Archive for the ‘books’ Tag
April 16, 2018 – A collection of bookish memes your audience can relate to.
Humor is a great way to connect with your audience, and positions itself as a highly-shareable content type. Is there a particular reading pet peeve you could create a narrative around? Or perhaps a favorite fandom your readers might enjoy, too? Pinterest is a great platform to find relevant images — just make sure to always credit back!
Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.
WordPress:
Custom Blog:
An InLinkz Link-up
get the InLinkz code
I hate movies made from books! Well, not really. I hate movies based on books where the director decided to ignore the book. I can actually enjoy a movie that doesn’t have every bit of dialogue, etc., in it, but more often than not, the difference is as stark as the photo to your left. You know what I mean. You’ve read this beautiful lush novel filled with interesting characters and gorgeous details and you’re looking forward to the movie, but then it looks like the right half of the photo – dead, lifeless, missing most of its parts.
I feel so sorry for the other people in the movie theater … including my husband … because they’ll never know what they’re missing. They think the movie represents the book. They just didn’t have to “waste” a week after work reading it. Instead, they encapsulated it into a 1 hour and 46 minute dose of special effects and great costumes. They believe they got the better end of the deal when in fact they are consuming a picked-over meal. It’s like listening to a symphony on digital media and never realizing all the tones that are left out.
Some directors do a better job than others. Peter Jackson left a few things from the Lord of the Rings book out of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but the overall quality wasn’t reduced. Walden Entertainment tries to stick with the book fairly faithfully. The Hunger Games books were written cinematically, so a lot of what was in the books made it into the movies. And, trust me, even with eight seasons and counting, the television series couldn’t get all of the Game of Thrones books onto the screen. Although I haven’t yet had opportunity to view beyond the first season, I think the series is well done and doesn’t “ruin” the books. It’s just that it’s definitely not the same thing as reading the novels.
Really folks, watching the movie is honestly not the same as reading the book. It’s more like reading the Cliff notes. And, when I hear people say “Oh, yeah, I saw the movie and it was awful, why would I read the book?” I think, “because the movie is not the book and if you only knew that, you would enjoy it so much more.” There’s just so much we lose out on when we “sample” literary works by way of film rather than consume the real deal. I love well-done film, but far too often, film eviscerates a well-written book. In my perfect world, every book would have a companion movie done as well as the book and based on the book … which surprisingly does happen with movies that end up being novelized. I’m not sure why it works that way … maybe because novel writers can see what’s on screen and just describe it, but screenwriters feel that they can reimagine what they’ve read.
Maybe?
Now, there are exceptions to this “the book is almost always better” rule. I’ve read many a great book in my life in many wonderful genres, but one reason I’m writing Transformation Project is because the available apocalyptic books weren’t all that good while television was and is creating fantastic content. You know what I mean — The Walking Dead, Falling Skies, The Last Ship, The Colony, even Z Nation. Books deserve to be that good and so, since I couldn’t find many that lived up to that standard, I’m writing them. By the way, this is the last day of a 99-cent sale on each of the books in that series. You could pick up all three for less than one costs you at full price.
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My regular readers won’t be surprised to find that I opted for a touch of controversy on my inaugural post – about Christian creatives who choose, as I do, to not label their work as “Christian.”
https://dyegirl1373.wixsite.com/website/single-post/2018/03/07/Lets-Talk-How-to-be-a-Christian-Creative-in-a-Fallen-World
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Murklin Wood is on 99-cent sale this week along with several other authors’ books feature clear dragon reads.
https://emilymarthasorensen.com/cleanfantasydragonreads.html
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A Threatening Fragility publishes November 7, 2017, and I’m looking for reviewers … for the entire series.
I’m willing to give FREE ebooks for an honest review.
This is the third book for a libertarian-influenced apocalyptic series that asks “How would the people of a small Midwestern town survive if brought to a breaking point?”
If you’re interested, email me at lelamarkham@gmail.com with “Review Offer” in the subject line.
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“… The development of a kind of bureaucratic absolutism is not limited, however, to totalitarian countries. A mild form of professional absolutism is evident in every country in the mediating class of civil servants who bridge the gap between man and his rulers. Such a bureaucracy may be used to help or to harm the citizens it should serve.
It is important to realize that a peculiar, silent form of battle goes on in all of the countries of the world — under every form of government — a battle between the common man and the government apparatus he himself has created. In many places we can see that this governing tool, which was originally meant to serve and assist man, has gradually obtained more power than it was intended to have.
… Governmental techniques are no different from any other psychological strategy; the deadening hold of regimentation can take mental possession of those dedicated to it, if they are not alert. And this is the intrinsic danger of the various agencies that mediate between the common man and his government. It is a tragic aspect of life that man has to place another fallible man between himself and the attainment of his highest ideals.” –The Rape of the Mind
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Ahead of the book launch for “A Threatening Fragility”, I’m looking for some free promotion for Transformation Project.
Life As We Knew It
Objects In View
A Threatening Fragility
#books, #fiction, #apocalyptic, #libertarian, #kindle
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The giveaway for Hullabaloo on Main Street continues through the weekend.
For a committed democrat, it sure does suck when you lose an election.
You know what I mean?
Nearly half the country refuses to listen to the other half. We think we know what the other side means, but we never venture outside our own bubbles to actually find out.
#Libertarian Connor infiltrates both bubbles in a Midwestern town on Election Wednesday 2016 and brings readers along for a wry non-partisan tour of the “Bubble Battles.” He even offers a solution … not that any bubble dwellers will listen.
This #novelette is a work of #fiction based upon real-life events. Any resemblance to yourself or people you know is purely coincidental.
#Political #satire from a #nonpartisan perspective.
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Today’s guest on the blog is Jane Bwye, a longtime friend and fellow writer. Welcome back to the blog, Jane.
Lela, it’s good to be visiting you again. While browsing through your Writing Wednesday blogs, I discovered our interview way back in 2014. It was the very first one in your series. You mentioned that I might be following it up with an article. Well – here it is – three years later, on the eve of the launch of another book!
GRASS SHOOTS, the sequel to Breath of Africa, will be launched on Amazon on 30th March, 2017!
Caption: Elephants in Shaba Game Reserve
“More rocks had appeared on the near shore, captured by the sun. She glanced at the original clump, and back again. They had multiplied, and were covering the sand bar. They were moving… ‘You’ve seen the elephants?’”
This tender inter-racial love triangle concludes the saga of Caroline’s and Charles’s inter-racial families. Their children climb an erupting volcano, explore archaeological sites along the coast, and go on safari in Kenya’s exotic game reserves. The book pivots round the devastation in a highland village caused by the violence after the elections of 2007. It touches upon present-day problems with foreign aid, beset by politics and corruption. It explores the possibility of alternative ways to help, which include input from the people on the ground – the ordinary villagers – and a burgeoning Kenyan middle class.
That’s sounds like a great book, Jane … one that really touches on the issues faced in Africa today.
The words I wrote in our previous interview have evolved into the main theme which is one of hope, and charity.
Faith and hope are strong among the poorest of its people, who exhibit a simplicity, happiness and gratitude for the smallest of mercies. Volunteers from churches overseas have had life-changing experiences when visiting to help communities in Africa, and I suspect the spiritual benefit received by those offering charity can be greater than that of the recipients. Africa can teach the rest of the world a thing or two about faith, forgiveness and the philosophy of life. I guess that is why I believe so firmly that there is a future in Africa – even though it may not be the same hope as understood by the rest of the world.
Although I have no personally had the opportunity to do missions in Africa, I have friends who are involved in mission efforts in Tanzania and I think you’re probably right about the spiritual benefit accruing as much ot the missionaries as to the recipients. It’s my experience that Christians who live in difficult circumstances are much more reliant on God’s grace as exercised through faith than we are in the 1st world.
The name of my fictitious charity, which is founded in the United Kingdom, is Grass Shoots; and a significant part of the action takes place in the make-believe highland village of Amayoni, which – in Swahili – means birds.
Tropical forest grew in great entanglements around her and its immensity engulfed her. It was denser than she could ever have imagined, with myriad shades of green and mystical shapes and forms, vibrant with life. Bursts of song filled her ears, yet she could see no birds in the thick foliage, which rocked and swished as the wind gusted through.
Suddenly a branch bent over with a crack, and something large and blue flopped partially into view. Her senses were filled with the glorious sight of a large bird, a flash of yellow on its beak, its blue-green feathers melding into the background. It stayed, majestic, still, for a breath-taking second, then crouched forward and hopped in smooth bounds up the branch.
“That’s a great blue,” a voice said at her shoulder.
“A great blue?”
“Turaco. You’re lucky. They’re a rare sight in this forest. The name of the village you’re going to visit tomorrow is Amayoni, which means birds.”
They were standing on a closely-cropped lawn gazing over the carefully cultured flowerbeds at a dense wall of trees. A stream raced between them and the forest, its bank smooth and inviting. On the other side, a disarray of broken sticks and branches trailed in the water. A tumble of trunks growing at various angles dissolved into the mass of trees, blocking off the evening sun.
She stooped to dip her finger in the torrent. It was icy cold. She straightened her back and pulled her cardigan round her shoulders before following the manager into the Kakamega Forest Lodge.
There is an enhanced Glossary of terms at the back of this book.
This sounds like another great book, an excellent follow-up to Breath of Africa.
Thank you for having me again, Lela. I will be happy to return the favour any time.
Jane lived in Kenya for over half a century, where she brought up her large family. An intermittent freelance journalist and business owner, she has written a cookbook, Museum Mixtures (1989) in aid of the National Museums of Kenya, and a History of her church in Eastbourne (2013).
Her first novel, Breath of Africa (2013) was nominated for the Guardian First Book Award. It draws on her experiences growing up in the country she still calls her home. Grass Shoots, the sequel, completes a family saga through to modern day Kenya. The novella, I Lift Up My Eyes, (2015) is set in Sussex.
A world traveller, Jane has bought a bird book in every country she visited. Now living in the UK, she is a business mentor and dressage judge, while indulging her love for choral singing, tennis, and playing bridge.
Link’d In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/jane-bwye-9866041b/
Facebook: JLBwye
Amazon Author Profile.co.uk
Amazon Author Profile.com
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Today’s interview is with Sandra de Helen. Welcome to the blog. Tell us something about yourself.
I grew up in mid-Missouri in the 1950s. I’ve lived in several states including Alaska, Texas, and at the bottom of the Grand Canyon in Arizona. I lived in Portland, Oregon for 35 years before I moved to Southern California last year. I’ve retired from the day job, and I supplement my income by editing, teaching, and writing. I’ve been an out lesbian for forty years, and most of my writing includes diverse characters including LGBTQQIA and people of color.
At what point did you know you wanted to be a writer?
As soon as I knew there were books by living authors, I realized I too could write a book. I think I was eight. I won my first writing contest for an essay when I was twelve. I had a poem published when I was fourteen. The essay was something like “Why I Love America,” and the poem was about abortion, which was illegal at the time.
What is something you cannot live without?
I suppose technically I could live without the internet, but I don’t want to. I love today’s technology, and have been an early adapter forever. I first bought an electric typewriter, then a word processor, and got my first Mac in 1989. Today I use a Mac Air.
Have you written any books that made a transformative effect on you? If so, in what way?
The first book I wrote was a 600-page memoir. In it I tried to tell every story I could remember from age twelve to sixteen. I wrote the 600 pages in six weeks, by hand or on typewriter, and I cried nearly every day. Putting all those painful and shameful stories on paper released me in a way that years of therapy hadn’t. I was able to look at the experiences in ways I hadn’t considered. I was no longer a victim, but the master of my life.
What sort of research do you do for your novels?
I read books, I search online, I contact experts in the pertinent field, and I use my imagination.
If someone who hasn’t read any of your novels asked you to describe your writing, what would you say?
I have a mystery series featuring a female Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, and I have a lesbian thriller in which the serial killer kills only men. (Shocking, I know. Most books are about helpless females being tortured and killed by men.)
Do you have a special place where you write?
I write in my living room in my old Eames lounge chair with my feet up and my lapdesk holding my laptop.
Are you a plot driven or character driven writer? Why?
My fiction is character driven, but I pay attention to the plot. I tend to write tight and not long. I have a story that I show through the actions of my characters.
Do you write from an outline or are you a discovery writer? Why?
I write from a loose outline. I use the Save the Cat! template created by screenwriter Blake Snyder. That allows me to have a road map and keeps me from getting lost. It’s flexible enough that I have lots of room for discovery. For example, in the book I’m writing now (Valley of Fear, another Shirley Combs and Mary Watson mystery), I’ve reached number five on the template, and all it says is “Debate. Should she try to replicate what is lost? Or to build something new?” And I’m supposed to write thirty pages exploring that question.
What point of view do you prefer to write, and why?
The Shirley Combs series is in the first person, as Dr. Mary Watson narrates, just as the original Doctor Watson narrated the Sherlock Holmes adventures. My thriller is in the third person. I like them equally.
I’m going to drop you in a remote Alaska cabin for a month. It’s summer so you don’t have worry about freezing to death. I’ll supply the food and the mosquito spray. What do you do while you’re there and what do you bring with you? If you’re bringing books, what are they?
I spent six weeks — in winter — in the mountains of Oregon, where I could have frozen to death, but didn’t. I was in a cabin with no radio, no television, no car, and an old wood stove for heat. We got a couple of feet of snow, the temperatures dropped below zero, the water pipes froze, and I was there alone. No telephone either. I took plenty of food with me, a few reams of typing paper, writing paper, pens, a dictionary and thesaurus. I didn’t do much reading while I was there because I had set myself a goal of 100 pages per week. I brought a few crime novels, all by Ruth Rendell or P. D. James.
Talk about your books individually.
My first novel was The Hounding, which is Book One in the Shirley Combs/Dr. Mary Watson mystery series. The second is The Illustrious Client, Book Two, and the most recent published book is Till Darkness Comes, my lesbian thriller.
What do you want readers to think or feel after reading one of your books?
Satisfied, entertained, ready for the next book.
What influenced your decision to self-publish?
I was first published by Fiction Works in e-book format in 1999. It was too early for e-books, and the company went out of business. When the rights to The Hounding were returned to me, I decided to try self-publishing through Amazon. By the time I finished the second in the series, I decided to start my own indie publishing business and continue to self-publish through IngramSpark. By then I had learned a lot about publishing, marketing, and creating my own brand, so I’ve continued.
What do you find to be the greatest advantage of self-publishing?
People who are able to sell books get a better return from self-publishing than from publishing. I’m sure that isn’t true for the big name authors who are with big publishing houses, but they still have to market, and they have less control over their products and their time.
Conversely, what do you think self-published authors might be missing out on?
I don’t think they’re missing out on anything. Again for top tier established authors I’m sure there are perks I don’t have access to.
Who designed your book cover/s?
Beverly Standish at Digital Elf Studios.
Do you believe that self-published authors can produce books as high-quality as the traditional published? If so, how do you think we should go about that?
Yes, I do. But one person working by herself is not likely to achieve that level. I hire a book designer, I hire a cover designer, I hire an editor, as well as a copy editor. I’ve had enough experience now that I have developed a program to ensure my manuscript is as clean and tight as it can be. I have worked diligently to remove all typos and grammatical errors from my books, going so far as to republish them if a reader finds an error. In fact, in January 2017 I will offer my method in an online course called No More Typos!
BUY LINKS:
Till Darkness Comes:
Amazon.com http://bit.ly/TillDarknessComesPaperback
Amazon.com/kindle http://bit.ly/TillDarknessComesKindle
Barnes & Noble Nook: http://bit.ly/TDCNook
The Illustrious Client:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Illustrious-Client-Sandra-Helen/
Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/audiobook/illustrious-client-unabridged/id898136443
Audible: http://adbl.co/1TVy2RN
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1Usz8Em
Bookmate: https://bookmate.com/books/JkXPYQbV
Powell’s: http://www.powells.com/book/the-illustrious-client-9780991079209/61-0
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/dehelen
Tanum (Norway): http://bit.ly/1XNueEt
The Hounding:
Amazon: http://bit.ly/TheHoundingbysdh
Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/audiobook/hounding-shirley-combs-dr./id797820901
Audible: http://adbl.co/1XdmfSN
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1spt32C
Bookmate: https://bookmate.com/books/xwAeiJ69
Powell’s: http://www.powells.com/book/the-hounding-9780991079216/61-0
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/dehelen
Tanum (Norway): http://bit.ly/1RKyOMP
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aurorawatcherak 