"Veils and Vengeance" a Book Blast Book Review

If you've read my blog at all, you know I'm trying to find my place as an author and trying different things to "build my platform".

At the LDStorymaker's conference I attended the Indie Publisher's track and at one of the panels they mentioned The Author Indie Hub. It seemed like the social network I wasn't able to establish or find on my own. So, once I got back home I signed up.

Reading the daily posts on the group, I was that Rachelle Christensen was doing a Book Blast for the launch of he newest book, "Veils and Vengeance". I signed up to participate to get an inside view of what a successful book launch looks like.

So far I've gotten more Facebook page likes for my author page, more Goodreads follows and more Twitter followers than from any other promotion I've run on my own.

But, enough about me. You are here about the book.

I figured that though the book was described as a mystery, there would also be a substantial amount of romance. I'm all for romance in the books I read. Love is a part of life and happens at the best, and worst of times. In "Veils and Vengeance" there was a continuous romantic sub-plot with the appropriate amount of tension. Knowing that the author is a member of "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints" I assumed the romance would be light and not heavy on sexual content. I was happily correct.

After writing my Amazon review, I read what others had written. Most described the mystery aspect of the book as "cozy". I hadn't heard this term before, but saw how it applied. There was murder, attempted murder, and mystery though not to the point that I felt uncomfortably anxious.
 
The book takes place in Hawaii. While I was reading it to write my review my wife was binge watching "Hawaii Five O" on Netflix. Sometimes when thinking about the story I tried to remember how Steve Magarret amd Dano Williams fit into the story.

Also, I lived on Oahu for three years when I was in the army. That was twenty-five years ago and I have never really wanted to go back. Reading the book showed a different side to the tourist trade than what I had seen and thought it might be nice to see one of the less visited islands.

I enjoyed reading "Veils" from beginning to end.

I've been reading "Indie" authors, trying to help out others trying to make it into the established author world and have read a lot of garbage as a result. Rachelle's writing was a breath of fresh air.

I recommend this novel to anyone who wants to read a Romance, a Mystery, a Travel Book, of just an entertaining story without having to worry about objectionable content. What follows is the review I wrote for Amazon and other sites.

With trying to give an honest review in mind, I tried to find a reason to not give this book a five star review.

Full disclosure: I received an advance reader copy a week ago, but after only a few chapters I pre-ordered it so that I could have it on my kindle and share it with my wife.

Rachelle Christensen's writing is immaculate. Told in the first person point of view of Adri, a wedding planner from Idaho who accompanies her client to a dream wedding in Kauai, her characterization is deep and consistent. The plot moves forward at a quick but comfortable pace with island descriptions and back story seamlessly tucked into the action and dialog. The occasional romantic interlude reminds us that even murder suspects have a need to love and be loved.

If five stars means I loved the story, Veils and Vengeance gets all five.

Water So Deep by Nichole Giles: A Book Review

As all of you regular, imaginary, reader know, I'm trying to find my was as an author, and specifically, an author of Young Adult Fiction. I'm trying various ways of connecting with people and building my platform. I tried reviewing a book for a 'Virtual Book Tour' and as you know, reading a book someone else asked me to read and review was a lot more like work than recreation.     

So, this time I decided to read and review a book of someone I've met at the LDStorymakers Conference. Someone who writes YA and seems to have a pretty good foundation as an author. This review is completely voluntary, so I can say what I want, with no expectations to meet and no strings attached.

Here is my review I am posting to Amazon and Goodreads:

I just finished reading, "Water So Deep" by Nichole Giles.

This is the story of Emma, a senior in high school with a mysterious side. The story introduces her problem immediately--she's got mermaid issues. But, you know that already. You've seen the book cover. We just don't know how big of a problem that is until we see how erratic it make her life. She can't have any real friends; that would require honesty and trust; and she can't be honest with anyone, including her family or her best friend, Heather. The only one who knows the reason for her periodic need to get into the ocean is her grand-mother, on who's porch was left the baby Emma seventeen-odd, years before.

Enter, James, the amazingly handsome, totally buff, loner, with emotional needs of his own.

The story unfolds for us through these two perspectives. We are privy to their individual, inner turmoils which result in the majority of their relationship conflicts. As an adult (read that as old) man, I felt like if they had only followed through with their resolutions from one paragraph to the next, most of their problems would have been eliminated through a little simple communication. But then, we would have missed Chapter Three of, "The Book of Love", where, "You break up and then you give it just one more chance." (See, that's how old I really am... I'm referencing 1950's Rock and Roll.)

I'll admit, much of what I've read in the past which has been labeled, "Young Adult" was more fantasy than romance, and wonder if this book's plot is typical of creating romantic tension. As an old man, again, I enjoyed the romantic elements of the story, while I appreciated the development of the "Mer Lore" the most. I didn't expect a simple resolution to Emma's dilemma, as this is admittedly, "Book 1". But, I did enjoy the ending for the extent of its resolution and foreshadowing of the expected conflicts in the next book.

I happily give this book four stars and look forward to book two.

This is where my review will end on Goodreads and on Amazon. What follows is fraught with plot spoilers and addresses some of the things that came to my mind while reading that weren't resolved in this book. So, I would recommend that you read the book before you read further on this post.

I mentioned above that I thought both main characters were inconsistent in their resolutions and that if they had followed through with many of the things they had just thought out, their conflict would have been resolved and they could have moved forward with more important things, such as, preventing Emma from permanently becoming a mermaid and finding out why Keith was now stealing so much.

It bothered me that her parents seemed so unsympathetic. I mean, the first time we see her father he is absent mindedly blowing off the safety of his son. Even her high powered lawyer mother only seemed engaged when there was a legal threat to her kids. Granted, this is YA and we need to get them out of the picture somehow and focus on the youths.

Maybe I'm threatened by physically strong male characters, but I felt like James was a little too buff for someone his age. To have biceps so rock hard that blood vessels shift between them and the skin seems unrealistic to me in someone so young, unless he's doing steroids or spends all of his time in a gym. It didn't sound like James had that much time, or money.

I got the idea that contact with salt water would cause Emma's physical change, yet, when they took pizza to the beach she got her feet in the water and nothing happened. If there was an explanation given why this was an exception, or that it didn't happen all the time, I didn't pick up on it.

I was a little surprised about Emma's sudden recognition of her love for James. It was like it was a brand new realization and only the page before she had giggled at his allusion to having sex with her in the back seat of the car or right there in the sand of the beach, whatever it took to make her undesirable to Merrick.

Then there's Merrick. Granted, his motives become clear at the end of the book. Before that, I felt like his behavior was more animalistic and less rational thinking than I would expect of a creature which is part human--and longer lived than typical humans.

Finally, some mention was made to the siren call or the mer people. I wasn't clear if this was an intentional allusion in the story or if I read into the the comment that it had to do with why boys were so attracted to Emma and then she "Iced" them and shut them down.

I read the story on my tablet and I read it somewhat faster than I would have, wanting to get it read so that I could do a review for Nichole while the book was still newly published. Because of those two conditions, I may have misunderstood, or completely missed something which the normal, more intelligent, reader would have picked up.

Again, I hope you read this, if you haven't, and enjoy it as much as I did.

pec

"Reporting Lives" - A Book Review

'Reporting Lives' is Debra Picket's fiction debut. She is a long-time writer and award-winning reporter/columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times. In 2004-5 she made a series of trips to East Africa to cover the response of the Chicago philanthropic community to the AIDS pandemic and subsequent orphan crisis there. While there, she began developing the idea for this book, which is largely based on her experiences.

'Reporting Lives' tells the story of Sara Simone, a twenty-something single woman and reporter for a local Chicago television channel. She is tall, attractive, and emotionally crippled. As a reporter she's intelligent, intuitive, and extremely confident to the point of narcissism. We never learn if her emotional unavailability is due to a tragic family accident which occurred during her college years. She does mention feeling some guilt for choosing not to accompany her parents on their tragic journey, though the author never ties that into Sara's inability to commit to a relationship or open up honestly to friends or co-workers. Perhaps her behavior is a result of parental unavailability, as she was raised by two highly successful and driven professional parents.

Regardless, it is this lack of human connectivity which sets her up for a fall on an assignment which has lead her to the slums outside Nairobi, Kenya.

After a bus load of Kenyan exchange students die in a fiery crash on a Chicago freeway, Sara is sent to Nairobi to get video of the families' reactions to the loss of their children and brothers. Sara has the unique ability to draw out this type of story. Things don't go as planned and she spends two months traveling the countryside--not quite breaking through her own emotional walls to find meaning to the abject poverty all around Kenya, and the root of her uncharacteristic response to it.

While Sara seems to wander through the story, passively bouncing from point to point--even her crisis in the Mathare slums seemed randomly inexplicable, out of character, and lacking remarkable impact--the strength of the author's prose and African experiences come forward to win the day. 

Descriptions of Nairobi and later at a hotel near a game preserve came alive for me. I had spent a few years in South Africa during its financially independent and economically robust period during apartheid, working in the townships of Soweto, Chatsworth, and others of the Bantu Tribes and mixed races. Then, returning decades later to find a struggling economy with many of the opulent hotels and businesses in disrepair, or boarded up, many of the scenes described in this novel were particularly poignant. There, in the hotels and restaurants, is where we meet the many characters which make this story grandly diverse.

Though Sara Simone never came alive to me as an empathetic and active character, many of the secondary characters did. Trisha, Simon, Vince, even Mr. Handleburg, and many more all came to life with depth and personality. Finally, Ms. Picket's skill with word craft brought the scenes to life--from a horrific accident on a rain-slick Chicago freeway to the desolation of the Nairobi slums, and the marginal existence of post colonial, and post embassy bombing, Kenyan tourism.

pec

The Pariah Podcast, Episode 2

Alright. Episode 2 is up for my young adult fantasy podcast. If you want to download it or other episodes, just click on the words in the top right corner, "The Pariah Podcast", or you can go to iTunes and subscribe. You could also become a patron at www.patreon.com/Norvaljoe and help me get more episodes out, and faster, while earning some rewards.

Scott Roche gave me a bit of a reality check when I was complaining that no one had given me an iTunes review yet. He told me to just be patient and get a few more episodes up... No kidding. I'm just too impatient.

Episode 3 will be up on the patreon site in a few days, and will come live on my blog and at iTunes about a week later.

pec

He has not the patience.

Luke Skywalker first met Yoda on the planet Degobah. After a short while with him, Yoda says something like, "I cannot teach this one. He has not the patience."

I think this is something I have learned about myself this last year as well. I have not the patience. That's why having a professional edit my novels makes a lot of sense. I would have published "Flypaper Boy" and "Shooting Stars" before they were ready.

I just got Shooting Stars back from my editor yesterday, and it looks done. I've read her remarks about the changes I made based on her previous suggestions, and we're in agreement, it could work now. She killed a lot of my darlings for me. Things I thought were pretty clever or touching were actually slowing down the pace of the story. 

Knowing the text is ready, I want to publish it today. "Have patience, young padawan... "

I had tentatively set the release date for this novel as January 31, 2015 when I sent it back to Jen for another review. But, now that I have it back in my hot little hands, I want to rush and get it on the market. I tried to rush Flypaper Boy and felt really stressed trying to get it published a week after I finished the edits and got my book cover done. The things I still need to do before I can publish this one, is:

Finish the blurb on the back side of the book cover.
Format the front pages and back pages of the book.
Upload the cover and finalize the text with Create Space.
Get the proof copy made by Create Space and check for formatting errors, make changes.
Set up a Kindle Countdown of "Flypaper Boy" to co-inside with the release of "Shooting Stars"

I think that's all. 

I have a special deal for all of you non-existent followers of my blog. The Kindle version will only be 99 cents for the first two days of the release, so get it while it's cheap.

pec

Finding time to write when you're busy.

I know you think you're busy. I often think that I am, too.

On the most recent episode of Writing Excuses Podcast one of the things Brandon Sanderson said he learned was to be able to write in different environments. I think the thing I am most envious of full time writers is they get to write full time. (No kidding, huh?)

How would it be to get four hours at a time to write? That would allow you to complete a major scene from a novel. And if you could come back to it two or three days in a row, rested, focused and properly fed? You could write the next Great American Novel with that kind of time and freedom. Of course, when you are expected to produce like Brandon Sanderson, you would need all that time and more.

Two things I learned this year, (Well, one I built on this year, and one that I learned) were using a detailed outline and writing in the evening.

In 2013, when I wrote, The Pariah for Nanowrimo, I used a detailed outline. Knowing exactly what I needed to write when I sat down made it possible to produce a lot in a little time. Granted, I took Thursday and Friday off from the day job to get a head start and completed nearly 20K words that first weekend. Normally, I only get about 2 hours a day to write, and that's 45 minutes in the morning before work, about the same at lunch time, and then maybe an half hour of conscious and cognizant thought in the evening. 

If you haven't heard me whine about it before, I have a 10 and a 12 year old, both with their special needs, and a wife who is now mostly disabled. My days are often frantic and busy. But, using the time I had, I was able to get 100k words written in 28 days. If I had my days wholly devoted to writing I could compete with Brandon in quantity, if not quality.

This year, my oldest daughter, her husband and three children were coming to visit on the 18th of November. I knew if I was going to get my 50K words done, I would have to hit it hard at the beginning. Again, using a detailed outline, I was able to use my time most effectively and hit 50K on day #18. I finished the story at around 65K a week later.

The other thing I learned to do, and that was only recently, was to write in the evening. It's not my most creative work when I'm that tired, but it works to get the plot and dialog mostly laid out and I can spruce it up in the next few edits. The two things that distract me most in the evenings are tiredness and family. 

My wife expects me to spend some time with her, usually watching cooking shows or something else on TV. What I found was, if she drifted off, I would continue to watch what was on the tube. If I tried to turn the show off, it would wake her, and she would turn it back on, believing she would stay awake this time.

I found a 'White Noise' app for my phone. So instead of turning the TV off, I put on the head phones and listen to "Just Rain". I think that's the name of the app. It's a rainstorm and it goes on for ever. You can set the intensity of the storm, with or without thunder, or you can have it vary in intensity. I find it adequately blocks out the distracting sound of the television while letting me focus on my writing.

pec

My new blog: I Want To Retire, Someday.

I'd like to retire, someday.

The facts are, I'm getting older and I don't have enough to retire on and live a somewhat comfortable life. I originally figured I would work until I was about 70 and by that point I would have so few people depending on my for anything that I could just go live in a cardboard box somewhere in Los Angeles where it doesn't get to cold in the winter.

It doesn't look like things will work out the way I'd like. Both of my younger children, age 12 and 10, are likely to need guidance and support for the better part of their lives; especially my boy with autism. In about ten years, when he ages out of the school system, I will need to be available assist him during the day. Working a full time job will not accomodate the time I'll need to spend with him. 

Wait. Let me rephrase that... The time I would like to spend with him.

I may have mentioned previously that my plan is to turn my writing into my retirement. There are ONLY two things I need to make that a reality:

1) Publish three novels per year, preferably in ongoing series's. (I'm not happy with that apostrophe.)
2) Get people to buy them.

I think I can do number 1. It's number 2 I'm kind of lost at.

My first novel was published at the end of September. I should have my second published in January of 2015. (That's next month. I just sent it back to my editor for a second look.) And my third novel is with another editor and should publish in March to April of 2015. I have three more manuscripts, three more stories outlined, and at least three more stories (in concept form) to go with the serieseseses that I have begun. I'm pretty sure I can knock out three novels a year.

It's the getting people to buy them that is my problem, and that is going to be the basis for my blog. One of the ways I have heard other people gained notoriety for their novels is by writing a blog. So, here's my blog. I will try to relate on a daily to weekly basis what I discover about getting my books notice and how I am able to get them sold.

pec

"What it is like to go to war"

I crossed the 50K line on my Nanowrimo a few days ago. I still haven't verified my win yet. I'd like to see if I can get it all written before I do that. I think I have another 10K left to write.

They are currently embroiled in climactic battle of the story.

A week or so ago I started listening to Episode #199 or the "Mental Illness Happy Hour" podcast. Paul Gilmartin mentioned a book at the beginning of the podcast called, "What it is Like to Go to War", written by Karl Marlantes who was a marine officer in Viet Nam.

After the first three hours I had to turn it off. It was too intense in the description of combat and killing. I came back to it a few days later and have since finished it off. It was extremely moving and touched a lot on the psychology of war and killing.

I went back to my Nanowrimo manuscript and rewrote two scenes which I had written based on my limited knowledge about battle. I've ramped up those scenes with some of the psychology Marlantes discussed in his book and I think it gives a better idea of Chuck's personality and feeling as he is drawn into mortal  combat with evil.

"What it is like to go to war" is available through Audible and I'm sure it's available on Amazon.

Nanowrimo Starts Tomorrow

I was working on my Character Motivations this morning. I finished my outline yesterday and ended up with over 7K words.

David Farland's Daily Kick in the Pants yesterday talked a bit about writer's block for him was usually that he hadn't fleshed out his characters and their motivations. I figured since I had another day before the madness would begin, I would do just that.

My story this year is called, "Shooting Stars 2: Drawn into the Mist".  "Shooting Stars 1: A Teenage Vampire Love Story from a Boy's Perspective", will be released in early to mid-December. I thought it would be good to get started on the second in that "Trilogy", in the odd chance that someone, other than family and friends, actually buys in and looks forward to the next in the series. I will admit, up front, that the first book ends, but it is obvious that a second must follow. And I'll clue you in now, it will take a third to resolve. I will probably write that book in the summer, just as soon as I get #2 published.

So. Back to the Character Motivations. I know my primary characters well and am pretty clued in on what they are after. It's the secondary characters that they interact with in this book that I wanted a better clue about. While I was working on the motivation of these background people, and what brings them into contact with my primaries, I fell upon the plot for the fourth novel, (in this trilogy). (I know that jokes been used, but I like it to much to not apply it to my own story.

Look for Shooting Stars on Amazon in early December. This has been a favorite story of mine since I began it and all the feedback I've gotten from beta readers has been equally as positive.

Check out "Flypaper Boy: Coming of Age" available for Kindle and Print-On-Demand at Amazon. And get on my mailing list by sending an email to norvaljoe@gmail.com.

Thanks.

Burgerslovegan Fun Facts.

I started this on Twitter yesterday and added to it on Facebook. I thought I'd put the list of them here for anyone of you non-existent followers to read in the future.

Burgerslovegan Fun Facts: 
Burgerslovegia is a fictional country within the boarders of Ukraine.
Considering actual recent events in the eastern Ukraine, they moved their fictional borders as far west from Crimea as possible.
Their primary export is fictional wool products.
Their fictional sheep have a absurdly soft wool which commands a fictionally high price internationally.
Their fictional form of government is Socialism.
Vladamort Krompkitch is the fictional dictator or Burgerslovegia.
Vladamort believes his fictional daughter is safely hidden at Rosencranks.
Rosencranks is a fictional exclusive prep school north of Santa Belinda on the Southern California coast.
Rosencranks was named for a fictional General who retired near Santa Belinda after the Mexican-American war.
Esmeralda Flinch of the Women's Trade Federation knows the Krompkitch girl is at Rosencranks.

A Monthly Update?

It wasn't my intention to do the same kind of blog post a month after the last, but I though I should at least up date all of my nonexistent followers on where I am.

My plan was to have two books released by this date. Did it happen? Not that I know of...

No. Really. Learn and live. I've found it takes a lot more time than I thought to get things completely nailed down and ready to go. So now I'm aiming for Monday, September 22nd, the last day of  summer, to be my launch day for "Flypaper Boy: Coming of Age". I have about thirty pages left to edit, then it's just a matter of getting it formatted for kindle and the cover art. I think it's doable.

So, Keep an eye out for information on my first run at amazon. I really need to push it up the charts on the first day if it is going to do me any substantial good as a first book.

Tell all your friends, all you imaginary people.

Thanks for reading this Lisa.

Where I'm at today.

I'm participating in the Clarion Write-a-thon. It's longer than Nanowrimo by ten days so I thought that setting a writing goal of 60k words would be easy. Turns out I may not reach my goal. I have written every day, but haven't gotten signed into the website every day. I'm at 52K words, but I've finished writing my novel. I was already at 22k when I started the write-a-thon and this draft stands at about 68K. It's more finished than any other first draft I've done--but then, it's not really my first draft. I wrote the story for Nanowrimo in 2010. I did change it a lot from the original draft. I also changed it in a major way from how I outlined it this time.

Two weeks back Dave Farland ran a special on his MyStoryDoctor.com classes. I couldn't resist and signed up for Story Mastery 1 and I'm really enjoying it. It's helping me focus on the many things I skip over when I write because I'm in such a hurry to get through the plot to the end. All the exercises I'm doing in this course, I'm applying to this Battle Base book, so that on my next edit I can really improve it.

I'm applying all the words I write in the exercises to my word goal, but I'll still be a couple thousand short.

Anyway. Things are looking up. 

Flypaper Boy is back from the editor and Dan Absolonsen is working on the cover art for it. 

Shooting Stars is still with the editor and Rebekah Durhey is working on the cover for that one.

The Galactic Battle Base is done with the first manuscript and waiting on me to go over the edits of Flypaper before I do my next pass. I hope to send GBB to Winston Crutchfield by October. My working title for that one has always been, "Galactic Battle Base: The Knife Cuts Two Ways". My protagonist is a girl who cuts herself, (Non Suicidal Self Injury - NSSI). I'm thinking of changing it to "GBB: Trigger Warning."

So the plan is still self publishing three novels by the end of the year.

I've started listening to the Self Publishing Podcast  by the authors of the book, "Write, Publish, Repeat". I believe what they are saying that the way to really grow a writing business is to write a series with a compelling first book. All three of my novels are firsts in a series, and GBB is a serial with stories all taking place on the Base, but with different people most the time. I say this because November is creeping up on  us all and I want to use Nanowrimo to knock out my "Next in a Series" to follow up something I've published. I'll need to outline it in October.

Next year, while my 2014 Nano is simmering, I want to do my first edit of the 2013 Nano, "The Pariah". So those are the two novels for publishing next year, The Pariah and Something Part 2.