

Please note: We will not be posting submissions from non staff members until next week, but we are willing to take queries as of now:)

 

 

*****

To the editors, authors and contributors:

The doors are open to you guys! Bring forth the writing!

 

 

The Tattered Banner By Duncan Hamilton

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The Tattered Banner coverI am pleased to feature “The Tattered Banner” on my blog today. I just finished reading this book the other day and couldn’t wait to share it with you guys.

 

Duncan Hamilton is a very talented author and also a fellow wordpress blogger.

You can find his site here:

 

http://www.duncanmhamilton.com
 
Here is the description from Goodreads:
 
Unique talent always attracts attention…

In a world where magic is outlawed, ability with a sword is prized above all else. For Soren this means the chance to live out his dreams.

Plucked from a life of privation, he is given a coveted place at Ostenheim’s Academy of Swordsmanship, an opportunity beyond belief.

Opportunity is not always what it seems however, and gifts rarely come without conditions. Soren becomes an unwitting pawn in a game of intrigue and treachery that could cost him not just his dreams, but also his life.

 
 372 pages
Published March 2nd 2013
ISBN
148101322X (ISBN13: 9781481013222)
edition language
English
 
On Amazon
 
and other retail stores
 
My thoughts on this novel:
 
The Tattered Banner by Duncan Hamilton is a different sort of fantasy novel and one that the reader can grow with. The events in this book span a lengthy period in the main character’s life and therefore the plot reveals itself in bits and pieces and there is a good amount of rise and fall in the story. The reader never has a chance to get bored as the pace is quick and the story is thoughtful.

Reading through this novel, there are moments when you know what is coming for a long time, but it isn’t exactly predictable. It actually feels rewarding when the character finally realises the same thing that you have known as the reader for a long time. There were a lot of other places in this book where the author went a completely different direction than I expected, and for the most part I think it worked.

I was impressed that Mr. Hamilton did not waste pages and pages of space describing the school his character was sent to. This has been seen and done in other novels of recent memory and I felt avoiding that aspect made this book much more original.

The descriptions in this novel are handled well. There is not so much description that the actions and events become lost in it, but there is enough to paint a visual picture of the world.

The story itself is well written and highlights the author’s style of writing. I enjoyed the third person perspective as it gave the reader an opportunity to get to know all of the characters rather than just the main.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read that fantasy lovers and those who enjoy reading adventures will most likely want to read again. If you haven’t read this book yet, pick up a copy and explore this world for yourself. I recommend it.