My Guest: Melodie Ramone

My Guest this week tackles a subject dear to the heart of any writer... Nuclear Physics. No, seriously, Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present...

Melodie Ramone

Reviews, Nuclear Physics and cashiers!

It is such a common theme in our lives as writers. We got a bad review, it ruined our day. We went into our writer’s group and vented. Our friends came to the rescue and voted down the review. We felt better. And if we’ve got the skin it takes to make it in this business, we jumped right back into Word and began a new chapter in a new story.

I often wonder why writers bother to read their reviews. I know that seems counter-intuitive, but I rarely ever do and I’ll tell you why. It’s not that I don’t understand that most of us spend hours upon hours, days upon days, working on

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our stories. What’s a story if nobody reads it? So, of course, we want to know what readers thought. But what happens when they don’t like it? In a nutshell, it hurts like crazy and anybody who writes has trouble exactly pinpointing why.

Well, I can. It’s because those words we wrote mean so much to us. It’s like being pregnant for ten months while another organism inhabits your body and destroys you from the inside, makes your brain shrink to the point where you are clinically insane and then you spend weeks in hard labor only to end up with a c-section where the editor rips the thing out of your guts and slaps it on its brand new, pink bottom until it screams. It’s a relief to have it on sale, it’s a joy the book’s been born, but, really, it’s been such a toil. You’re destroyed mentally (sometimes physically depending on if you took the time to eat or sleep) and you’re permanently scarred from the process. But the book’s yours. You created it. You dress it in a lovely book cover that you also tormented yourself over and bring it out into public, hoping that people will see the beauty of what you have done. And then – WHAM! There’s the insensitive person who looks at it and cries, “Holy heaven! What is THAT monstrosity! Kill it before it lays eggs!”

It’s crushing. The truth is we get too close. We get too attached to our work. We fall in love with our characters (literally), we become fascinated with the scenery. We become intertwined with the meaning inside the cover. We build a home in a little fantasy world and there we escape our actuality. The story becomes our happy place and the safety of going there after a long day of reality is intoxicating. We look forward to it. We want to share it and we want people to love it as much as we do. The practicality is, not everybody is going to and that’s just not our fault.

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A bad review is genuinely no reflection on a writer. It’s more a reflection on the reader. Think of it this way. If we were at a dinner party and six of the seven guests were Nuclear Physicists and the other was a cashier, the cashier probably wouldn’t have a very good time. She’d either be intimidated, annoyed or bored silly. She’d be left out of the conversation. If it was the opposite and the Physicist was the odd man out, he’d probably pick the cashier’s conversation to bits as trivial. Point being? Inviting either was a mistake. They didn’t understand the conversation. The same goes for a book. We send an open invitation for people to come to our party and find a place at our table. Not everybody’s going to like what we serve. That’s not our fault. They just joined the wrong gathering.

I see authors all the time agonizing over what they think readers are going to like, actually catering to an anticipation of what will be demanded. It’s an energy drain. Not that one shouldn’t care what readers think, quite the opposite, but the trick about that is to find the RIGHT readers. That’s where targeting an audience comes in, which is a skill you gain along the way of mastering your marketing. Even with all of that down to a science, there will always be a party crasher who buys a book they shouldn’t have read and hates it. Occasionally, that person will fire off a horrible review. It’s their opinion, they are entitled to it, and it hurts to read it. But the truth is that you probably weren’t talking to them to begin with. They came to your table, you didn’t directly invite them and you certainly didn’t force your book on them. This being said, why should you care what they think?

The best advice I can give any author is to write what they want from their own heart and not worry about what other people are going to say about it. There are many voices out there. Some will think you are wonderful, others will hate what you do. Not all of them are trolls. Some of them were just reading a book that’s wrong for them. Again, their loss and not the author’s problem. If there are enough good reviews,

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authors who obsess over the bad ones are really only harming themselves. They are there for balance and, honestly, in this business, balance is a goal. It helps us improve. Distressing over every bad review is poison to the joy of the writing process. We need to stay in the middle and do what we do, regardless of the feedback. If we’re doing it right, we’ll land somewhere near the center, maybe a little to the high side. All that reflects is that people are buying your book and that is ALWAYS a good thing. The more that read, the closer you should fall somewhere near the center.

You own what you write the way you own your children. You can only bring them to this world, love them, put all you can into their formation, watch them grow strong and send them out into the world with the faith that you have done all you could and they have what it takes to make it in a big, messy, wonderful, topsy-turvy universe. Beyond that, what people think of them is not up to you. Love the stories anyway. Let the voices of those who don’t understand roll past. Write another book with joy. Trust the process. Look for balance with enthusiasm and no matter what comes your way, never give up. Your stories are yours and you are the only one who can tell them. If somebody can’t relate, that’s fine. Somebody else always will. You never need to worry about either, because both opinions will be there should you choose to take a peek at your reviews. But keep in mind that you certainly are never required to torture yourself. That is a choice you make on your own and may be one of the only things in this business you actually can control.   

Notes:

Reviews for Melodie Ramone’s work can be seen on Goodreads, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble.  She is currently in the editing process of her upcoming novel 'Burning Down Rome', slated for release in autumn 2014. The image for 'Burning Down Rome' is only a placemarker and is not meant to represent the book's cover.

Bio:

"I'm a keeper of fuzzy critters, author, speaker and certified Kitchen Witch. When I'm not creating Culinary magic, I can usually be found writing stories, reading books, relentlessly tweeting, knitting or delving into fringe Physics. Super geek? Oh, yeah. 

 
I'm obsessed with the Science of Physics, particularly Particle Physics, although in the last few years I am drawn more and more toward Astronomy. I’m fascinated with Outer Space and what’s going on out there. Hubble and the Mars Rovers have sparked a passion in me that goes back to the first time I saw Star Wars. And that was a long, long time ago. I’m a curious person by nature. I want to know everything about everything, I want to see it. I want to understand it so I can understand the origins of our universe. But, then again, I want to understand everything in general.

In short, I’m a happy person. I’m not perfect and I’m not entirely sane, but I don’t pretend to be. In the end, when I look back at my life I will see an amazing smear of color. All the good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly, the strength and weakness that was me. I’ll see all I did and all I failed at. And I will sigh and I will say that I lived. I really, truly lived. I was real. I wrote books. And that, I think, will be good enough for me."


When Melodie is not writing, staring at the stars or conjuring in the kitchen, she can be contacted at:

Website:  http://www.melodieramone.com/

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/Melodie_Ramone

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/melodie.ramone

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6540025.Melodie_Ramone


Thank you Melodie for a superb article which presents a refreshing look at the writer's relationship with the reviewer. Best wishes for 'Burning Down Rome'.

Eric @ www.ericjgates.com

My Guest: Yelle Hughes

This week's Guest is going to help all who have problems finding inspiration for their novels - been there, done that, right? Her approach is to look back to a time long, long ago... Ladies and Gentlemen...

Yelle Hughes

Yelle? What’s a Yelle, you ask?

Well, Yelle is my nickname, as well as my author name. It came from two sources and my family still fights over its origin: My mom says she named me Yelle because I was very loud as a child. My grandma (God bless her soul) said I was named after Ellie May Clampett, from her favorite show, “The Beverly Hillbillies”.

My uncles still call me Ellie to this day.

Now that you know this little tidbit about me, let me tell you some more.

I became a writer some twenty odd years ago and only recently became a published author. What do I write

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about? Why, I write about everything pertaining to Greek mythology. From Sci-Fi to Historical Fiction to Romance, maybe even Horror one day. I consider myself a Greek freak and have been this way since I was a kid.

From reading my first ever story, Cupid and Psyche, I became an avid reader and studier in all aspects of these fascinating myths and teachings. I learned how it influenced the English language, architecture, our daily lives, and especially, our films. I could go on for days about how the world of Greek mythology is inundated in our movies. I am an unpaid critic you know. So much so, our stars, galaxies and space movies drip with ancient names. Buck Rogers, Battlestar Galactica, Star Wars and even the USA’s own NASA program was bitten by the Greek bug.

The great visual arts creator, Ray Harryhausen played a vital role in my obsession. He brought to life on screen, the very creatures and characters I loved to read so much about. The first “Clash of the Titans” was the catalyst for my writing career. There was love (Perseus & Andromeda), there was action (a lot of sword play and flying Pegasus), monsters (Medusa, Kraken and Calibos) and there were the gods in all their selfish and foolish glory (they always meddled with mortals for no apparent reason) J

I was riveted.

But, real life made me make a choice back then. Either wallow in my fantasies or grow up in the real world. I chose to grow up. Got married, kids and a career. Now that the kiddies are grown and out of the house, it’s me time!

First thing I did, I booked a flight to go on an architectural tour of Greece and its islands. I was in heaven, I tell ya!

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It was a magical moment for me. I’ve never left the US…well, Canada, but it’s like a second home to me, and I’d been there so much. I guess I can say, I’ve never been to a country where English was not the top language. And all by myself! At first, I was too scared and then a friend of mine told me, “Stop being a little bitch. You have the money, the kids are gone…you’ve been talking about Greece for all the time that I’ve known you. If you don’t go now, I’m going to hound you for the rest of your days.”

So yeah, I went and so glad I did. I went to the Acropolis. Saw the Oracle of Delphi, visited where the original Olympics started and got to see the great Mt. Olympus. But what really brought me to tears and still does when I think about it, was when I visited Thermopylae. Now the story of Leonidas and his 300 was a true story, but there are a lot of fantastical memes that went along with this historical event.

The trip to Thermopylae was not on our itinerary, but since I talked the ears off of our guide, Michael, he announced we were making a quick pit stop, all because I asked so many questions. I have to tell you guys and I’m not kidding, I went to the monument…couldn’t read a darn thing, then I crossed the highway over to this large hill that had steps leading up. Know what I saw? I saw a large oval stone with Greek wording. Still didn’t know what it said but, I felt a quietness, a calm and something told me to honor this stone. I looked around the grass and saw a single red poppy flower among a bunch of yellow ones. That same intuition told me to place it on the plaque. I did and bowed my head for all those who lost their lives in that area. From historical maps, Thermopylae looked vastly different from before. There was no goat pass and there were no “Hot Gates”. It was all filled in with dirt and rocks, so I couldn’t grasp where the fight actually was. I felt a peacefulness the rest of the day till we were taken back to our hotel. I had internet, so I looked up the wording that was on that stone.

I freaked!

That hill I was standing on, was the actual burial mound where they buried some of the Spartans and the Greeks who helped ward off the Persians. Here’s the actual picture I took of the stone:

That was a little bit more about me, now on to what I’ve written. Jumping into the indie-publishing world was not as easy as I thought. I had to put down what was in my head in neat, coherent sentences that made sense to someone other than myself. So I joined a group of like-minded individuals and studied up. My very first, published, legit (I say legit because even though I published short stories on blogs and websites, I never actually had a published book) story was for Janet Morris’s “In Hell” series. This was dark, historical fiction and I’ve never written anything so gloomy and have it entertaining at the same time. Mrs. Morris saw my work and said to me, “I want you to write a short story for me”.

Of course, I was scared pantless and told her so. Her comeback, “If you don’t try, you’ll never know.” I did

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it, I wrote “Essence Helliance in Dreamer’s in Hell”.  I took mythological characters, placed them in hell and had a ball. In my work, my life influences the story and my character Medea in hell, ran a plasma donation center, which is what I did in real life, only, I didn’t damn people’s souls when I took their blood. J Mrs. Morris liked it so much, that she asked me to write another story for her upcoming anthology, “Poets in Hell”.

Now my stuff? I like to have a good time and for my characters to have a good time. My first short story “Tritonium (Greek Gods in Space)" introduces you to my main guys that star in my EK Chronicles series.  It’s all in the title, the gods of Greece are sent on a mission, to save a world from the wrath of a fickle goddess. I put an astrological twist to a classic mythical tale.  If you read this first, you’ll find out why they all have nicknames.

"Triton the Aegean Chronicles" is all about romance, there’s the girl, the enemy, gods and goddesses acting straight fools, and you will be entertained. If any of you are familiar with the story of Perseus and his birth, well, you get a glimpse of what happened. How he and his mother, Danae, affect the mortal Ariadne Phillips in today’s time. From then on, I wrote, Triton, from my imagination. You’ll meet Taz “Triton” and why he’s sent to protect the little human. Once he lays eyes on her, he comes up with a crazy scheme to keep her safe and spend a little time together. They go on an adventure through Greece and the Greek Isles to keep one-step ahead of the enemy. Along with the antics of Ari’s girlfriends, and Taz’s fellow immortals, you will find yourself laughing and shaking your head.

I invite you all into my world of the Greek gods in the modern age. I want to make you laugh, cry and yell at the bad guys for being so stupid, and to enjoy my visuals I’m going to include with the books.

BIO

Hi guys. I'm Yelle Hughes, mum of three and now a proud grandparent. I'm an avid reader as well as author. I enjoy canoeing, studying the Greek myths, watching action and western movies, and I'm also an unpaid movie critic. My work is written from the heart and pays homage to people who have passed through my life, just as the seasons pass each year.

I discovered the world of Greek Mythology in Jr. High and the idea of adding the modern and fantasy worlds together began to take form. Twenty years, a marriage, three rugrats and a trip to Greece finally brought to life my series, the Aegean Chronicles (coming soon). A mixing of cultures, humor, sadness and weird sex takes you on an adventure in finding out that romance can be achieved, no matter who you are.

When Yelle is not communing with the (Greek) gods, she can be found at:

Website and Blog: http://yellehughes.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/YelleHughes

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/YelleHughes?ref=hl

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/11825146-yelle


As Yelle mentions, the history of many bygone civilizations has been the inspiration for many a contemporary novel and movie. So if you're stuck for ideas, check out Homer (and I don't mean Simpson!).

Eric @ www.ericjgates.com

My Guest: John Dolan

My Guest this week and I have a number of things in common, one of which he will talk about in the following article: location, location, location... Ladies and Gentlemen...

John Dolan

Writing About Foreign Parts

OK, let’s be clear about a couple of things before we start.

First, the ‘foreign parts’ I’m talking about are not genitalia attached to some exotic, non-local beauty. Secondly, the opinions expressed are mine alone. You may disagree, although I’d point out that I’m usually right about most things – except when I’m discussing things with my wife. Then I’m always wrong.

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Since nobody who reads blog posts has a lot of time (otherwise we’d be reading ‘War and Peace’ instead, right?), I’m going to keep this pithy. I talk too much anyway. I hope these headings will be a useful reminder for those novelists among us who base their works away from the familiar locations of the Western World.

Number #1: Do Your Research

No, you at the back with your hand up, I do not mean read an article on Wikipedia. Using your imagination is one thing, but remember that some of the people who will read your work will be familiar with the place you’re describing. They might even live there. If you balls it up, don’t be surprised if you see scathing comments in reviews pointing out your errors. Your credibility is at stake here.  I never write about a place I haven’t visited – and preferably spent a while there. I know not everyone can do this, but if you don’t, ask yourself what you are really offering the reader. Some view about what a place might be like, for instance? (I know if you’re a writer of science fiction, this may present some problems, but you do have the advantage that no Martian locals will point out your inaccuracies. Though some smart-ass NASA person might, of course).

Customs and mores vary the world over. Does a Chinese person in their homeland REALLY do that? Be authentic. Don’t artificially transplant your own ideas of culture to somewhere they don’t belong. Some folks will either beat you up for it or ignore the rest of your writings as ‘uniformed’, or worse.

Number #2: Don’t Write a Travelogue

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Your setting should provide a relevant backdrop to your story, and may well be integral to it. But your job is not to sell a holiday destination (or whatever) to your reader. That’s not to say they won’t fall in love with it, but don’t write like a wide-eyed tourist. Speak with authority about places. Little details, as well as being interesting, are important. However, if I want lots of data about somewhere, I expect to find that in a Lonely Planet Guide, not in a novel.

Ignore this point if you are, in fact, writing a travelogue.

Number #3: Avoid Info Dumps

This should go without saying, and applies to any aspect of writing, but folks can especially get carried away when describing places. Don’t. Drip-feed details as you go along and choose carefully the order in which you present them: make the sequence relevant for the narrative. You may find it helpful to alternate between wide-angle views and close ups.

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Number #4: Put Yourself in Your Reader’s Mind

Hmmn. I know this is a tricky one – and you may well have readers from all over the planet, some of whom will be familiar with the location, some who will not. You have to please both types – so not too much info, not too little (see above points). Include stuff that is relevant and interesting and hack away the rest. How would you convey the feeling of an Asian street market to someone who has only ever lived in Nebraska? What would make it meaningful for them? Conversely, how will you avoid boring someone who spends time every week at such a market? Not easy, but the key is to INTEGRATE the place with the story as much as possible.

Number #5: Consider All the Senses

If you want to immerse your reader in the location, don’t just describe the visuals. Sound, smell, touch and taste are all important. Don’t just tell your reader what somewhere looks like.

That’s about it, really. Easy, isn’t it? Hmmn. Well, maybe.

NOTE: John is running a Goodreads Giveaway for paperback copies of 'A Poison Tree' until 31 May
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/91761-a-poison-tree

BIO

“Makes a living by travelling, talking a lot and sometimes writing stuff down. Galericulate author, polymath and occasional smarty-pants.”

John Dolan hails from a small town in the North-East of England. Before turning to writing, his career encompassed law and finance. He has run businesses in Europe, South and Central America, Africa and Asia. He and his wife Fiona currently divide their time between the UK and Thailand.

John is the author of the 'Time, Blood and Karma' mystery series published by Tention Books.

CONTACT John here:

Twitter @JohnDolanAuthor https://twitter.com/JohnDolanAuthor

Amazon Author Page http://www.amazon.com/John-Dolan/e/B008IIERF0/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

Goodreads Author Page  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6550683.John_Dolan

Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/JohnDolanAuthor?ref=hl

Website http://johndaviddolan.wix.com/johndolanauthor

Thank you, John, for your sound advice. I've read all of your books and the sense of place you reflect on the page shows how it's done by a Master of his craft. Say hi to Jim Fosse for me. Now what's the name of that bestselling writer who consistently breaks rules 2 and 3? Dan something or other...

Eric @ www.ericjgates.com

The Death of GENRE?

Forget what you ever thought you knew about books.

Why?

Because YOU don’t decide what you read… Empirical Science does!

A sweeping statement, perhaps… or is it?

Let’s examine one of the most frustrating problems an author can face in today’s writing paradigm. And before I continue, I should make clear I’m not talking just about Traditional Publishing.

Now IMAGINE for a moment you find yourself in a supermarket; we’ve all been there, right. You entered without any clear idea of what you were going to buy; no shopping list clutched in your hand to direct your paces. All you want is something for Dinner; something, a capricious whim, to tantalize your taste buds at the end of a long day. You’ve worked hard, so you deserve a prize. It’s all about seeing something that creates that ‘Oh Yeah!’ reaction. Are you there in the supermarket? Good.

 

Now see your feet taking you down aisle after aisle, seeking that elusive culinary delight. Got it?

Suddenly you find yourself in unknown territory.

Before you is a freezer; shelves laden with tempting promise. You spy an unmarked box, covered with a thin white frost hinting that’s it’s been waiting just for you; the answer to your gastronomic goal. The image on the box looks attractive; lots of calid colours: fiery red, toasty orange. Exactly what you’ve been looking for, right?

You tip the trophy into your trolley and head for checkout – it’s going to be a great evening!

This is where things then go sideways!

Upon reaching home you race into the kitchen, extracting the bounty from the box, preparing to lavish a little TLC on yourself.

WHAT! What’s this?

Instead of the promised Chicken Wings in Spicy Tex-Mex Salsa the shelf label promoted, you have a chunk of frozen algae. Could this be some new-fangled fashion from Asian shores? Or is it something far more sinister?

Yes, you have become another victim of Empirical Science!

At this point, either you have stopped reading to visit your own kitchen, or you are wondering what the Hell I’m rabbiting on about.

So perhaps a little more explanation is called for…

Empirical Science is all about testing stuff independently and using reproducible methods to define exactly what it is. Useful right? Its essence is really quite simple: nothing officially exists until it’s been labelled!

So, am I talking about a mislabelling of your Chicken Wing delight here?

No. The sad truth is that the supermarket has been taken over by the publishing industry.

Now you are really puzzled, right?

When we scribblers finish a tome, still infused with that cuddly sensation of achievement that magically manifests, we head over to the Internet to tell the World about our latest creation. We need to upload our creative content to Amazon etc., and, of course list it everywhere we can think of, especially Goodreads, Shelfari etc. so our potential reader audience can find it. But what is this? We, the people with the most intimate contact with our creation, don’t get to accurately describe it, to place it on the shelf where it belongs. No. We are made to force it into a pre-labelled existence defined by… who knows?

Again, a picture is worth a thousand words, so they say, so let me draw one for you.

I will use Amazon purely as an example; the problem persists EVERYWHERE!

First step: log on to KDP and enter the details of my new title. Now near the bottom of the page, the trap awaits. It’s a two-pronged beastie, cleverly designed to play with your mind, and that of your readers too.

I wrote the book; spent months researching, planning, plotting, typing, rewriting, editing, more rewriting… you get the picture. So you would think, at this juncture, filling in a few boxes on a form would be child’s play, right?

Someone find me a child. I’ve apparently committed a cardinal sin! I’ve written a novel, nay, a lot of novels, that DON’T fit in to the pre-labelled slots available!

A practical example to illustrate my dilemma: I have just completed book 3 of my series ‘the CULL’. At this moment I’m feeling great. It’s been a challenge: three full-length, fast-paced tales filled with the feats of fantastic characters. Lots of F’s, you’ll note – I added one more when I tried to fit my novel into the available categories.

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You see, dear fellow scribe or attentive reader, my sin was to do something different! In short, I created.

I wrote a series of books which introduce you to events in the lives of two female Federal Agents. (That must be the CRIME category, right?) They work for a covert unit of Homeland Security. (Oh, hang on a minute, that could be ESPIONAGE. No problem, I get to list the books in two categories, so CRIME and ESPIONAGE). They find themselves initially chasing a Serial Killer, (SUSPENSE?) but the tale quickly takes an unexpected twist as a far-ranging conspiracy is revealed. (THRILLER territory?) Then it goes international in a big way, with protagonists and antagonists battling it out over several continents. (EPIC, anyone? Or is this a TRAVELOGUE á la Dan Brown? If you’ve read his latest, you’ll know what I mean.)

Oh! Did I mention there are vampires?

Whoops! That’s torn it! PARANORMAL, you cry, for all you’re worth.

Yeah, I know they’re not your run-of-the-mill vampires; not shiny or romantic at all. Nor are they angst-filled teenagers.

Up until I introduced THAT word, I was clearly heading in the SUSPENSE THRILLER direction. So what else is in the books? Well, the protagonists use computers, the latest in surveillance techniques and there are guns, explosions, and gadgets galore. Wait, it’s a TECHNO-THRILLER!

…and the story of the antagonists has its origins centuries ago. HISTORICAL! …must be HISTORICAL, you say.

…and there’s quite a bit about genetics…  MEDICAL!

So what do we have so far?

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How about a fast-paced SUSPENSE TECHNO- MEDICAL HISTORIC EPIC TRAVELOGUE CRIME ESPIONAGE PARANORMAL THRILLER?

But they don’t have a box for that.

I’ll have to settle for Thriller – Suspense.

I can’t even mention PARANORMAL because that defines something else. If you want to cite your work as PARANORMAL (for the vampires, even if they are nothing like the aforementioned shiny teenagers, just in case someone has lost the track of my ramblings) then your book can only be listed as FANTASY – PARANORMAL, or worse, JUVENILE FICTION – PARANORMAL. No dragons, sword-wielding knights, fairies, elves, gnomes… or teenagers in sight I’m afraid, so if I use either of those categories I will be MISLEADING the potential reader.

So, it all boils down to a choice:

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I can choose to either MISLEAD the reader or MISREPRESENT my novel!

Empirical Science, you see. If I don’t choose one of those, by definition, my book doesn’t exist!

Dammit! We’re CREATIVES! We create; we are original; we generate new ideas.

(Now I’m apologizing for being a fiction writer! Wonder if Bram Stoker had this problem?)

So what’s my conclusion?

Simple, really: Forget science!

If you want to read a cracking, fast-paced Suspense Thriller with a ‘touch of Strange’ (as one reader once put it) then check out ‘the CULL’ series on Amazon… and don’t look at the Categories listing!

There are extracts and much more on my website...

Now, frozen algae, anyone?

Eric @ www.ericjgates.com

Services for Authors

Instead of a Guest this week, I am featuring a new initiative from a fellow scrivener destined to help those of us who spend untold hours creating fiction for our readers. Ladies and Gentlemen...

Books Go Social

Services for Authors

My name is Laurence O’Bryan. I have been writing almost every day since the year 2000. That’s fourteen years.

I spent the first ten years learning the craft. When I was ready I knew that I needed promotion as well as a good book. That was when I decided to create my first blog and promote it through Twitter & Facebook. Twitter generated the hits from people I didn’t know and Facebook allowed me to reach people I did know.

Now I have over 200,000 followers on Twitter. 100,000 of these in the US and 60,000 in the UK. These are real readers who have followed me because I am a writer or because I promote other writers.

I started promoting other writers in 2012. I have over eighty guest posts from other writers on my site. This year I decided to promote other writers on a new site dedicated to first pages, BooksGoSocial.com. That site is attracting 1,000 visitors a week already.

It’s a virtual bookshop where people taste books and can buy it with two clicks if they like it. If you are interested in becoming a featured author then come on over to Services4Authors, where details of what we do for you are listed.

I believe in authors helping each other. A key component of BooksGoSocial is that each author promotes the site once a month on Facebook or Twitter to have their book rotated to the top of their genre listing. If you won’t share the site with your own followers your book will drift down the listing.

Sharing is what will keep your book near the top on this site. Most visitors will look at your first page only. 50% will look at one other first page.

You will benefit from others sharing the site, so please share it once a month after you sign up. There’s a small annual admin fee, but there is a long list of benefits too. Come on over to Services4Authors.com to see what they are. One benefit you should not miss out on is our 4 Step Book Sales Accelerator Model, which you will receive after you sign up.

Laurence O'Bryan is the author of several Thriller novels:

Laurence O'Bryan's Amazon Author Page

This is a great service; I'm already signed up and would recommend it to all.

Eric @ www.ericjgates.com

My Guest: Scarlett Flame

It is truly an honour to host the '2014 Blogger of the Year' as my Guest this week. Although her blog posts are known far and wide, did you know she is a multi-genre author too? Ladies and Gentlemen...

Scarlett Flame

Steamy Scarlett Unbound

I think you might all be a tad interested in just how I got myself into this world of writing and blogging (yes, I have a blog too).

Well, a little over eighteen months ago I was a mere tweep, a normal(ish) tweeter that had begun to use twitter to talk to others. Although, I have to admit the whole thing had me mystified for some time too. As I started to follow people, and be followed back in return, I fell in with a little gang of tweeps that included, my now good friend John Dolan. We all tweeted back and forth for some time and, (as John Dolan is a published author), the subject of writing came up. I mentioned that I had been writing for some time and, that I had hidden this writing in a bottom drawer, writing in secret. John suggested doing something to make myself known and that maybe writing a blog would be a good idea. John further suggested, that a good start would also be to decide on a pen name, especially as the genre I was writing in included erotica.

Amazon Link

So, the five of us tweeps bandied about with various names and, da da Scarlett Flame was born. As I had no clue what a blog was at that time, or even how to go about producing one, John very kindly Skyped me from Abu Dhabi and talked me through how to set one up. Another first for me, as prior to that I had never Skyped either. So, in February 2013 Miss Scarlett Flame the blog was also born. My twitter account of the same name was set up, and away I went.

I can laugh now when I look back to my first steps into the blogging world, as I got excited if even 10 people viewed my blog. Also, my first attempts at blogging were pretty poor too, an absolute beginner, and unable to do the simplest of things. Over time though I have begun to become more adept at producing my blog and my reward came on New Years Eve 2013, when I was announced the winner of The Blogger of the Year 2014 by the site Skelat.com. A very, very proud day for me as my good friend and author SeumasGallacher, was the King of blogging prior to this, and held the title Blogger of the Year 2013 from Skelat the previous year. My blogs are now all singing and dancing, (particularly singing) as I cover a variety of topics including gig reviews for the many fantastic Indie Bands that abound in Manchester, and Great Britain itself. I have been privileged to watch a wide variety of these Indie Bands and now consider many my personal friends. I also cover interviews, book reviews and much more.

Gradually over time, the hits on my blog have increased and I am now closing on 23,000 hits which still amazes and delights me. I also began to write short stories, and was about to publish the first erotic one of my own, on the blog. The first draft of the story was duly sent out to friends in the twitter world, three of them. The first was Erotic Jake, an erotic writer and blogging friend of mine. Gareth Young another incredibly talented writer, and finally Nate Smith, a scriptwriter and producer from Australia. All good valued friends of mine, and they ALL read the story and without exception replied that, although the story was basically a good story, ALL said it was obvious that it had been written by a woman! I think I just sat there stunned with my mouth open, aghast for a few minutes, I then asked them all “Why so?” They ALL replied with a similar reply, it was my use of words, or, to be precise, my lack of the use of certain

Link to Scarlett's blog

descriptive words! That, as I was writing under a pen name, to use the words that were needed to bring the details in the story to life. I then asked each of them to send me three words each, to use in the story and it didn't take them very long to give me those words. I looked closely at the story and put these words in where I thought they would work best and, voila! My first story was ready to be published. Receiving a virtual pat on the back from each of them once they read the published post.

The greatest accolade a writer can receive for an erotic writing (or so I have been told!), is that people have read it with one hand ( if you know what I mean, nudge, nudge, wink, wink). Well apparently I have a LOT of one handed readers, be they male, or female.

I am still in the process of completing the first book that I mentioned to John. Hopefully this will be ready to be published soon in either May or early June, so look out for it. The book I so recently published at the very end of December 2013, now has five 5* reviews on Amazon UK and many more five stars on Goodreads, where I now have an author page. This novel is entitled 'Bound for Passion' and includes the first two stories that were published on my blog. The last story in the book was written especially for the book. I write across multiple genres including Steampunk, erotica, paranormal, romance, sci-fi, BDSM and finally children's books. A strange combination you may think, but as I am also a qualified Children's Nurse, not so strange as you may think.

As for advice to any budding authors amongst you goes, is just to go and write what inspires you, moves you, that you enjoy. Also, practice makes perfect so keep on writing, and perfecting your craft. Another big thing is to read others works, not just in your usual genres, step out of your comfort zone – you might just enjoy it, and learn a thing or two in the process. Writing is like painting a picture with words, so that people remote view in their own heads what you are trying to tell them. A novel rich in detail, and action, allows us to then fill in the gaps, bringing it to life. Making us cry, laugh out loud or sit and reminisce times gone past.

My next novel has a working title of 'The Prophecy Unfolds (Dragon Queen)'. This is the first in a series of books about Alexandra, and her adventures after her capture and kidnap on Earth, where she is taken to the Steampunk world of Syros. A world where fantastical animals and beings abound. There are magicians, werewolves, dragons and dragon riders that fight, love, die and go on to have amazing adventures that will have you smiling, crying and laughing as I walk and run you through their adventures. I hope to capture your imagination, and leave you wanting more, so that you continue to follow their adventures in further books. Later in the year a follow up to 'Bound for Passion' will also be released, in time for Christmas 2014.

BIO

Although born in Salford, UK, I was raised in the Manchester area and still consider myself a Lancashire lass. I am a qualified paediatric nurse and have a Bsc(Hons) and a PgDip (Masters level qualification) among other qualifications. Yet I choose to write, and hope to make this my full time occupation. Although I have always loved to read and write, I only recently began to write seriously. My first blog post was published in February 2013 and since then I have gone from strength to strength. This has resulted in my being voted as Blogger of the Year 2014.

My blogs aren't all erotica, far from it. On my blog posts you are just as likely to read about music gigs I have attended around Manchester, interviews, book reviews and much more. There is something for everyone on my blogs.

You can contact Scarlett and read about her forthcoming projects using any of the following links:

Twitter

Facebook

Blog

Goodreads

Thank you, Scarlett, for sharing your writing journey with us and wish you the very best of success with your new novel.

Eric @ www.ericjgates.com

My Guest: Paul Cude

Fantasy worlds populated with dragons, magic and sword-wielding heroes are one of the most popular subjects in fiction today. My Guest this week is an author who will highlight some of the most critical issues faced when writing in this genre. Ladies and Gentlemen...

Paul Cude

Forging Flaming Fantasy!

Oddly it started with a dream. Sounds a bit crazy really, but one night, when my elder daughter was just a baby (she's11 now) I had the single most realistic dream I've ever had. I didn't remember it until the following day, but when I did, I swear it was just like watching a movie in my head.....so graphic, so intense, so.....mesmerising. Anyhow, I told my wife, who was gobsmacked to say the least. And so was what she said to me, "You have to write it, you just have to." At the time I laughed off her idea, bearing in mind that at the time I could only type with two fingers. But over a period of I suppose months, I kept getting more dreams, flashbacks into the story.......sometimes little details, sometimes insights into the characters, sometimes twists and turns to do with the plot. In the end I suppose looking back it was inevitable that I would write it. First I taught myself to type properly......3 months, and then, well.........I began. 

Amazon Link

At first I needed complete silence to be able to write, something there wasn't a lot of bearing in mind I was taking care of one young child, with another on the way. But over time I've learned to filter it all out and can now write with the kids playing around me if I need to, but I still think I do work more efficiently in total silence. But how do you build a fantasy world? Where on earth do you even begin?

Jotting some notes, outlining the story of course. But for me, it was more than that. I know this sounds insane, but subsequent dreams were so real. Sometimes I'd wake up in the morning with a certain smell playing through my nostrils, the perceived taste of a charcoal fajita clinging to the back of my dry throat, or the 'whoosh' of a monorail door sliding closed, echoing through my ears as I headed towards the shower. So not only could I see the story running through my head, I could taste, smell and hear all the elements that made it so vivid. All of this brought a whole new aspect to my writing. I thought I'd be sitting, staring at a screen and a keyboard, words fluttering effortlessly from my fingertips. Instead, I'd quite often be overtaken by the sounds, smells and tastes of the world I was trying to create, as well of course as the imagery.

It didn't take long before things stepped up another level. I found myself with questions I couldn't

Amazon Link

answer. Odd, particularly given it was my world that I'd created, to which the questions pertained. But these were facts....real world questions that needed real world answers. In my wildest imagination, both in my dreams, and at my desk, I never once thought I'd be trying to work out things like the top speed a dragon can fly at. Well, when you think about it, it really shouldn't make much difference. Should it? But I had a group of dragons travelling half way across the world, underground. There needed to be details. Oh well, I'll guess then. But it's not as easy as that. It never is. 'What about the speed of sound?" I hear you say. Hmmm...you're right of course. If, as a given, these dragons live and work underground, well most of them anyway, then flying beyond or close to the speed of sound has to be out of the question. The sonic boom would destroy everything in their wake. That would be the shortest-lived fictional world ever. After that I had to work out the underground route they'd take from Europe to Antarctica, and then how long it would take them to get there. At about this time I was starting to envy Star Trek's transporter technology. How much easier would that make things? After all, I think I'm right in saying that it was invented in the original series to save time and make it easier to get from the ship down to the planet every week.

This was only the opening chapter of my book, and there were so many things that I just hadn't bargained for. I thought I could sit and imagine underground monorails, packed with soft, giant dragon-sized seats, zooming beneath the surface of the Earth, deftly describing the noise the doors would make, or the feeling of the warm air as it exited the tunnels at the stations, caressing the cracks between a dragon's scales, warming their blood, making them feel alive. But it couldn't be that easy, even with something as simple as that. There were the G forces to consider, what route the monorail would take, and would it go through geologically unstable areas or around? And the seats. There can't be a problem with the seats, surely? Dragons using the monorail would not only be in their normal form (solitus) but would also be travelling in their mantra enhanced human disguises (mutatio). Dragons like this would look like tiny action figures sitting in huge, oversized dragon seats. How very stupid. Also, just how would a dragon in its natural form sit down on a seat in a monorail carriage? You're all shouting, 'REALLY CAREFULLY', I can hear you. No, I mean......wouldn't its tail get in the way? So how do you overcome that problem?

Again it's imagination vs the laws of physics. I won't tell you the answer - for that you'll have to read the first book in the series. But as a fantasy writer, it seems to be one constant battle between these two forces. Often there's more than one answer. But it seems all about finding the right balance. So while I would always encourage you to let your imagination loose, explain the sounds, the feel of the fabric, the mouth-watering taste of the foods, the overpowering smell of fear from an unbeatable battle and describe the scene as vividly as you see it in your head. 

Always remember the imagination/physics balance, because if you don't, it'll come back at some point later on and assume the form of a hulking great, prehistoric, matt black dragon, circle over you, like a leaf falling in the wind, before swooping down at much less than the speed of sound, and rip your head off.

BIO

As for me.........I look after my two girls, and when they're at school I'm a teaching assistant. I love playing hockey, and help coach kids, mine included. Other interests include reading, building computers, squash, cycling, great days out with my wonderful wife and kids, as well of course as WRITING! I've just published my second book in the 'Bentwhistle' series, called  'Bentwhistle The Dragon in A Chilling Revelation'

When Paul is not using mantra spells to create more dragon mayhem, he can be located here:

Website: http://www.bentwhistlethedragon.co.uk/

Blog: http://www.thesoberhockeyplayer.co.uk/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Bentwhistlethedragon?ref=hl

Twitter: https://twitter.com/paul_cude

Amazon Author Page http://www.amazon.co.uk/Paul-Cude/e/B007339206/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&query=Paul+Cude

Thank you, Paul, for an interesting insight into the creation of believable fantasy; Many new fantasy writers could learn much from your experience, especially the use of sensory data to add a realistic dimension to the worlds they create.

Eric @ ericjgates.com