Archive | October 2017

An Insider’s View of the Publishing Business…

Chris The Story Reading Ape's avatarChris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

by Erica Verrillo  on Publishing… and Other Forms of Insanity:

Random House

A while ago, I ran across an article in New York Magazine by Daniel Menaker, a senior literary editor at Random House. The title caught my eye: What Does the Book Business Look Like on the Inside?
This is a question every aspiring author wants answered, especially if they are trying to make a choice between traditional and self-publishing.

But as I read the article, I realized that it clarified my own experience with Random House, and it bolstered my decision to abandon the traditional publishing route with my subsequent books.

In order to get the full sense of what Menaker had to say about his experiences with the New Yorker (initially) followed by Random House and HarperCollins, I ended up reading his entire book.

It turned out to be quite enlightening, not just in terms…

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Literary Titan Book Awards October 2017

Literary Titan's avatarLITERARY TITAN

The Literary Titan Book Awards are awarded to books that have astounded and amazed us with unique writing styles, vivid worlds, complex characters, and original ideas. These books deserve extraordinary praise and we are proud to acknowledge the hard work, dedication, and imagination of these talented authors.

Literary Titan Gold Book Award

Gold Award Winners

Going Gone!: A Trackers Novel by [Dickason, Anita]The Enigma Rising (The Enigma Series Book 2) by [Breakfield, Charles V, Burkey, Roxanne E]Pegasus by [Cressman, Ken]

Think...Stand Up & Walk Tall: Turning Negatives Into Positives by [Kelman, Eliyahu]The Prophet and the Witch: A Novel of Puritan New England (My Father's Kingdom Book 2) by [George, James W.]

Shadow and Friends Celebrate Ellsworth, KS 150th Birthday (Book Seven of Shadow and Friends Series 7) by [Jackson, S, Raymond, A, Schmidt, M]

Literary Titan Silver Book Award

Silver Award Winners

A Dangerous Discovery by [Brock, Zachary]H.A.L.F.: ORIGINS by [Wright, Natalie]

FUTURE WORLD ROCKS!: Going Back To Our Roots (Carousels of Life) by [Tumbler, Terry]

Same Inside, Different Outside by [Hunt, Deborah]

Visit the Literary Titan Book Awards page to see award information and see all award winners.

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This entry was posted on October 6, 2017. 4 Comments

50 Productivity Tips to Boost Your Brainpower As A Writer[infographic]

Chris The Story Reading Ape's avatarChris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

By Laura Tong  on Write to Done site:

Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work. ~Stephen King

As a writer of fiction or non-fiction, hard work is what separates the dreamers from the achievers. Without hard work all you are is:

  • a freelancer without any clients
  • an author without any readers
  • a blogger without any traffic

But hard work alone won’t help. Working hard on its own won’t draw out that great work you have inside you.

Rather, you need to be productive with your time.

The Cambridge dictionary defines productivity as ‘the rate at which a person, company, or country does useful work.’

For you as a writer the most important word in that definition is ‘useful’. ‘Useful’ work is work that matters, work that counts.

In other words creative work.

And that…

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This entry was posted on October 5, 2017. 2 Comments

Changed the Cover – Better?

Badges-FrontCover-Ellsworth150thCelebration04October2017

I’m re-working on making our “Shadow and Friends” series book covers so that they represent the book numbers in the series as well as a change from the basic text I use all the time. So… the bottom one is my original cover and the upper one is my new design layout. No banners or ribbons.  

COVER-FRONT-SMALL-Ellsworth150thCelebration15June2017

This entry was posted on October 4, 2017. 15 Comments

The Mysterious Life Inside a Closet

Cover-20170912

The Mysterious Life Inside a Closet by Mrs. D.

I read this book earlier this morning and my review follows the authors book blurb found on Amazon

“Who made a mess in the closet? This enchanting story contains an amusing dialogue between the strange occupants of a closet and a curious kitten. Much to its surprise, the nosy kitten finds itself in the middle of a huge disagreement between the black broom and the other occupants of the closet. The blue sponge is sensitive, the purple duster is upset, the red vacuum cleaner is furious, and the black broom cannot rest until she discovers who made the mess. Sneak into a dark closet with a kitten and see who causes mayhem! Was it the silver bucket, the green dustpan, the lost slipper, the sleepy mop, or the old cat that made the mess? Read and reread this story until you find out! This entertaining story may start with a mess, but it ends with children laughing!”

I received a copy of this book for an honest review. I enjoyed this book immensely and I know children will love it just as well. To think that a broom, let alone all the inhabitants of the closet such as a mop, feather duster, and sponge, and the dishes, pots, and pans in the kitchen could take on faces and talk is amazing.

This is quite well-written, with beautiful illustrations throughout, which fit well for each page of text. Another endearing aspect is that the author brought herself into this book towards the end. This is the third book I have read and reviewed by Mrs. D. Five Stars!

 

This entry was posted on October 3, 2017. 6 Comments

The Fall of Lilith

lilith

The Fall of Lilith by Vashti Quiroz Vega

My review follows the author’s book blurb found on Amazon.

“Fallen angels battle for survival in this dark and epic fantasy novel.

Though given free will the angels must pledge obedience and celibacy to God, and dire consequences await any who break their oaths.

At first, the angels are happy in their celestial home and followed the rules. As they grow older, the angel Lilith begins to question these pledges, which now seem arbitrary and stifling. Her challenge of the status quo leads to disagreement, jealousy, and strife among her peers, especially Michael who carried secret feelings for her. As the arguing and acrimony grow, lines are drawn and sides are chosen. War becomes inevitable.

Lilith’s rhetoric provokes an uprising. She eventually seduces Lucifer and persuades him to revolt against God. A vicious battle ends in defeat for Lilith, Lucifer, and their allies. They are cast out of Heaven and exiled to a primitive Earth, changed in appearance and capacity.

The rebel angels thought they could enjoy heaven on Earth, but in truth they had just begun to suffer.”

Where do I begin? I have never before read a book this epic and amazing. The genre isn’t my normal genre but I have come to appreciate other genres as my reading and writing career goes forth.

This book starts with heaven and there are three levels of heaven. God has given the angels free will and He loves all His angels. As the angels grow older, like teenagers, some find they want to have free will on their level of heaven. The angels lived in a paradise called Floraison filled with lush meadows, gardens, waterfalls, and the like. They have no need for food. Lilith decides that she wants more; she wants free will in all ways possible. She becomes evil – quite wicked and very manipulative. She uses that to her advantage and she knows just how to get other angels to rebel.

God decides to show his angels a new creation and from that He makes the galaxy and eventually Earth. During Creation the angels watch as He makes the oceans, water creatures, trees, grass, animals, and flying creatures. He creates a beautiful Garden of Eden filled with the most luscious flowers, trees, etc and then He makes Man. Man shall be the ruler of this domain and He makes this man a woman to be with him. Adam and Eve – they are naked and the most beautiful creatures the angels have ever seen. Lilith starts a revolt and they lose, and are banished from heaven.

The second book is about their life on Earth and the hell they went trough. Lilith wants her revenge against God and she uses any and all means to achieve that goal.

This is a well-written book and I highly recommend this for anyone who loves fantasy, God, and the supernatural. I have intentionally left out details as I want future readers to be shocked by what they read. Five stars.

Heads up: Mature themes. 

This entry was posted on October 3, 2017. 18 Comments

How to Reduce Repetition in Your Manuscript Writing…

Chris The Story Reading Ape's avatarChris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

by Lisa Brown  on Just Publishing Advice site:

You may not have any challenge in expressing yourself through your writing, but there’s a common mistake that many writers make and sometimes, without noticing it. That is, repeating yourself.

Readers can detect repetitive words or phrases from a piece of writing.

It may slow down the way they internalize your message and in turn affect their response to your manuscript writing.

We repeat ourselves maybe because of focus on SEO rankings. Or it could be that we often use those particular words or phrases, over and over again.

Since repetition mostly occurs without us noticing it, the following are ways to help you reduce and even avoid repetition when writing your manuscript.

Reduce Repetition in Your Manuscript

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This entry was posted on October 1, 2017. 2 Comments