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book reviews |
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Multi-genre, multi-volume author, G. David Walker introduces us to the first volume in the Far Land Trilogy, “Jaben’s Rift”: One impulsive step, and a world hangs in the balance. When an ordinary family vacation in Scotland sends Jason Bennett to Teleria, an extraordinary world of might and magic, his arrival sets the wheels in motion on events that will change that world forever. In Teleria, Jason is thought to be Jaben, a mysterious figure from an ancient prophecy who is destined to save or doom the world. Through half-truths and misunderstandings, Jason gets caught in a dangerous tug of war between the ruling Circle of Nine and one of his own ancestors from three hundred years in his past. Adding to his dilemma, he finds himself at the center of a conflict between two of the Altered, a small group of godlike beings, one of whom is secretly aiding Jason's ancestor, violating a Covenant that has kept Teleria safe from their influence for over a millennia. Unable to return home, Jason must learn to use power he isn't convinced he has, keep from triggering a war between the Altered that could devastate the planet, and most of all…survive. Not quite the summer vacation he had in mind. JABEN’S RIFT takes the reader on a journey of honor and deception, betrayal and self-sacrifice, as Jason tries to figure out who is telling him the truth and who only wants to use him, before Teleria’s fate is sealed forever.  This is a fabulous book! I was stunned by the story. Yes, this is a YA fantasy tale, but as a lifelong reader of more than 60 years I loved this story! The struggle Jason goes through of being catapulted into an unfamiliar land and dimension and having to learn to survive is a tale that has been told in many different ways. The telling is what makes the difference. This story has a richness that is not always found in your basic, swords-and-sorcery yarn. Sure, there is magic, many different kinds of magic, some are narrow and some are broad and contravene the nature of the world at times. Sure, there is a council of elders, but the Council of Nine don’t always get along or see eye to eye on important issues. There is politics, racism, discrimination and those who want to control others. There are many different races and types of creatures that don’t always get along. There is a mysterious prophecy that seems to have an unknown origin, but it is accepted by all as the gospel truth. Then there are the gods, or at least they seem like gods to the inhabitants of the land. The scene setting is marvelous, the dialogue is quite witty at times. Jason’s growth is spurred by many different problems, some he causes by speaking too quickly. I think the richest parts are the different characters the author has created. They come alive and have struggles of their own. This is such a good story, “Jaben’s Rift” gets a score of 4.9 stars!  You can buy this book:
https://smile.amazon.com/Far-Land-Jabens-Rift-Book-ebook https://www.goodreads.com/-jaben-s-rift This book was originally published as “From a Far Land (Jaben’s Rift, #1)” with a slightly different cover. My review of a second book by the author: www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/redemptions-edge My review of a third book by the author: www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/three-blood-prince You can follow the author: https://twitter.com/gdavidwalker https://gdavidwalker.com https://www.facebook.com/Far-Land-Trilogy-Jabens-Rift https://www.facebook.com/gdavidwalker https://www.goodreads.com/G_David_Walker Copyright © 2020 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction.
92 Comments
Mark,
Mark
8/2/2020 10:09:33 am
You are welcome, David. There is a giftedness involved. The spelling errors jump off the page and challenge me to fight. I have been educating myself about other aspects of the English language for quite a while now. Well, there's really not much to tell. My bio has all the interesting bits. I was born in Kansas and by the time I left fourth grade I was living in my 9th town in my 3rd state. Much like Jason, I ended up in strange places a lot, lol. My adoptive father was in construction, so we moved around a lot to wherever the work was. I tend to have this weird dichotomy of hating to be the center of attention but despising being ignored. I was born too late the be the writer I wanted to be, the kind who sits in a corner writing while other people do the marketing and promo. The struggle is real, lol. I love a good discussion, but hate that we seem to have come to a point where no one knows how to engage with others who might have different opinions except to scream at them, call them names, unfriend them on social media, etc... I'm an adherent to the phrase, "I disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." Okay, well, maybe not "to the death" but you get the idea. ;-)
Mark
8/2/2020 10:50:22 am
We have a lot in common, David. Though, my step-dad never adopted me or my two younger sisters. Wanting to be loved and accepted is a powerful human desire. Many of us are afraid to be in the limelight because we think others will see our flaws.
Yes, today's publishing is certainly different from what it once was. Authors today must wear a number of different hats, particularly if they choose the self-publishing route, as I did. But even with traditional publishers, the author is largely responsible for the promotion of their material (unless the publishing house thinks they've got the next Stephen King, John Grisham, or J.K. Rowling on their hands). It makes it a little more difficult for those of us who aren't as comfortable putting ourselves out there. But, it is a necessary part of the biz these days; it's unavoidable.
Mark
8/2/2020 01:30:18 pm
No doubt about that. The applecart of publishing is upside down and the apples are rolling around in the street.
Very appropriate that you brought up the cover art. I did the first two versions of the covers for the trilogy myself originally. Not bad, but nothing to write home about. When I decided to rename the trilogy and the books, I contacted a graphic art company (pronounced: people who know what they’re doing), and I’m very pleased with their work. I can definitely tell the difference between pro work and amateur. I’ll be using them again for a book I hope to release later this month (or at the very least, early in September), also fantasy, called Redemption’s Edge.
Mark
8/2/2020 06:16:26 pm
Besides the stories that are begging to be told, you are motivated by building a library or back list, which is good. The more books you write and publish the more fans you will have and the more opportunities for expansion by going wide, world wide or other formats by licensing. The longer your books are available the more you will sell. It is an issue of endurance and keeping at it.
The covers were done by MiblArt (https://miblart.com/). I was very pleased with the design and their quick turnaround time. I’m looking forward to seeing what they can do with the next book.
Mark
8/3/2020 09:50:42 am
Thank you for sharing that link. There are a lot of talented people out there.
Time travel is fun to play with and debate, but it has its share of problems. For example, the “grandfather paradox” wherein, if you were to go back in time and somehow cause the death of your own grandfather before your parent was born, how would you ever exist? And if you never existed, then you wouldn’t have been able to cause his death, and back and forth. I would never say it’s “impossible” as so many of the things we once thought were impossible are commonplace now, but time will tell (get it? lol) I don’t think it’s unreasonable to think that at some point we might be able to “view” the past rather than actually travel to it. After all, we do that already (viewing the past) when we’re looking at the stars. We’re seeing them as they existed when their light began the years-long and centuries-long journey to Earth rather than as they are at this moment in time. Some of those tiny points of light we see tonight might not even exist anymore. And, regarding the lack of time travelers from our own future, I would imagine if they’re technologically advanced enough to time travel, then concealing themselves from our detection is probably child’s play, and may even be mandated to avoid changing their own timeline. Like I said, it’s an interesting topic, and I enjoy discussions on it so long as it doesn’t move into quantum physics and the like, where I am woefully out of my depth.
Mark
8/3/2020 11:20:00 am
The grandfather paradox is much discussed. Some writers deliberately break that. "Man In the Empty Suit" by Sean Ferrell comes to mind. I reviewed it at the end of July, 2017.
I once thought I had the grandfather paradox resolved by using the theory of the multiverse, but there were still problems even with that model. It’s a fun topic. Just thinking about it during this discussion has led me to a place where the universe is sentient and prevents altering the past by creating “temporal antibodies” to attack time travelers (temporal viruses?) who may interfere with past events. That would go along with the self-healing timeline you mentioned. Thus, time travel becomes an “enter at your own peril” venture. Fun, fun.
Mark
8/3/2020 12:07:30 pm
Interesting thoughts. That reminds me of a mis-phrased song title, "I am the Virus (Walrus).
Currently, all four books (The three Far Land Trilogy books and Life 2.0) are available via KU and KOLL (Kindle Owners’ Lending Library). It tends to come in waves. It’s interesting checking the pages read stats from time to time. Amazon tracks the page reads in KU and KOLL and pays the authors a percentage out of Amazon’s KDP Select Global Fund, the amount of which varies from month to month. So, readers can read free and the authors still make a little for their work. Additionally, since this seems a good point to bring it up, Jaben’s Rift will be free for Kindle starting tomorrow through Saturday (8/4 – 8/8).
Mark
8/3/2020 03:08:56 pm
I am glad to hear that Jaben's Rift will be free starting On Tuesday, August 4th through the 8th. That is wonderful.
In my opinion, there are a number of advantages to Indie publishing.
Mark
8/3/2020 07:35:39 pm
Great answer! You nailed it. With traditional publishing you lose so much control, get less money and do the marketing. That is it in a nutshell.
Let me preface this by reminding everyone that I’m self-published, so I’ve never actually dealt with a publisher of any kind other than KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) which is more of a process than an actual publishing house.
Mark
8/4/2020 10:01:28 am
That is great advice! Run away from a vanity publisher. Make sure you understand the royalty structure. Be certain about all provisions of an advance. Who will pay for the returns? Those are all important things. It sounds to me like having a lawyer would be essential for an author considering a publishing contract. There are a lot of very sad stories coming from authors who did not get a contract.
Yes, reviews can be a tricky field to navigate, knowing which ones to pay attention to or not. One thing I would say is, if you see multiple reviewers raising the same issue(s), even if the reviews are mostly positive, you might want to look into what they’re saying to see if it’s something that can be improved. On the other hand, I once got a one-star review which read “It was horible (sic). I want to die.” Needless to say, I didn’t lose a lot of sleep over that “review,” one-star or not.
Mark
8/4/2020 12:56:23 pm
I certainly agree with you about having an online presence. A lot of authors are on twitter and a lot of readers are two, often they are the same. Writers also read. There is a strong movement to support indie authors among authors.
At the time I was publishing the trilogy, ebooks were the up and coming next big thing, so I was focused more on the ebook formatting than anything else. The print versions came after, but I have to admit, a large print version of the trilogy never came to mind. It may be because about 75% of fantasy readers are 50 and under based on market studies. Readers above that age tend to gravitate more toward horror, mystery, biographies, history, and memoirs. With the under 50 crowd also being the largest users of ebooks, most of which allow the user to adjust the font size, a large print fantasy didn’t seem like a priority. Even today, studies show more older adults than ever are using ebooks, partially for the ease of use. They don’t have to try to separate pages for turning, they simply tap or swipe a screen. That, plus the ability to adjust the font size to your own personal preference is bringing more of the 50+ crowd over to ereaders or ereader apps. Of course, it is something to keep in mind should Jason Bennett ever take his place beside Harry Potter.
Mark
8/4/2020 02:43:31 pm
Not nearly enough authors are involved with market studies. Good job.
Thanks for the link to the info on the audiobooks. I’ll have to check it out.
Mark
8/4/2020 05:41:35 pm
The Thomas Covenant series were a favorite of mine for quite a long time. They were displaced by The Dragon Riders of Pern by McCaffrey.
I enjoyed the Pern series as well as the Dune series, although with Dune, I have to say around God Emperor of Dune I started losing interest. Although, I did still like it enough to be outraged by the 1984 movie adaptation, lol. I understand there’s another adaptation slated to be released in December of this year, so we’ll see how that one does. Another series I liked, which I forgot to mention in my last answer, was the Elric of Melniboné series by Michael Moorcock.
Mark
8/4/2020 08:26:49 pm
I don't recall reading anything by Moorcock.
Readers can only immerse themselves into a story if they can connect to it and to the characters living out the events in the story. And to connect with a character means the reader has to care what happens to that character. If the reader doesn’t care what happens to your protagonist, they’re not going to be reading that particular story for very long, and even if they read the entire thing, they’ll forget it fairly quickly. The way you get your readers to care about your MC (main character) and other characters is by allowing them to see the emotions of your characters, allowing them to empathize and connect with your characters. You show the characters fears, flaws, quirks, anything that a reader might see and go, “Oh yeah, I feel that way too!” The best, most memorable stories create connections between the characters and the readers. They evoke emotional responses from the readers, and the only way to do that is to show the emotions of the characters. Even the minor characters. There’s a scene in Jaben’s Rift involving a minor “throw away” character who gets killed that I still to this day have a hard time reading, simply because, even though she was a minor character, I still knew all about her and what kind of person she was. Authors have to know their characters “intimately” in order to show the characters’ emotions to the readers. Without emotion, a story has no life.
Mark
8/5/2020 11:16:46 am
That is a great answer to the importance of tapping into the emotions of your characters. We are creatures with deep emotions as we live out our daily lives. The connections we have with other people must have an emotional context of one kind or another in order to be enduring. We have a name for people who do not have a connection with others, psychopath.
I’ve always wanted to try NaNoWriMo, but, as I’ve mentioned before, I’m a slow writer. Another wise philosopher once said, “A man’s got to know his limitations.” I have nothing but the utmost admiration and respect for all those prolific, creative writers who can do that month-long sprint, but I am very aware of my limitations. I plan on giving it a shot someday, but just not now. Maybe after the Jaben’s Rift movie comes out, lol.
Mark
8/5/2020 02:24:08 pm
Being aware of the type of writer you are NaNoWriMo would be challenging. You could surprise yourself possibly, it would be an interesting experiment and experience for you.
Most of what was cut from the first draft of Jaben’s Rift was unnecessary description. Some dialogue and character interactions were removed, but no entire chapters. There was one passage which was heavy with description, if I remember right, I dropped that from 1,100 words down to around 300, by either eliminating overdone prose or taking certain elements and adding them later on in the story when they were needed. The passage read much, much better after “trimming the fat.”
Mark
8/5/2020 07:16:09 pm
I understand the data dump. It would be a problem for me if I was to write a book that took a lot of research. That would be me, trying to share all the wonderful research I found at the same time. I used to get lost in our ten pound dictionary when I was a boy. It was about six inches thick, Webster's Unabridged Illustrated Dictionary. I could spend an hour or two in that beast with no problem.
Ah, yes. We had the full Encyclopedia Britannica in print, along with all of the editions of the Childcraft books. I spent many hours turning those pages. Especially when doing reports for school.
Mark
8/5/2020 09:35:09 pm
I think we had the Childcraft books also. We had a general encyclopedia set and a gray, 10-volume set of encyclopedias about science.
Other than a specific exception, which I’ll mention in a moment, I’ve never based any of my characters on real people I’ve known or met. I like to start with a “clean slate” when I’m dreaming up my characters. That’s not to say I’ll never do that in the future, but I haven’t done it so far.
Mark
8/6/2020 11:11:49 am
I am sensing a theme, most authors don't like to base characters on family or friends in any specific way. Your reasons echo that of many other writers.
If I ever did decide to use someone I knew as a character, I would almost have to include that person in the story plotting process to make sure nothing hurt their feelings or offended them. They could probably have a little fun with it too, having “themselves” doing things they could (or would) never do in real life.
Mark
8/6/2020 12:43:18 pm
I think that would be fun for a friend or family member to be involved in the process. With a slight modification it could also be a nice incentive for a fan to have their name or a name they pick from a small list in a story.
The thought has crossed my mind from time to time to have a contest, after finishing a book or story, where the winner of the contest becomes the MC of the story. All it would really take, if the story was already complete, would be changing some names and descriptions. Maybe someday. I do think it would be fun, but it would, in my opinion, lend itself better to an urban fantasy or sci-fi rather than a true fantasy. I do have ideas for those genres, it’s just a matter of getting to them.
Mark
8/6/2020 07:34:54 pm
There are many ways to engage with fans. Letting them vote on a choice of covers, or the color of a certain object on the cover. One author told me how she ordered a bunch of paperbacks and then discovered more errors in the manuscript. She despaired at first. She took one on a hike and worked on finding all of the errors she had missed when she was in the wild. It rained while she was out there. The book got a little wet. She had a contest, on Facebook I think, whoever promoted her book to friends the most and she had to be tagged in all of the posts would win the book. When two people were neck and neck she got worried, but finally one person pulled out a win with the most posts and she sent them the book, which they loved. She wound up giving a lot of the books away with a note about the errors, in contests, leaving them on buses, in restaurants and little free libraries.
Well, both are important, of course. But for me, personally, flow is more important. The elements and scenes of a story need to flow, if not seamlessly, at least logically. That’s part of the reason I find myself re-reading my own material so much, especially to begin the next writing session.
Mark
8/6/2020 10:10:54 pm
Breaks in the logical flow of a story can be quite jarring at times. Unless it's story about time travel. Then those things can be expected, but it still has to follow some kind of logic, even if only in parallel time lines.
I’ve found that, once I get about halfway through pantsing the book, then I try to put on a plotter hat and lay out a basic plot for the rest of it. By then, most of my characters and their relationships are fairly well established, which makes it easier to “predict” their actions and interactions down the road. I know I’m not the only writer who, at some point in their story, has had a character look up at them from the page and go, “Really? You really think I’d do or say that??” That’s the part about knowing your characters better than the reader will. Sometimes they surprise you. Sometimes you learn surprising things about them even as you write them.
Mark
8/7/2020 10:50:41 am
I didn't realize how true I spoke that you are a hybrid pantser/plotter author. You might be the first author I've had the honor of interviewing that writes in that way. I think it makes a lot of sense.
I suppose that depends on your definition of “classical.” If you’re talking about Homer, Aristotle, Plato and the like, then I’ll have to confess, I haven’t really done much reading of theirs. Briefly touched on Iliad like most high school students, but not much else. I was heavily into Greek mythology when I was younger however, although I doubt that qualifies as classical reading. For some “newer” material, I’ve read a bit of Poe, a touch of Shakespeare, that sort of thing, but I admit, I need to expand my reading list to include more of those eras.
Mark
8/7/2020 01:30:16 pm
Our reading habits were very parallel in high school. I read the same required authors and stories. Most of it was not very interesting for me. I wanted to read more sci-fi or Lord of The Rings.
Oh, wow. Hmm. I’ve never been one of those who had a list of questions to ask authors, actors, historical figures, etc... Just regular conversation would be enjoyable. But since the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever is my favorite series, I’d probably ask Mr. Donaldson how he came up with the idea to have his MC (Thomas Covenant) afflicted with leprosy. His diagnosis and fight with the disease is a major, major part of the story and how he reacts to the events and people he deals with. It gives a level of complexity and pathos to the character which otherwise wouldn’t be there. I’d want to know if it was just an idea Stephenson had or if he knew someone in his life that he had, either directly or indirectly, based Covenant on.
Mark
8/7/2020 03:50:29 pm
I would want to sit in on that conversation with Donaldson also. I thought about that a lot when I was reading the books.
I do everything on computer. I did buy some note cards once when I was considering trying my hand at writing a screenplay, but for the books and stories, everything’s in a document. Other than that, the last time I used note cards was in my debate class in high school, lol.
Mark
8/7/2020 05:24:32 pm
I signed up for debate in high school, my best friend was on the team and very good at it. I had strong misgivings because I stammered a lot all through my school years. He sold me by saying he would help me. My first outing was pretty poor, I did not have a clear idea of what I was doing. Then I missed a meeting and was off the team. I felt relieved.
Yes, I’ve done the email attachment method quite a few times also. Even if it accidentally gets deleted from the receiving address, it’s still usually in the Sent folder of the sending address, so it works pretty well. Or I'll back up the doc on a flash drive every so often, especially if I've done a sizeable chunk of writing.
Mark
8/7/2020 07:51:46 pm
A number of writers have told me they use music to stimulate their muse. They choose the type to match the scene, just like you do. A few have even gone so far as to include a playlist for each chapter or character in the back of the book.
As far as the actual writing, I’m not sure any of the senses are really more difficult to write. Each sense has its own set of adjectives, of course, but it’s just as easy to discuss how sweet, tart, or crunchy an apple is as it is to describe its color. The issue is that some senses are focused on more because we’re more aware of them. Sight is predominant because that’s the sense that gives us the most information of which we’re aware throughout our day. I say “of which we’re aware” because smells can go unnoticed. Not unsmelled, but unnoticed. But some might be surprised to know that smell is the sense which is most closely associated with memory. Smelling an apple pie can remind us of our grandmother, which can then lead to a chain of other memories, followed quickly by the emotions associated with those memories. Sounds can be ignored (Trust me, I worked in Las Vegas casinos for several years. Anything can be ignored if you’re exposed to it enough, lol.). I would wager that the vast majority of description in fiction is about what something looks like.
Mark
8/8/2020 10:48:32 am
A lot of writers that I have interviewed think that smell and taste are the most difficult to write. Not being a writer, I didn't present the opposite case. You have done that quite well for me. Thank you.
I think most of the difficulty comes from the fact that so many of us don’t actually pay that much attention to smell and taste as we go about our lives. Even when we’re eating. If we often have the same meals, say we’re on a dietary regimen where we’re eating the same things or same types of things on a daily basis, we tend to ignore the taste after the first bite verifies that it tastes like what we expect. After that, sight and sound take over when we’re chatting with friends, reading or watching the news, scrolling social media, etc… Smell is similar. The only time we really notice it is if something different tickles our olfactory nerves. Then we take notice. But if we’re writing a scene and really take the time to imagine the full scene, to put ourselves into it, it’s probably not as hard as some may think. I tried to touch on both taste and smell in my scene where Jason eats the calintha fruit in Jaben’s Rift (among others). I wanted to describe the full experience for the reader.
Mark
8/8/2020 01:41:41 pm
That is a good point. I hadn't thought of it in that way. The familiar loses a lot of its appeal sometimes. Beyond the initial taste that confirms what we expect, it's tally ho!
Hollywood these days seems to be more averse than ever to taking risks with an unknown story or source. What they’re failing to realize is that “rebooting” an already successful movie or show is a risk unto itself, and maybe even a bigger one at that. If the movie was successful, then the fan base has already displayed what it likes. Changing that has rarely worked well, and the more popular the original, the more risky trying to catch lightning in a bottle twice is. Reboots should be few and far between. Sequels are a safer option, but even that needs a new story or screenplay. At this point, I’m really not sure if the trend of doing reboots is an aversion to risks, or if it’s simple laziness not wanting to find or create new story lines. There are a lot of very creative screen writers out there. In my opinion, each reboot just robs one or more of them of an opportunity to shine.
Mark
8/8/2020 04:21:58 pm
Life is a lot like the real estate business, where the three most important factors for selling a property are location, location, location. Even though the internet levels that playing field in a number of ways, some things cannot be changed.
Yes, today is the last day to get the Kindle version free. Since it’s enrolled in Kindle Select, it’s always available for free for Kindle Unlimited (KU) members and via the Kindle Online Lending Library (KOLL). The free promotions make it free for everyone.
Mark
8/8/2020 06:31:01 pm
You made a slow start writing the first book. It sure turned out well.
How many drafts did it take? Hmm. That’s a little hard for me to say. I know probably the majority of authors write a first draft and then save it as a first draft doc and then, after revisions, they save that version as a second draft doc and so on and so forth, but I’ve never really written like that. For the most part, I work from the same document from start to finish. Unless I make a major change, there is only one Word doc. If I make a major change, then I might save that version off, but it’s not my usual process. Now, I may go through that doc a half dozen times or more making revisions, so I suppose each of those trips through the manuscript could be considered a draft.
Mark
8/8/2020 08:52:17 pm
You are not the only single-draft writer out there. Many authors write in a similar fashion. As long as it works, keep doing it that way.
For those shower ideas, one way to help remember them until they get written down is to say them out loud. It’s the same logic as saying a person’s name out loud the first time you meet them to help you remember their name (I’m terrible with names).
Mark
8/9/2020 09:56:42 am
I have a problem remembering names also. When I first meet a person if we talk for more than 30 seconds I use their name several times in the conversation. It helps a lot to retain their name in my memory. Using that same trick to keep an idea might work quite well.
I have some very astute folks that have beta read for me in the past. Yes, they’re friends, but they also understand that I need honest feedback (and sometimes they can be brutally honest), so they give it to me. I appreciate an honest critique with constructive criticism as much, or more, than someone simply saying, “It’s awesome! I love it!” Don’t get me wrong, I like to hear that too, but there’s almost always something that can be improved upon in a story, and that’s what I’m looking for.
Mark
8/9/2020 11:31:56 am
You are certainly blessed with your beta readers. They are serving you and your fans perfectly. It also sounds like you have more than one. I think that is a great idea also. Four to six pairs of fresh eyes are an ideal number in my mind.
Yes, I’m pretty happy with the feedback I get from them. And I’ll take as many beta readers as I can get. The more the merrier, they say. Having more eyes on it also returns a wider range of opinions. If I have several telling me similar things, it’s probably something I need to take a closer look at.
Mark
8/9/2020 12:56:23 pm
You identified the most important issues. Getting knocked out of the reading spell is all too easy. I go deep into a story, it's very easy to ignore the world when I am under the spell of a good book. A spelling error can knock me right out. I can return to the story of course, and quickly at that, but when I encounter a lot it gets a little bit harder to maintain the involvement.
I’m a member of the Missouri Writers Guild and the Springfield (MO) Writers Guild. Other than that, and a few Facebook groups, I’m not really involved in any writing groups. To be perfectly honest, I’m not sure how much I would have at this point in my writing journey to contribute. I know those groups are just as much for learning as for teaching, but I don’t want my “contribution” to be all one way. Perhaps after a few more books, I’ll believe I have enough experience to help someone else.
Mark
8/9/2020 05:32:16 pm
You have demonstrated a good deal of knowledge in our chat thus far, I believe you are well qualified to help another less experienced writer in any of those groups. There is always going to be someone who knows less than you and someone who knows more. You don't have to know everything to share the knowledge you have now.
I don’t recall doing a lot of creative writing in school, other than assignments. I was heavy into sports back then, so most of my spare time was spent playing basketball, baseball, etc… In college, I started trying my hand at song writing. Recorded a few for private listening, but nothing ever really came of that. It wasn’t until I began Jaben’s Rift that I really took an interest in writing fiction and creating new worlds for readers to explore. Since then, the desire to create has continued to grow.
Mark
8/9/2020 06:50:26 pm
I was a quiet kid. I liked reading. That set me apart from almost all of my peers, growing up in a very small town. I participated in sports to connect with my peers, though I was not good at any of the sports. I got hurt a lot. I did manage to letter in football, but only because I was the equipment manager and took care of the towels. I was that nerd.
The most important thing I’ve learned? Everything. In fact, I’m still learning. It would be so hard to pick just one thing as the “most important” since so many things work together.
Mark
8/9/2020 08:10:30 pm
You picked the cream of the crop! There are so many things that have to come together to write and publish a good book that sells. Some things are more obvious than others. Your list is perfect.
Do I have a hero? I had to think for a while on that one. I believe we’re surrounded by heroes every single day, from single moms working to provide for their kids to firemen running into burning buildings. The men and women in our military who enlist to serve and protect their country, the guy working two jobs in order to put a roof over his family’s head, grown children taking care of aging parents, all of these and more are heroes to someone, and that’s really just the tip of the iceberg. I admire and recognize all these and more as heroes, but (and this probably sounds terrible) I don’t think I can say I think of anyone in particular as “my” hero. I know it’s an odd distinction, but that’s really the best answer I can come up with. Even if I don’t have anyone whom I consider to be “my” hero, I have nothing but admiration for anyone who is willing to sacrifice themselves, their needs, or even their wants and desires in order to provide for or protect someone else. Those folks are all around us. They’re not hard to find if we just open our eyes.
Mark
8/9/2020 09:20:45 pm
I understand what you mean about being surrounded by heroes. There are so many that will only be appreciated by those they serve, most of the time. sometimes, due to infirmity, even that appreciation will never be verbalized.
So far, everything I’m planning to write will be published. The closest thing I’m working on that would be for my own pleasure would be the story I’m writing with my children as the lead characters and other family members as other characters. I suppose I’m doing that for myself as much as I’m doing it for them, but the plan has always been to publish it once it’s finished. I’m just not sure when that will be. Other than that, everything I write is in the hopes it helps readers forget their problems for a while.
Mark
8/10/2020 10:19:54 am
That family book will be appreciated for a long time.
I think that depends on what you mean by a strong ego. If you’re going to put your work out there for the world to see, you’re definitely going to need some sort of strength. I think you need to have a strong sense of self-confidence. Realize up front that not everyone is going to like your work, and some people who won’t like it won’t have any qualms at all about telling you they don’t like it and why. On the other hand, if someone puts work out there who thinks they can do no wrong and has difficulty accepting criticism, even constructive criticism, they might find the world of publishing to be a bit more than they can handle or want to deal with. The ability to accept criticism or poor reviews and still keep writing is very important. Be strong enough to realize that different people will have different opinions, and that’s okay. The most popular books out there have one-star reviews, so be ready for it. it doesn’t mean your writing is bad, it just means it didn’t appeal to those particular people. Keep writing.
Mark
8/10/2020 12:09:23 pm
That is a very thoughtful answer and quite true. Your phrase: "The ability to accept criticism or poor reviews and still keep writing is very important." encapsulates the idea perfectly.
It’s funny that you mention that “there are those readers who don't normally read in that genre.” I had a lady who didn’t particularly care for Jaben’s Rift, partially because “I, personally, am not into far out ‘magical things’.” I found it odd that she even read the book, since part of the description mentions Teleria being a “world of might and magic.” She still gave it an okay rating though, so I can’t really complain about it. At least it wasn’t a one star, lol.
Mark
8/10/2020 02:39:39 pm
I have heard of similar reviews from other authors. She bought it, read it and left a review. That is a win in my book, yours also, I imagine.
I could see an advantage to using a pseudonym in a couple of situations. If the author wished to keep their personal life and writing life separate so they could go to the store without being mobbed, that would be one way, at least until someone put the pseudonym and RL name together. Or, if an author was already established in one genre but wanted to also write books in another, they could keep the two separate so as not to confuse their readers. Since scifi and fantasy are often linked together, that’s not as much of a consideration for me. But if I wanted to put out mysteries, romance or erotica, or anything significantly different from scifi and fantasy, I might want to do those under a different name.
Mark
8/10/2020 04:30:07 pm
I know of at least one author that has used different pen names for different genres. She has them all gathered together on one website. I assume she has a different landing page for each pen name with an auto-redirect to the main website, but I don't know for sure. I would imagine that she is hoping for some readers to crossover to another genre or two.
It is absolutely important to read books in your chosen genre. You can learn a lot from other writers, see where the current trends appear to be leading, see what’s going on in your neck of the literary world, and get exposed to different writing techniques. Going along with that, it’s also important to read other genres as well. The vast majority of stories are about human interaction and conflict. Conflict of one kind or another is the driving force behind most stories, regardless of genre. But each genre may address these conflicts and interactions just a little differently than the others.
Mark
8/10/2020 06:47:22 pm
Read a lot. Write a lot. Those six words make a lot of sense. None of us can whip out a book a month. But writing short stories can be quite helpful for learning to improve writing and master conflict and terse but effective dialog. Entering contests can go a long way to improving writing skill. Leave a Reply. |
Who am I?An avid reader, typobuster, and the Hyper-Speller. I am a husband, father, and grandfather. Archives
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