Five Links 10/18/19
Loleta Abi
Writing:
1. https://www.janefriedman.com/loss-the-exact-reason-to-read-and-write/ “Given the times we live in, I’ve noticed more articles and books, for writers and artists, discussing the value and importance of pursuing creative endeavors, such as:” So sad about Glimmer Train. I know at least three others that have closed shop recently. I hope there will always be readers for our stories in whatever format.
2. https://nailyournovel.wordpress.com/2019/10/13/what-your-readers-will-never-notice-a-small-point-about-reader-belief-and-story-logic-with-help-from-terrance-dicks-rod-hull-nina-conti/ “In our house, we have a catchphrase: ‘Nobody will notice, Jon.’
We adopted it from Terrance Dicks, script editor of our favourite era of Doctor Who. He said it while discussing a cheeky plot bamboozle in The Sea Devils, for which I have great affection (excepting the cheeky plot bamboozle). During filming, it seems that Jon Pertwee (Who Himself) had concerns and Dicks reports the following conversation:
Pertwee: ‘But Terrance, how could the Master hypnotise the nurse, switch outfits with him and tie him up… all in 30 seconds?’
Dicks (valiant in the face of a scorching deadline): ‘Don’t worry, Jon. Nobody will notice.’
We did notice, and Pertwee noticed, and probably all of Whovania noticed. It’s now a house phrase, chez Morris.” Fans of shows and books will always notice.
3. https://annerallen.com/2019/10/book-blog-book-reviews-bookstagram-influencers/ “First things first, because I’m sure this question is on a lot of writer’s minds: does a book blog still land a book deal?
My answer? Of course they do. Great writing and great content will always find an audience, and where there’s an audience, especially a sizable one, there’s typically a book deal waiting to happen. Think Julie Powell, Candice Bushnell, Jen Lancaster, and Jenny Lawson.
Not to mention, entire empires (with books launched along the way), have been built on the humble foundations of blog sites that just wouldn’t quit. Think ProBlogger’s Darren Rowse and Content Marketing Institute’s Joe Pulizzi.”
4. http://booksbywomen.org/rediscovering-writing-after-publication/ “As a child, when asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I never said firefighter or ballerina or astronaut. I wanted to be a writer. In college, and when I first started writing seriously in my twenties, I loved the world that writing created. When I was writing, or thinking about writing, I was transported to a rich and private inner world, one that seemed as real and vivid as the actual one.
However, despite my early plans, I had no idea how long and twisty that road would be. It took me eight years and four manuscripts to finally sign with an agent, and once I did, I felt like I’d hit the lottery. During that time, I developed a thick skin and ability to push through it, but surely this was the end of rejection and the start of my career?
My agent quickly landed me a two-book contract and suddenly, my dreams were coming true. After all that time and hard work, I was finally going to be a published writer. The books released within a year of each other and the time leading up to each launch and in between was a flurry of revision, copy-editing, cover options, blog posts, and promo. And then…silence.”
5. https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/info-dumps-to-plot-reveals/ “Clues, mysteries, plot reveals, and plot twists—these are some of a writer’s stock tricks for hooking readers page after page. But as important as these tricks are, when they’re asked to bear the load of being the main attraction for readers, they too often turn into boring info dumps.
Imagine you’re reading a story in which the author has skillfully created some kind of mystery.
This mystery might be:”
Research & Fun Bits:
2. https://www.booksandsuch.com/blog/whats-your-novel-about/ “Wanna see a writer stand frozen with that deer-in-the-headlights look? Just ask them this question: “So. . . what’s your novel about?”
Here’s a list of the WRONG things to answer:
- An issue— “My book is about global warming.” WRONG. A nonfiction book may be about global warming but a novel is a story about people. Agents and editors cringe when an issue is the first thing that comes to a writer’s mind. It makes us expect a diatribe disguised as a novel.
- The theme— “My book is about forgiveness.” WRONG. I’d hate to guess the percentage of books that share the theme of forgiveness, but that is not what your book is about. That is not what makes your book distinctive.”
3. http://booksbywomen.org/the-woman-in-the-dark-vanessa-savage/ “I grew up in a small Gloucestershire village – back then, there were only four channels on the telly and as a teenager there was nothing to do and nowhere to go. My nearest library was ten miles away, my nearest bookshop twenty.
I was never one of the hanging-round-on street-corner kids, I preferred to stay in and read. As a teenager, I remember endless rainy Saturday afternoons when there was nothing but horse racing and darts on TV and my mum and dad’s bookshelves became my escape. I read anything and everything we had at home – on my mum’s shelf, there was Mills & Boon and Catherine Cookson, Jackie Collins and Shirley Conran. On my dad’s, it was Alistair MacLean, Stephen King and James Herbert.”
4. https://killzoneblog.com/2019/10/afflicted.html “When I think about the personal challenges that thriller/mystery series protagonists are saddled with–particularly cops, psychologists, private detectives, and medical examiners–they tend to be emotional and psychological. Or the protagonists are alcoholics or drug addicts. (Sherlock Holmes? Wallander? House? I know, but House solves medical mysteries.) Or they’re irascible jerks who get away with being jerks because they always solve the crime. (Morse, and often Lynley.) Poirot was a fastidious little man, yet not nearly as annoying on the page as on the screen (only in comparison–I’m a fan of both). Lord, save us from the oft-divorced investigator who’s been damaged by the death of a sibling or (an abusive) parent or has abandonment issues, drinks too much, and can only be saved by a good woman–only he won’t be saved because he always screws up his best opportunities. Then again, never mind. These guys have become tropes because they make good reading.
I confess I’ve read a lot more male investigator stories than female, written by men and women, both. Kate Atkinson’s Jackson Brodie, and Val McDermid’s Tony Hill are among my favorites. But when it comes to damage, it’s hard to compete with the devastating pasts of female protagonists Lisbeth Salander (Stief Larsson) and Kick Lanigan (Chelsea Cain).”
5. https://bloodredpencil.blogspot.com/2019/10/are-your-characters-fears-your-fears.html
“Franklin Roosevelt said “the only thing we have to fear is fear
itself”. Those words from his 1933 inaugural address were intended to
encourage and energize the American people, who seemed to have lost all hope of
recovering from the Great Depression that had devastated their lives.
Now fast forward to October 2019. The world appears to be teetering on the
brink of another crisis, one that threatens to break peoples and countries into
fragments that seem to be headed toward anarchy.”
Something More Serious:
2. https://somethingferal.wordpress.com/2019/10/12/five-grey-mares/
3. https://writersinthestormblog.com/2019/10/more-plotting-pantsing-personality/ “Given the great feedback on that post, I want to continue looking into how the personality traits identified by the Myers-Briggs Personality Indicator (MBTI) may impact our writing process.
What’s the MBTI?
Just a quick reminder that the MBTI is a thoroughly researched and often used measure that describes personality on the continua of four dichotomies.”
4. http://booksbywomen.org/how-grief-changed-my-reading-by-sara-ohlin/ “Books have been my companions since childhood. The books, the stories, the characters all woven into my life. When my days had been full of people and when I’ve been alone. I grew up with my nose forever in a book. I was in Great Books in elementary school, majored in English Literature in college, kept a dream inside of me that one day I too would be a writer.
I was also the ultimate books snob. It was only a book if it was made out of paper. I studied Thackery and Faulkner and Chaucer and Joyce. All the great white men of literature. As I grew and sought out new stories I fell into a more diverse selection. Maxine Hong Kingston, Sandra Cisneros, and James Welch. I lovingly discovered Barbara Kingsolver, David James Duncan, Gloria Naylor, Gabriel Garcia Márquez. I cultivated my list of books to read from Orange, Booker and PEN/Faulkner lists.”
5. https://wilfredbooks.wordpress.com/2019/10/15/6-tips-on-how-to-use-live-video-for-book-marketing/
Teaser Fiction & Poetry:
1. https://phillipknightscott.com/2019/10/12/a-figment/
2. https://rachelpoli.com/2019/10/13/short-story-sunday-286-more/
3. https://syl65.wordpress.com/2019/10/13/divine-haiku-35/
4. https://annetterochelleaben.wordpress.com/2019/10/13/angel-messages-october-13-2019/
5. https://charmedchaos.com/2019/10/15/the-hand-of-god/
Book Reviews, Cover Reveals, & Author Interviews:
1. https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/2019/10/13/why/ Always a good read!
2. http://lizlovesbooks.com/lizlovesbooks/latest-reads-the-mothers-sarah-j-naughton/ “Five Women.
They meet at their NCT Group. The only thing they have in common is they’re all pregnant.
Five Secrets.
Three years later, they are all good friends. Aren’t they?
One Missing Husband.
Now the police have come knocking. Someone knows something.
And the trouble with secrets is that someone always tells.”
3. https://teripolen.com/2019/10/12/badmoonrising-the-gellboar-by-deby-fredericks-darkfantasy/ “The Holy Mothers have decreed that only women can be trusted with the awesome powers of sorcery. But Dan can no more live without magic than he could go without breathing. Disguised as a woman, he struggles to provide for his sickly daughter through illicit magic. But his life of lies has drawn a darker eye than that of the Holy Mothers…”
4. https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/2019/10/16/blogtour-viral-blues-by-c-s-boyack/ “Robbie Cheadle is hosting me today. This time I included an excerpt about Jason Fogg. If you’re not familiar with Jason, you might want to check this out. Robbie is a huge supporter of her fellow authors, and an author herself. While you’re over there, check out her books and consider following this excellent blog.”
5. https://joanhall.blog/2019/10/16/the-keepers-house/ “Hey, everyone. Time for another WIP Wednesday. A couple of weeks ago, I posted about Macabre Sanctuary, an anthology published by AIW Press. I wrote The Keeper’s House for inclusion in that collection. Today, I’ll tell you the story behind the story.”
A Dash of Words with Loleta Abi Romance Author 
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