Book Review: Choices (New Beginnings, #1) by Michelle Lynn

It is no easy task to introduce a new story, a new series with one or two characters that you root for. What is interesting about Michelle Lynn's newest work is that she has created characters that add a lot to the story. Michaela is the star of the book but her star is risen somewhat with the addition of the enigmatic Jason, wildcard Ethan, but also other characters that you would think would dumb it down.

Michaela has overbearing family that are determined their young lady (a recurring reference used as back handed compliment, but is really a put-down) follow the path they have chosen for her. You would think this is happening in some totalitarian state, but it's not! Michaela is no introverted nymph...she knows what she wants, accepts heartache will be part of the gig, and just gets on with things. She won't be told what to do by anyone, but she doesn't go out of her way to hurt anyone either. So basically Michaela is a nice girl who people closest to her would be wise not to take advantage of.

I have to say that I approached this book wondering if I would really like it. Having read Miss Lynn's superlative (a deserving description if ever there was one) dystopian series Dawn of Rebellion, I quite honestly thought 'how does one go from dystopian to contemporary romance so easily'?

Michaela's mother, for example. She is not so typical as you'd expect. I particularly liked the exchanges between these two, the dialogue was believable and realistic.

In addition the character of Chris who hangs out with Jason is a cool combination. Their dialogue switches effortlessly between sharp observations of the pains in their lives, but also biting, humorous wit; the kind only two good friends can come out with between themselves.

I like Michaela a lot. She is also significantly different from Miss Lynn's siblings in DoR (Dawn of Rebellion) that she has her own 'voice'.

I have to say that I approached this book wondering if I would really like it. Having read Miss Lynn's superlative (a deserving description if ever there was one) dystopian series Dawn of Rebellion, I quite honestly thought 'how does one go from dystopian to contemporary romance so easily'?

The author shows her skill and growing stature as a writer with this new series. I kept hoping Dawn or Gabby (from dawn of Rebellion) would make an appearance here, but the author made a difficult choice of her own, breaking with such a well known series to branch out here.

I'm also not a huge fan of contemporary romance, though there are a handful of authors slowly changing my opinion on this.

Michelle Lynn can be counted amongst them. 

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Book Review: Beneath the Rainbow by Lisa Shambrook

Review: "It's those silly dreams that keep us alive." 

Dreams define us, shape us and realise our potential...they make us who we are. 

Freya won't let death stand in her way. When she dies Freya knows she needs to move on, but is caught within her mother's grief and the discovery of terminally ill Old Thomas. Finding she can affect the lives of those beyond her heaven she fights to reach her mother and wants to help Thomas realise his final dream. Meanwhile, her family finds her own list of goals and soon discovers that Thomas has a burning desire to ride a motorbike.

Freya intends to create a rainbow, the last item on her list, to reach her mother, but her pale arcs won't achieve closure. She needs scarlet like remembrance poppies then sunset orange and sunflower yellow. She makes green like her willow and blue like daddy's t-shirt. Finally conjuring indigo, the shade of deepening night and violet to match Purple Ted... 

Beneath these colours will Freya reach her mother, wait for Old Thomas and be ready to move on? 

Discover the importance of dreams and fulfilment in Freya's heart-breaking and uplifting tale of grief, hope, triumph and joy.

Review: The first thing to say about a book review is that I believe the review is more important than the rating. However, I have given Beneath the Rainbow a strong four stars because I believe this book would reward us with repeat readings, so this four could easily become a five in due course.

As for the review of this dreamlike, spellbinding book that opens with a hell of a sequence, which I won't mention here (just read it and you will be hooked), the book moves onto a possible version of the afterlife, and I have to say that in order to remain connected to the story, it is best to read it in one go.

 The author has taken time to make it a stunning experience for the reader.

The book is not that long, so you should be able to do it. What author Lisa Shambrook has done so well is give us a convincing, well detailed version of an alternate reality; a state of being that we don't understand because our days are filled with finding the pounds to pay for stuff that society says we needs.

To hell with all that!

Sometimes, an author comes along with a rare and special talent. The author has also penned further books and it will be a treat to get around to them one day.

Another thing to mention is how beautifully the whole book is presented. The author has taken time to make it a stunning experience for the reader.

Bring Beneath the Rainbow to the top of your reading list.

Special Author Promotion - Rhoda' D'Ettore - Check out her amazing books

No One Is Safe While...

ZODIAC LIVES

A Novel by Rhoda D'Ettore

After surviving a car accident that killed her father, three-year-old Jennifer begins having nightmares. It's soon obvious she suffers from something more dreadful than the accident when she provides clues to a murder committed 3,000 miles away—and two decades before she was born.

Jennifer's nightmares set off a chain reaction that prompts the infamous Zodiac Killer to emerge from dormancy and terrorize San Francisco for a second time.

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Goin’ Postal & The Creek

Rhoda D'Ettore began her writing career by publishing humorous tales about working at the United States Postal Service. Fifteen years of dealing with bombs, anthrax, and human body parts in the mail made for an interesting read. Her co-workers laughed so hard at the nostalgia, they encouraged her to publish the writings. Since then, D'Ettore has fascinated readers with plot twists mixed with sarcastic humor.

D’Ettore knew postal workers would buy her story, yet she also wanted to show them she could write interesting, serious work with shocking twists. In Goin’ Postal & The Creek, the reader gets two very different stories in one book. The first containing the hysterical tales of postal worker life. The second story is a historical fiction that spans 200 years with a slightly supernatural twist. Topics include war, love, romance, death, Prohibition, the Great Depression, and how families survive such events.

Newborn Nazi

Newborn Nazi tackles the issues of right and wrong as well as self sacrifice when fourteen-year-old Edmund is forced into the Hitler Youth in 1935. His older siblings vow to destroy Nazi Germany, and the family gets swept up in espionage and the Underground Movement. When Edmund becomes an adult and joins the feared SS, his sister's secret endeavors to save Jews in her home endangers lives---including her own. This suspense thriller is sure to keep you guessing.

Newborn Nazi is based on Rhoda D’Ettore true family history. There was an Edmund who was forced into the Hitler Youth, and his sister did help Jews escape. D’Ettore found the story so riveting, she took the plot of the story and added murder and espionage to create this intense thriller.

Tower of Tears: The McClusky Series 1

In Tower of Tears: The McClusky Series, we find Jane traveling to America from Ireland with her three-year-old son. Expecting to find a better way of life, Jane finds nothing but intimidation, betrayal, violence, and heartache. This family saga includes blackmail, murder, mystery, and a touch of romance.

While writing Tower of Tears, D’Ettore gave her mother one chapter at a time for feedback. D’Ettore was undecided who the murderer in the book would eventually be, so she wrote the story with five characters hating and threatening the murder victim. Halfway through the book, D’Ettore’s mother shouted, “I know who killed him…. it was ####”. D’Ettore then finished the book with a different character as the murderer. When her mother read the final draft of the book, she replied, “That’s not who the murder is. I told you who is was.” D’Ettore then said, “I wrote the book, so I know who the murderer should be. Thanks.”

10 Shades of Blush: The Softer Side of Kink

10 Shades of Blush: The Softer Side of Kink is a collection of naughty fantasies of ordinary women. Teachers, mothers, and professionals submitted their wants and desires for kinky fun. All the tales are told as if the women are speaking directly to their partners. The audiobook of this has been called "Two hours of phone sex for $7".

Rhoda D'Ettore works are available as ebook, paperback, and audiobooks

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Weekend Writing Workshop #4: Characters or Story? Which should Writers attempt first?

Stories start with inspiration. Maybe you visited somewhere, or you saw a new programme that reminded you of a factual event, and you decide to put a fictional spin on it. Then, there are other stories that beg to be told simply based on your experience of life. 

And of course, a writer is inspired by the other books he or she reads.

In my case, I am inspired by all of the above, and many more I haven't listed. I mean, one of the latest books I am reading, 11/22/63 by Stephen King, is based on one of the key moments in US history, and is proudly stating the fact that it is SK's first time travel novel.

I think time travel is a tricky concept to make work, so maybe I'll do that when I'm better at the writing craft.

Story

If you write the Story first, that's fine, but unless it is a novella or mini-novel, you'll find yourself running out of things to happen to character 1 2 or 3.

Unless your book is really tight, and features just a handful of characters, you end up adding a new character to flesh out a plot line that would have eroded with say characters 1 and 2.

The story must have a hook, or a MacGuffin, which, in the case of my favourite film, the martial arts wuxia movie Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, really needed. For fifteen minutes, nothing much of note happens. The cinematography is a work of art, and it is like director Ang Lee is trying to seduce the viewer with his visuals, and indeed, the film is a visual feast.

Pretty pictures alone do not a good film make, and just like your story, it must have that MacGuffin - the thing that is hard to describe to anyone else, but if it's in your story, and you have a McG....then you have a hook that will keep your readers interested.

Even when you have this in place, you might run out of steam after say 30,000 words, so a full novel won't happen. Maybe this is one story in a short story collection - you might excel at that kind of writing.

A sharp, witting, engaging story is what I believe people want. Even if it is a horror, make it fun. It doesn't have to be terror on each page, it can be paced so it creeps up on people. You can add funny episodes inbetween. Why should you do this? Well, people want to be entertained. If it is a constant barrage of depressing vignettes, you may lose your reader, even if it is a perfectly good story.

Shape your story, and you will keep your readers attention. 


Characters

If the story is like a cake with a nice texture, your characters are like the flavour of your book. If you don't like the taste, it's unlikely you'll be rooting for them. Of course, some authors go out of their way to create unlikeable characters - but that doesn't mean that they are not interesting. How many times have you read a book, hoping that the Bad Character who wants to hurt the hero or heroine of the tale will meet a grisly end (The Lovely Bones, anyone?). So bad characters may taste ugly with a capital UG....but you kind of have to have them to make the overall dessert more enjoyable!

I've read stories that were perfectly fine in themselves, but had forgettable or pointless characters. If you read about Adam's predicament on one page, then Sarah's on another, before Becky, Drew and Penelope are dropped in on you, you may have forgotten who Adam was - and worringly for the author - why you are supposed to care about Adam in the first place. 

So, what's the answer?

Everyone can have their view, so I'll tell you what works for me. I sketch an outline of the story. Now these notes could run into several pages, so sketching an outline is not a quick exercise, nor is it for the faint of heart. Sitting down and writing is hard enough without having an outline, which includes:-

• A start
• A middle
• An ending
• A brief description of each character (not necessarily what they look like or what they wear - what is their FUNCTION in the story)
• If writing a series, try and complete as much as you can in one book before just ending it. Readers dislike books that appear to be padded out to fill a trilogy, so don't do it if you don't have enough story in the first place
• Not every book has to have a prologue or an epilogue - do this on your terms no-one else's

Once you have your outline, look for plausibility and logic. Could the story happen? Even in fantasy worlds, it has to sound / read as a believable plot. Logic - do the characters do stupid things? If your character hears a noise in the night, but just has to go and investigate it, perhaps this needs a rethink. Sometimes hiding out of sight is an option. You'd do it in real life (unless you are totally kick-ass) so why wouldn't your characters? Just because they are fictional and free from actual harm, doesn't mean you should treat them that way. Logic must play a part in your characters' actions.

The 2am Lightbulb Moment

You're asleep, and you know you should be asleep at this time, but you awake to find ideas flooding your brain like some kind of orgasmic aneursym. DON'T go back to sleep before you jot these things down! Truly, I had a lot of inspiration after hitting the pillow. And the ideas are often good. Maybe it happens because we are truly relaxed....in the daytime you have to fit writing in around the cat, the girlfriend, the parent, the guy selling something of no interest at the door.  Oh dear, looking at the above, I really do need to get out of the house more!

Until next time, happy reading and writing!

Previous WWW Tips are here

Book Review #24: Createspace and Kindle Self-Publishing Masterclass by Rick Smith

In the minefield of books, it is difficult, if not near-impossible to select a book you will be happy with. Sure, you can go by the reviews, but ultimately, you go with your gut (unless you have bags of time and money) and with Amazon's Look Inside feature, or the sample you can send to your Kindle, you can get a good feel for a book without actually buying it.

If you are an author, at whatever stage you find yourself, at best, this book will certainly help you sell more books and at the very worst,  you will have learned something about the dark arts. I'm not talking about witchcraft - I am talking about Marketing.

This book is the perfect guide to assist authors who want to publish on Createspace. It's amazing what assumptions people make - the typographer for one of my books said 'Oh all you have to do is send me your Createspace template'...I had no idea what she was on about. That was more than two years ago now (scary) and I can say I do know more about Createspace and what it does.

There are no assumptions that I could find in this book, just clear, concise facts and it is a truly excellent step by step guide to help with publishing on Amazon, which is the easy part. The dark art of Marketing, however, is covered extremely well here and even though I majored in the discipline, that was years ago before the age of social media. The basics of marketing and sales have not changed since the dawn of time. There is a market and there are sellers that operate within that market.

All one has to do, is provide supply for the demand. What demand though? How can you create demand for your book? My other half has a way of putting it, whenever I go into overdrive about one of my favourite books:-

"Whichever book you have, you will still want a new one, a new story, a new adventure. People always want something new."

That's true, and I feel she is right on this. I may love Lord of the Rings, but people will always want the new Lord of the Rings, the new Hunger Games, the new Harry Potter. Dare I say....the new Dark Winter book?

This book helps someone like me....who admits to not being very good at promoting or marketing himself. That's not because I lack confidence - it's more about that I don't want to be a nag, and I believe that if people want to read my books, then they will. I just needed a push to say 'hey, read my book' once in a while, whilst hopefully being supportive to others.

Rick Smith has organised the thoughts we often have, turning them into meaningful actions, and you'll find yourself doing it.

I am trialling a few things from this book:-

• Doing the Createspace edition first, not the Kindle version
• Joining relevant groups without being a PITB (pain in the butt)
• Taking myself seriously as a writer and involving people I know in the process

The last point is very relevant for me. My first non-fiction book came out in 2011, and it was a full two years before I had a meaningful non-fiction book to push out. Two years! Now I do believe in quality over quantity, but we can write more faster than we do. It's shameful when you think about the time we waste.

I have the Kindle version of this book, but I am inclined to purchase the paperback as there is information that may get by you on the e-book. The print edition would force to write your little darlings. Yes, the words nag at you, but unless you park yourself in that chair and disconnect the internet - the words will not get done. Once they are done, you will need a constant reminder to push the book out.

Things I loved:-

"People frequently fail at new things they attempt simply because they do not have a system to follow."

True. Give yourself a system, and follow it, follow it. Follow. IT. (That's enough of the CAPS fury!)

"99c/99p is the new free." 

Yep. 'Free books' don't have a value attached and I am not certain they create run-on sales. My first non-fiction book sold just fine without a free book promotion. That doesn't mean I haven't done one; I have, just in my view they do not work. Rick is right - 99c does at least give you a bump up in the early weeks when you are trying to get traction.

"Even in the lower reaches of the top 10k, you'll be moving anything up to 500 units a month."

Doesn't that motivate you to get there too?

Finally, I have to say thanks to my good friend and fellow author Elizabeth for recommending this book. You see, friends, recommendations are so important. We need them. So get reading, get reviewing, and get productive making the best book you can. Give the readers a professional, awesome book that they will happily recommend too!

Buy the Book on Amazon

Why You Cannot Give Up If Writing is your Dream

If you write, be it on paper, a computer, the back of someone's head, you are a writer. Remember that.

Oh. 'Not good enough', I hear you say. I want to be a published writer.'

Alright then. Let me tell you about Malorie Blackman. She's a British author who currently holds the position of Children's Laureate for 2013-2015.

This week, she was the featured 'castaway' on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs. For those of you that don't know, DID is a show where someone is interviewed about their life, and the music that influenced them at different points in their life.

Malorie Blackman always wanted to be a writer, even when she was young. But when she was asked by her careers teacher / adviser what she wanted to be, and Malorie answered 'an English teacher', she was told, 'Oh! Black women don't do that...why not become a secretary or something?'

Malorie holds no disrespect to secretaries, but it is simply not what she wanted to do.

Her husband supported her idea of writing - hard - for one year, but around that year, she was doing jobs....one of them, in computing, of all things.

A meeting with Alice Walker, author of The Color Purple, changed things, and Alice asked Malorie what she wanted to be. 'A writer', she said, 'but I get so many rejections. I suppose you should tell me don't give up'....!

And so Alice Walker, author of the very famous Color Purple book, wrote 'To Malorie, don't give up. Alice Walker'.

So because Alice Walker told her not to give up, Malorie didn't, and after some 82 rejection letters, became a published writer.

Clearly, Malorie had to overcome prejudice on her career aims (though she does admit that careers advisor - who she hated at the time, spurred her on to do better), expectations of what maybe a black woman in the UK could achieve at that time (secretary when she wanted something a bit more from life). Not only that, but racism...being told to 'go back to where-ever you come from,' even though she was born in England!

Don't give up. Especially if those around you say 'this won't work.' Keep your counsel, and do what is important to you. Make it work. You won't be able to convince everyone until JK Rowling-size cheques land on the floor in your home. Even if that doesn't happen to you, don't give up.

Don't give up. Because you don't have to go the traditional route to publish. The Writers and Artists book acknowledge the trend to 'self publish' titles. It's not vanity publishing. You write because you want to. Are You Tubers narcissists? Maybe some of them are. But some genuinely publish interesting stuff, get feedback, and are happy. Others upload every few days to feed their ego, and yes...the bank balance. Fair enough. No-one criticises them, do they?

Don't give up. Even when you look at your script and think 'who in the world would want to read this.'

I'm not feeding you hollow optimism. Writers write. It's as simple as that. It is a human desire to want feedback on it, so why not use whatever medium you need to get that feedback?

Write, enjoy the experience, and who knows, you may be the one who makes your life defined by it. Or define other's future!

Wishing all writers well. We can all learn from Malorie's determination and infectious belief. Of course, a famous author pushing you in the right way isn't a bad thing!

Malorie Blackman Website