Number One!
An elder protagonist. An ancient dragon. Similar to Seeker last year, I’m getting into people my age being protagonists. We’re wise and experienced We see the young people doing stupid things and we scream at them not to. Maybe I’ve outgrown Urban Fantasy, YA, New Adult. I entirely skipped middle age; I’m into the Crone phase.
Maybe next is “Murder She Wrote” cozies.
Number 7:
What a fun book, but what a stupid character. The author follows the formula for a cozy–more or less–and the culture reminds me of what I was brought up in. Food is what we gather around. Aunties (Tia’s) would say “Eat more of this.” Then in the next breath, “You should lose some weight.” The end was sudden and a right hook.
Number 6:
“Danelaw.” The Vikings ruled northern England and much of Scotland in the 400’s and on. They were pagan early on, but got Christian by the 800’s. These lost 600 years are wrapped in a pretty bow–but there’s so much missing. I’m not even going to bother with the Normans.
See the Netflix series, The Last Kingdom for more information.
Number 5:
This is what I want Heaven to be. To let my soul live with different choices. To explore a life fully. A really fun book.
I’ll do three today, three tomorrow, and three Monday.
This is an excellent primer on more than just dealing with mammillary glands. The culture of how females act and react to fighting, what happens before, during and after a fight. How a girl can go from zero to sixty in 2.5 seconds. This book, combined with SCA fighter training, helps.
I read this after Four Lost Cities and found this one more interesting. I was planning on writing a novel taking place in the Levant, among the Chaldeans. As usual, I got two lines of dialogue and then nothing. But the research was fun. I got the hardcover because I plan on using this for a lot more research.
I read this over six months, attempting to do the solitary practitioner route. Once I got to “ambulating” and reading way too much of Israel Regardie’s stuff, I got oversaturated with ritual magic and finally put it away. Technically I didn’t finish it.
Read a history about a period you know little about:
Read an entire poetry collection
10. “Reduction in Force” – Steve Soult (fiction, short story) You think you got it bad…
9. The Sorcerer’s Secrets – Jason Miller. (non-fiction, magic) Although he’s a little full of himself (what real practicing magician isn’t?), this is a really good introduction to magic without fear.
8. Three-Story Method – J. Thorn. (non-fiction, writing) I read a lot of books on writing. I liked this book so much that I bought the corresponding workbook which was worthless. And I liked this book so much that if you ask me now what was so great about it…I don’t know.
7. Being Indie – Eeva Lancaster (non-fiction, writing) Marketing as an indie. Useful tricks and tips.
6 “Best Served Cold” – Bob Schnoover. (fiction, short story) It’s so unfortunate that we lost this author last year. I would have loved to read what he planned to do in our Truck Stop series, and wish I could read the other stories that Analog rejected.
5. The Viking Spirit – Daniel McCoy (non-fiction, Norse magic) The warriors of the north. My kid got me interested in Loki – Marvel’s Loki. Who I think is cool, but not someone I want dating my kid. Reading this reinforced that idea.
4. The Conflict Thesaurus – Angela Ackerman, Becca Puglisi. (non-fiction, writing). I have to pick this up in paperback. It’s wasted on Kindle.
3. High Magick – Damien Echols. (non-fiction, ceremonial magic) The first book that got me on the Qaballic Kick. I didn’t need to read the other books on ceremonial magic – this one was fine.
2. Mastering Your Mystery – Cheryl Bradshaw. (non-fiction, writing) Excellent, excellent book on writing mysteries, even if they are formulaic. She goes from planning to writing to publishing to marketing.
The good thing about dialysis is I have time to read books. I broke down and got Kindle Unlimited, so I could get some fiction books for “free” ($9.99/month). I also purchased a few Kindle editions of books that are best sellers or recent sellers. I downloaded a few novel-writing workbooks, too, that I’m working with in my journal.
So far, I have a few scenes for NaNoWriMo’s story. I need subplots. I’m making up this entire thing. It’s not going to be an accurate representation of Latino life, and I’m not appropriating that culture for this. This story is mine and mine alone, and is never going to get published because I’m not backing it up with facts. You know me, I research things to death before writing anything, which is why War Mage took me so long to write. I finally threw my hands up and just said, “Forget it,” and wrote War Mage just to finish the story.
I found the original story in one of my notebooks, and I’m kicking myself for not sticking with that original story. It would have been better, I think.
I read most of a book called Shadow Company by Michael Hesse. So far I’m the only reviewer on Goodreads for him. I gave him four stars for military accuracy and interesting story world, but the character had been through too much by the time I got almost half-way done with it, that I didn’t want to bother anymore. I didn’t realize that it was a 500 page novel, either.
Shadow Company has a bit of “The Chosen One” trope, which I have outgrown since reading the Dragonlance series and attempting (every few years) to read the entire Lord of the Rings series. But I would suggest you read it if you like military fantasy like I do.
I plan on doing a podcast today in anticipation of NaNo, and hope to do podcasts every week updating people on my progress. I’m tempted to write the story upstairs on my Mac, without any distractions other than some music and tarot cards for jumping off points.
Next Saturday, I will be appearing at the Providence Book Festival in the Renaissance Hotel. It’s a fancy joint, so I might have to dress up. and I have to pay an insane amount to park. Oh well; at least I’ll be with other Pulitzer Prize winning local authors (though I never heard of them). It should be interesting.
I might have one appearance in May, but on June 1 I’ll be in Woonsocket for their second annual Meet and Greet. I hope to participate in Pridefest on June 15 – it depends on when I get my tax ID. It’s the little things.
In the meantime, healthwise, I don’t feel like I’m getting better, and some days are better than others. Today is already rough; I can imagine what next week will bring. I have some tests the following week to decide whether or not I’ll need oxygen. If that happens, I might as well give up doing the outdoor events. Nevermind how the heck I’m going to get around.
Progress on Blood From a Stone is excellent. I’ve plowed through my manuscript, fluffed up some scenes, taken out some worthless characters, and told a story. It’s the how that is going to be the problem. I know what I want to say now, what I meant to say in the first draft; now I need to figure out how.
It’s going to take some significant rewriting on my part to get it to be the story I wanted. But it has some hope, unlike Yellowtree which has the only hope of a good title.
Speaking of good titles:
Review: Clean
I didn’t finish it. Maybe I’ll go back to it. Why?
The main character (A Level 8 telepath, whatever the hell that means) is a recovering junkie. I thought, okay, that’s interesting. But he brings it up in every chapter. In every other chapter, he keeps asking his superiors for help from “The Guild” and the superiors keep saying no. By the fifth time of all this happening, I’d had it. (Remember the rule of three, people. Reject it three times and then do something about it, or your reader will think you’re dragging it along like a dead horse.)
Review: Hot Lead, Cold Iron
I’m still reading it, though I’m getting really close to not finishing it.
The main character, Mick Oberon (probably that Oberon, I wouldn’t be surprised) is a 1930’s noir PI fae. I thought that was a great idea, too, except the narrator’s voice keeps switching from period voice to a more modern voice. It’s like hearing a high Victorian lady spout the f-word like a soldier. We’ll see if I finish it.
I’ve read a few gay erotica books, two by the same author, and found out that she follows this formula.
The story itself is secondary to the erotica (obviously). There are a few twists and turns to keep the story going, but in general, the end is the bad guy offers his “listen to my evil plan” speech, and dies at the end.
Now, in short stories, I might have trouble following this formula, as I don’t have time to go through four or five incidents of sex. As a novel, yes, I think I can do this.
An update: Last quarter I sold 77 books! That’s combining my erotica with my Paper Angel Press books. I was amazed. Thank you all so much for continuing to support me!
Air is slated for release on February 14 (natch). Audio version probably a month or so after that.
Grimaulkin Collected is slated for May. I have to get writing a little faster on this one.
What I’m reading:
Shiver. After a break, I finished this book, and glad I did. Even though this book was very like her other book Deadly Lover, it had a nice twist at the end that I didn’t expect at all. I’ll pick up her other books to see if she pulls the same formula out.
Steele My Heart – Tatum West
Sweet romance. Not my thing. Got to chapter 4 and tossed it back to Kindle Unlimited.
Fractured Truth – Ashe Winters
Vampires. Okay…I’ll try it. Only on Chapter 2, but finding it interesting.
Books I’ve read this week (or tried to)
Elemental Magick – Jacki James
I liked the prologue, from the book’s point of view. Then we got to the character, and at first I liked him, too. I already predicted the story: the book would provide the MC with his HEA (Happily Ever After). However, the first chapter happened so fast, and so wild, that I didn’t like it. So….I returned it to Kindle Unlimited.
Hell on Earth – Macy Blake
By page four, I hated the main character for calling the cardboard waitress, “woman”. Asshole. Returned it immediately.
Course Correction – Mia West
I liked this at first. I liked the idea of fish shifters being rescuers. But for some reason, I got bored pretty quickly. The writer knew what it was like to be on a Coast Guard cutter I suppose…but the character whose point of view the second chapter was in, he disappeared for a mysterious reason and he wouldn’t talk about it AT ALL. Did it have to do with the first chapter’s character? Not even an allusion. Returned it after the second chapter.
Ended up going back to Shiver after a hiatus. I’m watching as Lucus slowly starts to break down with Andrei, who’s accepting his place in Lucas’ life. I’m guessing it’ll be an HEA? But the story is well-written. The characters are starting to grow on me.
Started Steele My Heart, and I’m up to chapter two on that one. What is it with the differing POV’s on every chapter? This is obviously part of the romance formula. Maybe that’s why my romance stories are getting two stars.
I started to revise Yellowtree using class notes I had from a few years ago when I did the rewrite for Grimaulkin, around 2012. Using these notes, I realized a few things.
Oh, how that hurts.
Now, normally, I would just toss the whole thing in a circular file and call it a day. But I have a story that has to get done, and this is the only one that’s promising (right now, anyway). So I’m going to suffer through the 22 week (compressed, of course) course and do the rewrite as best I can. It will be a better story, because right now, it’s a wreck.
Air is in its final stages and on track. I am also writing Grimaulkin Collected, the anthology with some stories in the Grimaulkin universe. I’ve done Ritter and plotted out Chevalier’s back stories. Now I need to work on the Grey Man from the Atheneum and maybe Mike’s marriage proposal to Scott. I already wrote that in the game–I just have to remember it.
What I’m reading now:
Shiver – Jocelyn Drake and Rinda Elliot (obviously not their real names)
Yes, another Jocelyn Drake book. I liked Deadly Lover so much I wanted to read more by this author. There’s a lot of heavy-handed “cold” motifs in this book. It’s the first in the “Unbreakable Bonds” series, which includes short stories in the series.
However, in this book so far–I’m only on chapter 2.5–I don’t care about the characters. Snow (yeah, see the heavy-handedness?) is too rough, Lucas is too cardboardy, and Rowe is Justin from Deadly Lover. Whoever the writer is for the fight scenes, though, knows what they’re doing. The detail is fantastic, even though my eyes glazed over after page four of the description. I want to write like that when I grow up.